Why the Muslims Misjudged Us

city journal ^ | Winter 2002 | Victor Davis Hanson

[Chi-townChief]

bump

[VaMarVet]

BTTT for a very good read - thanks for posting this.

[jimtorr]

Finally, a thoughtful essay on the subject.

Rather long, but reading even every fourth paragraph is worthwhile.

[SubMareener]

So a neighborly bit of advice for our Democrat Party friends and their willing accomplices in the press: topple your pillars of ignorance and the edifice of your anti-Americanism. Try to seek difficult answers from within to even more difficult questions without. Do not blame others for problems that are largely self-created or seek solutions from government when your answers are mostly within your reach. Please, think hard about what you are saying and writing about the deaths of thousands of Americans and your relationship with the people of the United States. The American people have elected you to power more often than not. But now you are on the verge of turning its people—who create, not follow, government—into an enemy: a very angry and powerful enemy that may be yours for a long, long time to come.

[JoeSixPack1]

WOW! Victor Davis Hanson

EXCELLENT READ!!!!

[maica]

Thoughtful but sobering reading.

[Man of the Right]

But for terrorism, the Muslims don't matter. The way to reduce terrorism is to kill the terrorisms and to make the heads of Arab governments fear us more than they fear the terrorists or their own street. Appeasement didn't work.

[dennisw]

This was written in Febuary 2002 and posted back then. I re-posted it because it is still very good and will be for a long time.

[Kenton]

As the Australians mourn their dead in the Bali nightclub bombing, it becomes quite clear that this is nothing less than a war between the predominant voices of Islam and Western Civilization.

This is the third great World War, better get ready for it. And when all the voices speaking for Islam seem to be telling you that their goal is to overthrow Western Civilization and supplant it with an Islamic dictatorship, we should listen to them. We need to get out of denial and recognize that Islam, as an institution, is the enemy, with a possible few exceptions.

The "Religion of Peace" Muslims have had over a year to make themselves known, I have seen very few to this date. I will consider them all my mortal enemies until they demonstrate otherwise.

[Neever]

"Most Americans recognize and honor the past achievements of Islamic civilization and the contribution of Middle-Eastern immigrants to the United States and Europe..."

I must disagree. The war, death, and destruction that Islam perpetrates upon the "Jews, Christians, and Infidels" far outweighs any contributions it has made. We can adduce much evidence that Islam is more of a threat than it is anything else.

[Dutchgirl]

We are militarily strong, and the Arab world abjectly weak, not because of greater courage, superior numbers, higher IQs, more ores, or better weather, but because of our culture. When it comes to war, 1 billion people and the world’s oil are not nearly as valuable military assets as MIT, West Point, the U.S. House of Representatives, C-Span, Bill O’Riley, and the G.I. Bill.

Yup. That about sums it up. Thanks for the great repost. I am bookmarking it this time.

[PLK]

Thanks for the great article. I have sent it to many of my friends. Great reading.

[livius]

Bump for great article!

[PogySailor]

BTTT

[Maelstrom]

The author has made some mistakes.

It is limited government, not democracy, that brought freedom to the Western World.

Freedom, not democracy, brought prosperity to the Western World.

Limited government, not egalitarianism, makes democracy work in the Western World.

The Islamic fundamentalist doesn't not covet what the Western World has wrought. He objects to having his faith shown to be flawed by the successes of the West while his people live out their lives in Medieval fashion. His thinking is that his people live as they should and the high living standards of the West are an Abomination.

This thinking is also the reason why Israel, so successful in the heart of the beast, denying them claim that the Western World is successful by it's placement across the world's resources.

I believe this thinking also reveals the consistency in the demonstrated lusts of the Arab in America, all the while hating us.

The Islamic fundamentalists' hatred for America runs deeper than mere jealousy. It's founded on the complete incompatibility of their belief system and Western success, and prosperity.

They do not want what we have, they want to destroy us to deny proof of the flaws in their belief system.

[Neophyte]

the temple of anti-Americanism is supported by pillars of utter ignorance.

There is indeed a streak of ignorance in the Arab anti-Americanism, but it is no more "the pillar" or the main cause of this ugly feature than "poverty" or "Zionist oppression" are. The guys have their agenda, and, they reckon, in its pursuit all the means are good. And they do know that America is the last redoubt in defence of the free world, so their hatred is based on knowledge, not on ignorance.

As to the Western anti-Americanism, there is no ignorance in it whatsoever, since Leftie academia and liberal intelligentsia are the main culprits.

Why, a former Australian diplomat Bruce Heigh (spelling?) told this morning on the Aussie Prime TV that if Americans didn't support Israel the terrorist act in Bali wouldn't happen! Surely a diplomat would know that the goal of the Indonesian Muslims is to create an Islamic super state incorporating the Phillippines, Malaysia, Singapore and parts of Thailand... and even if Israel never existed at all it wouldn't change anything for the Indonesian Muslims.

[RogueIsland]

One of the best articles I've read here in a good while. Excellent find.

[TomSmedley]

... it becomes quite clear that this is nothing less than a war between the predominant voices of Islam and Western Civilization.

Psalm 2 comes to mind. Even successful conspiracies against the God of the Bible have expiration dates. Communism flared up, engulfed 1/3 of the world, than suddenly died within a single human lifespan. Islam has been hostile to humanity for a longer period of time, but its days are numbered.

Finally, secular humanism will have its date with destiny.

[el_texicano]

"So a neighborly bit of advice for our Democrat Party friends..."

Excellent essay. And I was thinking the same thing as you so aptly transposed this toward the political party of the liberal elitist. Very well transposed...

Kudos SubMareener

And it is so frighteningly true of the final statement that they - anti-Americans are "turning its people—who create, not follow, government—into an enemy: a very angry and powerful enemy"

Like the saying in some recent movie, "May God have mercy on your souls, for we will not"