The Enemy Is Not Islam. It Is Nihilism

Weekly Standard ^ | October 22, 2001 | Charles Krauthammer

[samtheman]

In my opinion, Islam essentially is Nihilism. So to a certain extent I disagree with Krauthammer. I do believe this piece is worth reading.

[moneyrunner]

”In my opinion, Islam essentially is Nihilism. So to a certain extent I disagree with Krauthammer. I do believe this piece is worth reading.”

Thanks for posting this. An excellent read.

I disagree with you. Islam is not inherently nihilistic, or it would not have existed as a culture for over a thousand years. The particular strain we are facing is. The danger to civilization is the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction that can be bought or captured if the nihilists are not stopped now.

Even now it may be too late to stop some act of mass terror that will make 9/11 look like a warm-up. It depends on how fast, how hard and how effectively we strike.

Pray for success.

[ChadGore]

Yes! . .this is an excelent point.

[ChadGore]

bttt

[samtheman]

You make good points, especially about the coming dangers we all face.

You're probably right about mainstream Islam not being Nihilistic per se, though it certainly lends itself easily to manipulation by Nihilism, to the point where the vast majority of Muslims support the nihilistic actions of "the extremists".

Anyway, I'm willing to modify my statement:

Islam is virulent Barbarism that lends itself quite easily and willingly to maniacal Nihilism.

[InkStone]

Dr. Laura recently had a guest on her show. Dr. Hatoot (sp?) is an Islamic scholar. He was there to "set the record straight regarding the 'peaceful' Islamic faith." But it turned out quite differently...by the time the hour had passed I was more worried than ever. Remember the old advertising adage: "You see things the way you are, not the way they are."

[x]

What evidence do you have to back up your claim? What features of Islam form the basis of your characterization of it as nihilism?

Islam is a radical monotheism. Would any radical monotheism then be a nihilism? I would have thought monotheism to be strongly opposed to nihilism, but since you make the charge, you might want to deal with that question.

Krauthammer's association of the terrorists with Nazism is of interest. But it's not so much that bin Laden is the new Hitler, as that they both grow out of that European atmosphere that produced the anarchists, nihilists and Bolsheviks of a century ago, the Nazis, fascists and Freikorps of the following generation, and the revolutionaries of the 1960's and 1970's. These groups feed off an apocalyptic current that you can trace through history from at least as far back as the Middle Ages and late Antiquity down to Jim Jones and other cultists. There are also certainly precedents for what happened in Islamic history. One can't deny that at various times there has been a fanatical current there, but it's not something that hasn't also been present in Western History. Another parallel would be with the Kamikazis of WWII, though they weren't attacking non-military targets.

[ATOMIC_PUNK]

ni·hil·ism (n-lzm, n-)
n.

1. Philosophy.
   1. An extreme form of skepticism that denies all existence.
   2. A doctrine holding that all values are baseless and that nothing can be known or communicated.
2. Rejection of all distinctions in moral or religious value and a willingness to repudiate all previous theories of morality or religious belief.
3. The belief that destruction of existing political or social institutions is necessary for future improvement.
4. also Nihilism A diffuse, revolutionary movement of mid 19th-century Russia that scorned authority and tradition and believed in reason, materialism, and radical change in society and government through terrorism and assassination.
5. Psychiatry. A delusion, experienced in some mental disorders, that the world or one's mind, body, or self does not exist.

Nihilism n 1: a revolutionary doctrine that advocates destruction of the social system for its own sake 2: complete denial of all established authority and institutions

[2sheep]

>>>The Enemy Is Not Islam. It Is Nihilism

No, the enemy IS Islam.  Truth is being annihilated.   Lies said often enough are still lies.

See, The Allah that Failed:  The 10 Pillars of Totallahtarianism by Robert Locke

[Prodigal Daughter]

Bookmarked to read later. Isn't Krauthammer editor of National Review, the magazine that fired Ann Coulter for telling the truth? (we should convert them, etc.) Islam and paganism are nihilistic by nature.

