It's all very well to take the politically correct and romantic point of view that Bin Laden was driven by the need to see justice in Palestine and that it was a reasonable response to blind and hate fuelled zionism.
Unfortunately Bin Laden is no Angel He was interested in religion from an early age and his beliefs are well known 1) That the Muslim world should adopt Shariah Law 2) That Afghanistan under the rule of the Taliban is the only legitimate "Arab" country 3) That all other ideologies must be stamped out (including democracy) 4) That civilians are legitimate targets in Jihad 5) That the USA should remove itself permanently from the Middle East 6) And above all else, that Israel should be destroyed There is no room for polite negotiation regarding the destruction of Israel. His view is cut and dried. His resolution that civilians are legitimate targets came after the bombing of a hotel in 1992. According to a fatwa issued by Mamdouh Mahmud Salim, the killing of someone standing near the enemy is justified because any innocent bystander will find their proper reward in death, going to Paradise if they were good Muslims and to hell if they were bad or non-believers. In 1998, Osama bin Laden and Ayman al-Zawahiri co-signed a fatwa in the name of the World Islamic Front for Jihad Against Jews and Crusaders which declared the killing of North Americans and their allies an "individual duty for every Muslim" to "liberate the al-Aqsa Mosque (in Jerusalem) and the holy mosque (in Mecca) from their grip". He has also claimed total responsiblity for planning and directing the Sept 11th attacks on the twin towers in New York, claiming that he was inspired to do so when the US allowed Israel to attack the Lebanon. It is also no secret that he was recruited by the US to fight against the Soviet invaders of Afghanistan. I am sure that if interviewed, he would express support for the palestinians and it would, no doubt, be heartfelt, but it is one sided to blame the actions of the Israelis for his emergence as a superterrorist. On Jan 19, 3:04 pm, Pat <[email protected]> wrote: > On 18 Jan, 12:37, archytas <[email protected]> wrote: > > > Another route into less xenophobic reasoning is to think in what > > circumstances we would be fighting like the 'terrorists' = perhaps > > against a technologically superior alien race bent on our destruction. > > Or, perhaps for the very same reasons that sparked Bin Laden, the fact > that there were people (Israelis, in the original case) mowing down > homes of a fellow people (the Palestinians, in the original case), > making them homeless and then, setting up new homes for their own > people. I expect if people from, say, Iowa, decided to cross the > border into Missouri, start mowing down homes and building new homes > for 'Iowans', that Missourians would get rather upset and start > fighting back. Not that that is particularly likely but, if you > change the scenario to Canadians vs. Americans or, crossing a language > barrier, Mexicans vs. Americans, then some sort of Intifada-like > response would be a likely outcome. The fact that Israel are still > doing this is the main reason that fuels the fire of so-called > terrorists. Somebody needs to 'remind' Israel that, if they require > new homes for an expanding population, then they can expand into the > desert, rather than into Palestinian land. That, and, of course, the > fact that 'Palestine' is in two parts, i.e., The West Bank and The > Gaza Strip is another contributing factor. 'Palestine' needs to have > contiguous borders, as does Israel and BOTH sides need to honour > them. These problems are FAR from insurmountable, but there seems to > be no will to address them--on EITHER side--as many feel it's easier > to continue fighting, i.e., maintaining the status quo. But that only > adds fuel to the fire. And silly responses like "we will not enter > into dialogue with terrorists" is a self-defeatist policy. At some > point, the enemy MUST be engaged at the diplomatic table, as the only > alternative is genocide. And Israel, if they travel down that route, > will demonstrate to the world that they didn't learn the lessons of > WWII, which were directed against them. > > > > > On 16 Jan, 16:27, ornamentalmind <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > This is a continuation of the "Are Muslims making you nervous?" topic. > > > > For those who might be interested in experiencing all three ways of > > > knowing about this subject, this author appears to provide the > > > opportunity through more insight than most can provide. If you have > > > the time to watch the Booktv video, the empathetical sense is evoked > > > as well as analysis and analogy. > > > >http://www.booktv.org/Watch/11072/A+Country+Called+Amreeka+Arab+Roots... > > > > At one point she says “The main point is to not have fear.” > > > > From one page of her