Radical Islam Fights On

Robert L. Wichterman

Robert L. Wichterman writes from Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Radical Islam is the 21st century's successor to the European fascism of the 20th century. Al Qaeda, Hezbollah, Hamas, and other Muslim extremists have used the same stratagems to prepare their followers for a jihad against America, the West, and Israel, as the Nazis did in the 1930s: select a distinct race or ethnic group already susceptible to cultural suspicions and who have neither the means, nor the power, to defend themselves.

The Nazis chose the Gypsies, Christian pacifists, and Communists as targets, but singled out the Jews as their primary scapegoats. The explanation justifying their deeds was that those people were hindering Germany's recovery from the consequences of the Great War, which was followed by the unfair Versailles Treaty, ruinous currency inflation, and in 1932, the worldwide economic depression. Not many Germans disagreed with this message.

The authoritarian Islamic governments, including factions such as the Islamic Brotherhood, have followed the same course. Like their Nazi and Communist predecessors, they picked the Jews, and the nation of Israel. Israel however, is no longer weak and defenseless. In fact, they are not only stronger than their Arab adversaries economically, but their military forces have humiliated the Arab's armies time after time. The Muslim's animosity is so intense that Israel does not even appear on any Arab school's map. That region is named "Palestine."

The radical Iranian Shiite Muslims have dubbed the United States "The Great Satan," as we had supported the Shah. He had continued to supply us and Western Europe with oil during OPEC's 1974 ban on selling it to Israel's allies. We are all, now, on the list of "infidel" nations to be destroyed and Islamized. Just as Hitler's and Stalin's goals were to achieve worldwide hegemony, radical Islam's is the same, and more. Historically, this objective pre-dated the birth of the United States. In March, 1785, John Adams, and Thomas Jefferson, were negotiating with the Barbary Pirates, hoping to convince them to stop seizing our merchant ships, and enslaving the crews. They were shocked to be told that "The Koran demanded that all nations acknowledge Islam's authority." Further, that they had:

. . . the right and duty to make war upon whoever they could find, and to make slaves of all they could take as prisoners, and that every Musselman (Muslim) who should be slain in battle was sure to go to paradise.

These beliefs and their positions have not changed since then. After the overthrow of the Turkish Ottoman Empire in 1918, Islamic militancy became dormant. But, it was re-awakened following the Soviet Union's 1979 invasion of Afghanistan.

To achieve their goal of Islamizing the world, in spite of Israel's military and economic strengths, the rulers of these authoritarian states must control their subjects as did Hitler and Stalin: intimidate and terrorize them by assassinating any opposition so that no one ever feels world peace," as did Herr Hitler and Comrade Stalin.

The aim of all autocratic governments is to continually attain more power. They view all politically free nations as their adversaries, since the working and living standards of the citizens of those democratic countries are far above those trapped in a police state. Tyrants will use any measures to hide those contrasts from their public. They attempt to discredit democracies by using both half-truths and outright lies when reporting on our problems with crime, racial discrimination, drugs, and alcoholism. We counter with radio and television programs broadcasting the facts regarding our difficulties and failings.

The totalitarian despots of the 21st Century share another erroneous opinion with those from the 20th century. Germany, Japan, and the Soviet Union had the impression that the citizens of democracies were "soft," and would not fight to preserve their freedoms. With only a few anomalies, that notion was disproven.

The slogan "Freedom is not free" is accepted generally. The companion axiom that "A nation will only remain free as long as its citizens are willing to die to preserve their liberties," is also affirmed. The fact that we are now sending a 100 percent volunteer military force into "harm's way" to maintain those freedoms and our way of life proves that our young people -- both men and women -- are still prepared to put their lives "on the line" for our country.

President Obama is sending out puzzling signals regarding our Afghanistan commitment, although our military leaders appear to be handling them well. He is increasing the number of deployed troops while telling everyone that we will start reducing the number of combat personnel in July, 2011. Some observers believe that message is to appease the anti-war faction of the Democratic Party. Unfortunately, it also confirms Osama bin Laden's prediction that America does not have the perseverance to "stay the course." He has exhorted his followers to continue the fight because Allah (and time) are on their side. Moreover, there is no consensus within the Democratic Party -- and the country -- regarding how we may honorably extricate ourselves from Afghanistan.

It has been said that Americans no longer have the patience to continue a long struggle -- that after six months we lose interest and want to move on to something else. Yet in the first six months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, most of the news was bad; except for Col. Doolittle's air raid on Tokyo, and the battles in the Coral Sea, and at Midway Island, we had lost Wake Island, Guam, and the Philippines. However, we knew that we could not surrender, or sue for peace. The only option was victory, no matter how long it took to achieve it, and despite the costs.

Soon after we defeated the Axis nations, the USSR instigated the Cold War, which lasted from 1946 to 1989. There were many wins and losses, from the Berlin Air Lift, to Korea, to the Building of the Berlin Wall, to Vietnam. And it was expensive. But we never considered walking away from it.

Now radical Islam has declared war on the U. S., the non-Muslim world, and those sects within Islam who do not adhere to the Sunni Wahhabi doctrine. Throughout the Muslim world, America is condemned, not only for its ideals and lifestyle, but principally because we are considered non-believers -- infidels. There can never be a negotiated peace. President Obama, please take note. For, just as we succeeded in defeating fascist Italy and Germany, imperial Japan, and the totalitarian USSR in the 20th century, we have to "tough it out" again in the 21st. Peace at any price is a poor alternative, and was really not an option for the America of yesteryear.

Let's hope it is not the alternative chosen by today's generation. *

"The God who gave us life, gave us liberty at the same time." --Thomas Jefferson