[Jimmy Valentine]

The Nihilism I'm worried about is centered in the United States primarily on the Left among the influential elitists. Coupled with an Existential cynicism in that same group it is a very toxic value set.

These people need to be purged from our educational, cultural and governmental institutions. They are the intellectual cousins of Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge.

Regards,

[politeia]

The comparison of Islamic fundamentalism with Nazism and with all the murderous ideologies of the 20th century is indeed appropriate. According to Speer's account, in the final days before allied armies entered Berlin, Hitler ordered the destruction of the city. His attitude was that the German people, his own people, didn't deserve to live after losing the war. He wished them all dead along with himself. The city must be destroyed too. His hatred of all life, all civilization, and of all peoples was total. This is the psyche of a murderous, self-loathing bully writ large and empowered with an idology that justifies hatred and with the modern technology to try to accomplish his societal death wish. I believe Islamic fundamentalism is fueled by the same self-loathing and the same hatred of life. When Bin Laden's cause is lost, he will turn against his own people with the same zeal he has directed against the West.

The West's greatest vulnerability is its reluctance to recognize this evil...to call it by its name and to return its ferocity in our own fight for life and for freedom. Its the "Can't we all just get along attitude." It is a naive view of human nature that believes that all humans are naturally good and, if treated reasonably and compassionately, will cooperate with each other peacefully and with good intentions. The West maintains this default "Pollyanna" view of human nature despite all the evidence of the 20th century of the susceptability of the human mind to the power of an evil and totalitarian idology. It speaks well for our humanity but works against our survival. Witness our naive and suicidal immigration policy that welcomes terrorists bent on our destruction into our midst.

Whether it is Nazism, Communism, hatred of Jews or Islamic fascism, it is the ideology that justifies the hatred and the murderous acts and it is the ideology that must be defeated along with the armies of its adherents. I keep remembering the scene in the movie "Independence Day" when the alien was in the operating room and the "President" tried to negotiate saying we could learn from each other and finally asking "What do you want us to do?" The answer from the alien was simple and direct -- "Die." Even though the aliens has already attacked 15 large cities, it was only then that the apocalptic nature of the evil was accepted and only then that will to pull out all the stops in the fight for survival was summoned.

[gitmogrunt]

Never mind all the religious and philosophical goble-de-gook..

THE ENEMY IS ISLAM!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No if's, and's or but's about it!!!!

[ChadGore]

This story needs to be bumped all day.

[x]

Interesting article here: Modernizing Tendency.

[Focault's Pendulum]

Great post.

[GuillermoX]

Sorry. Islam IS the enemy. Too bad Bush doesn't recognize this, he's to busy proclaiming Islam to be a "peaceful and beautiful religion".

[moneyrunner]

”His attitude was that the German people, his own people, didn't deserve to live after losing the war. He wished them all dead along with himself. The city must be destroyed too. His hatred of all life, all civilization, and of all peoples was total. This is the psyche of a murderous, self-loathing bully writ large and empowered with an idology that justifies hatred and with the modern technology to try to accomplish his societal death wish. I believe Islamic fundamentalism is fueled by the same self-loathing and the same hatred of life. When Bin Laden's cause is lost, he will turn against his own people with the same zeal he has directed against the West.”

Excellent essay.

However, I disagree with your analysis of Hitler’s personality. He was the very opposite of self-loathing. He was totally self-centered. The war was about HIS vision of the world. And, as a totally self-centered personality, he was able to commit any crime to achieve his aims.

And, in the end, when all was lost, he wanted the German people to die because they did not live up to his standards. They did not help him achieve his goals. In other words, they were not good enough for him.

By the way, it is this aspect of the Clintons that is so dangerous. It’s totally about them, and their vision of the future. Nothing else, no one else, matters. That’s what makes them sociopaths.

I agree with you that bin Laden cares not a whit about his people except as a means of achieving his vision. When he loses, he will wish them all dead, because they were not good enough for him.

Not self-loathing … egomaniacal.

[blam]

"Isn't Krauthammer editor of National Review."

No. Rich Lowry is editor. Krauthammer does not even show up on their list of contributors.