London and Terror (Part 2)

So to reiterate the brunt of my previous post, I think that the attacks that occurred in London a week ago are horrendous in nature. I also believe that the perpetrators of the attacks are among the most despicable entities walking the face of the earth. There is no reason for such tyranny at all. We indeed suspect that some group connected to al-Qaeda is responsible for the attacks (al-Qaeda is the United States’ central foe in its War on Terror).

As I stated, I do think these terrorists should be fought, but I do not believe that the methods the USA has taken are the best way to do it. First and foremost, education about the religion that the terrorists claim to be a part of would be a great idea in my opinion. Also, honesty about our successes and failures thus far in the War on Terror (as well as honesty about Iraq) are necessary in the coming days from the Bush Administration.

And I’ve got a dozen other thoughts on this topic, but here’s a thought:

All my peace-lovin’, non-violent, “these people don’t represent Islam” Muslims, where you at??? If Bin Laden and his al-Qaeda organization don’t represent the religion, then why aren’t there loud, powerful voices from Islamic Nations and Institutions pushing the virtues of Islam by opposing al-Qaeda on every front? And it might be argued that it is not incumbent upon the average Muslim or Muslim Leader to say anything, but consider this, in instances where a group is wrongly abusing another, it often takes members from the “abusing group” to stand up against one another to end the wrongful behavior.

That last sentence may have been a little confusing, so let me break it down for you with this example. Despite the valiant efforts of Mamie Till, Rosa Parks, MLK, Medgars Evers, Thurgood Marshall (and many others), it took prominent, powerful (as well as everyday, common) white people (mainly white men) to stand up against the KKK, white supremacists, and racist Jim Crow Laws in order to abolish slavery, desegregate society, and grant Black people the Civil Rights they deserve.

There would be no Civil Rights equality if there was no Abe Lincoln, JFK, or LBJ, no matter how many marches on Washington went down. If it had not been for the average white citizens who went to the polls with Black people and registered Blacks to vote, the Black voice may never have been heard. White people had to tell other white people that slavery, lynchings, and racism are wrong before progress was made. And there are countless other examples I could point to on many different fronts including education, corporate America, as well as foreign conflicts (consider the major Wars of last century).

So where are the Cleric’s, the Imam’s, the Ayotollah’s? Where are the protests for peace, where is the NY Times Islamic op/ed column statement of condemnation, where's the resolve to undermine Bin Laden at all costs? Where is the Fatwa?

One significant criticism I have of Islamic States is that they rarely take on such causes. For example, when Slobodon Milosevic was committing genocide against Muslims in the former Yugoslavia 10 years ago, very little aid (monetary, military or other) came from Islamic Nations to stop the crisis. In the Sudan right this minute, there are Arab Muslims committing genocide against Black Muslims in Darfur, yet nearby Arab countries have been virtually silent on the issue. And finally, when the December 26 Tsunami hit Indonesia (home to the largest Muslim community in the World), only a pittance of aid was pledged by Islamic nations until well after multitudes of non-Islamic nations pledged gratuitous amounts of physical and monetary aid (it’s worth noting that many Islamic nations are among the richest in the World simply because of the oil fields that they sit on, including Saudi Arabia and the UAE).

On the flipside of the coin, let a non-Islamic, Democratic Nation like the USA breath the word “Democracy” in the direction of an “Arab land,” and nations that most people have never heard of start uprisings and stage major protests (not that I agree with the way the USA goes about doing things, but to keep things in perspective and to be equally objective).

I think that if this al-Qaeda group is going to be stopped, then they need to be held accountable by Muslims worldwide (and certainly held accountable by Islamic States and religious leaders). And one sure-fire way to improve the image of the religion on a major scale in ignorant Democratic nations like the USA is to have Saudi Arabia or Egypt or Pakistan, for example, truly condemn such actions in more than just mere words (though at this point, any word condemning al-Qaeda would be a good start).

I do feel that there are some instances in life where silence is akin to agreement. I personally know that many Muslims are in total disagreement with al-Qaeda’s tactics if not their ideologies. Unfortunately, many people are not as aware as I am. Through ignorance, when Muslims don’t immediately and boisterously come out and condemn al-Qaeda’s handywork, it lends itself to making people think that “all Muslims are terrorists,” or at least that "they" all agree with al-Qaeda's tactics. And if you don’t believe me, just listen to talk radio (like Bill O’Reilly’s radio show for example), and listen to the comments that citizens phone-in.

Point being, it’s high time for major condemnation of Bin Laden from Islamic States.

Now I do not believe that Bin Laden will stop his tyranny simply because Muslims Worldwide don’t back him. However, the louder the voice from the Islamic world is against him, the less likely it is that Bin Laden will be able to indoctrinate and recruit young radicals. And after a while, if the voice against him remains firm, he will become a nuisance and a sideshow, having lost all of his pull. And that is what I hope for, and that is why I believe that it is absolutely incumbent upon peace-loving Muslims that they stand boldly in his face and denounce his treachery.

Just my opinion

-Maelstrom

Here’s a link to an article that CNN posted the other day that I found interesting:
http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/07/08/london.muslims/index.html