websitehttp://aliamalek.com/isasynopsis of > > > her book: > > > > “Among the surfeit of narratives about Arabs that have been published > > > in recent years, surprisingly little has been reported on Arabs in > > > America — an increasingly relevant issue. This book is the most > > > powerful approach imaginable: it is the story of the last forty-plus > > > years of American history, told through the eyes of Arab Americans. It > > > begins in 1963, before major federal legislative changes seismically > > > transformed the course of American immigration forever. Each chapter > > > describes an event in U.S. history — which may already be familiar to > > > us — and invites us to live that moment in time in the skin of one > > > Arab American. The chapters follow a timeline from 1963 to the > > > present, and the characters live in every corner of this country. > > > > These are dramatic narratives, describing the very human experiences > > > of love, friendship, family, courage, hate, and success. There are the > > > timeless tales of an immigrant community becoming American, the > > > nostalgia for home, the alienation from a society sometimes as > > > intolerant as its laws are generous. A Country Called Amreeka’s > > > snapshots allow us the complexity of its characters’ lives with an > > > impassioned narrative normally found in fiction. > > > > Read separately, the chapters are entertaining and harrowing > > > vignettes; read together, they add a new tile to the mosaic of our > > > history. We meet fellow Americans of all creeds and colors, among them > > > the Alabama football player who navigates the stringent racial mores > > > of segregated Birmingham, where a church bombing wakes a nation to the > > > need to make America a truly more equal place; the young wife from > > > Ramallah — now living in Baltimore — who had to abandon her beautiful > > > home and is now asked by a well-meaning American, “How do you like > > > living in an apartment after living in a tent?”; the Detroit toughs > > > and the potsmoking suburban teenagers, who in different decades become > > > politicized and serious about their heritage despite their own wills; > > > the homosexual man afraid to be gay in the Arab world and afraid to be > > > Arab in America; the two formidable women who wind up working for > > > opposing campaigns in the 2000 presidential election; the Marine > > > fighting in Iraq who meets villagers who ask him, “What are you, an > > > Arab, doing here?” We glimpse how America sees Arabs as much as how > > > Arabs see America. We revisit the 1973 oil embargo that initiated the > > > American perception of all Arabs as oil-rich sheikhs; the 1979 Iranian > > > hostage crisis that heralded the arrival of Middle Eastern Islam in > > > the American consciousness; bombings across three decades in Los > > > Angeles, Oklahoma City, and New York City that bring terrorism to > > > American soil; and both wars in Iraq that have posed Arabs as the > > > enemies of America. > > > > In a post-9/11 world, Arabic names are everywhere in America, but our > > > eyes glaze over them; we sometimes don’t know how to pronounce them or > > > understand whence they come. A Country Called Amreeka gives us the > > > faces behind those names and tells the story of a community it has > > > become essential for us to understand. We can’t afford to be > > > oblivious.” > > > > On another page is found different news presentations of her work > > > including everything from the Christian Science Monitor to a program > > > on Aljazeera. > > > >http://aliamalek.com/in-the-news/Ablurbabout the latter program > > > shown on YouTube here is printed on that page as follows: > > > > “Arab Americans have been in the US since before its founding but are > > > often treated with hostility and distrust by their countrymen. > > > > With the American government heavily involved in the Middle East, they > > > must deal with the political and emotional challenges of belonging to > > > a country that sometimes pursues policies that are unpopular in their > > > family's homeland. > > > > Seen by potential immigrants as a utopia, does the 'promised land' > > > offer the opportunity and freedom they expected? > > > What is it like having your feet straddle two worlds? > > > > On this episode of the Riz Khan show we look at the challenges and > > > prospects facing Arab Americans today and ask a bigger question: The > > > US is a nation of immigrants, but what does it take to actually become > > > American and succeed? > > > Joining the programme are Alia Malek, the author of A Country Called > > > Amreeka: Arab Roots, American Stories, and Steven Roberts, the author > > > of From Every End of This Earth: 13 Families and the New Lives They > > > Made in America.”- Hide quoted text - > > > - Show quoted text -- Hide quoted text - > > - Show quoted text -
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