IRAQ WAR IS NOT THE SOURCE OF THE TERROR THREAT

The recent report by the National Intelligence Council indicates Iraq has become a training ground for terrorists. David B. Low, a national intelligence officer, said those who live after the war will have the experience necessary to spread the threat of terrorism elsewhere. Instead of curtailing terrorist activity, the report suggests the Iraq war has fueled Islamic radicalism all over the globe.

That the Iraq war added fuel to the fire is true, but Islamic radicals hated America anyway. The war just gave them an opportunity to display more of that hate, the same hate that brought about Nine Eleven, and the same hate that prevented alleged peace-loving followers of Muhammad from publicly condemning that brutal terrorist act.

When hundreds of terrorists flocked to Iraq at the beginning of the war, they did not join the fight out of love for their Islamic brothers. The same goes for those that have gathered there since. Sectarian violence between Sunnis and Shiites proves that point. What seems to motivate Islamic radicals and terrorists is the hatred of western civilization and a fascination with bloodshed. Their blood, our blood, it does not matter. A morbid attraction to violence, death, and destruction is evident.

I am not a trained psychologist, but I believe radical ideas, terrorism, and mayhem appeals to many of these persons because—as some say in the west— they have no life. People who have a good education, a good source of income, a good family, and live in a good society do not normally become terrorists. Therefore, the governments who become the breeding ground for terrorists share part of the blame. Poverty and the nonexistent prospects of living a good and decent life, drives people to choose avenues that lead to self-destruction. Many probably figure they are better off dead than living under such conditions.

I also believe part of the hate they feel for us is due to envy, envy of our freedoms and the way we live. They may not say so, but I believe it is true. If I lived in one of those impoverished places, I too would be envious. Maybe that is why so many Muslims emigrate to Europe and America. There and here, they find opportunities not available in their own nations. They should return the favor by becoming productive citizens and supporting their adoptive countries.

On closer examination, the main source of the terror threat is anger. That anger was there before the Iraq war, and will continue to be there after it ends, unless there is an overall change of consciousness among Muslims. Many terrorists and Islamic radicals are victims of the indoctrination that takes place from the time they are little children. Islam is not a liberal, flexible, and open-minded religion. Muslims grow up in an environment of negations and prohibitions. Rules, rules, and more rules everywhere they turn. In my estimation, when they become adults, they have to be angry at the world for making their lives so miserable. Instead of discovering the true source of their anger—since that would make them infidels—they become fixated on a surrogate enemy. That enemy is the western civilization, the countries of the developed world.

Deep inside, I truly think followers of Islam would like to live as we live, but their religious commitments do not allow them to do so. In some Muslim states, I believe the death penalty applies to people who convert to another religion. Therefore, many Muslims find ways of adjusting to their inherited religion and tradition. Extremists, however, cannot cope with that situation. Therefore, they try to destroy that which they cannot have or enjoy, namely, our way of life. “Why should those people in Europe and America be so lucky?” they probably ask themselves. “If we cannot live like that, why should they?”

My advice to the Islamic world is to open up to the West. Become more liberal. Become more flexible. Analyze in depth your religion, your customs, and your traditions to weed out those things that imprison the human spirit. Be humble and honest in deciding what is true and good. We do not want to lose you. Without you, we are only two thirds of the world more or less—I do not have the exact figures. I for one would like the human race to go forward together into our unknown future. Renounce violence. Renounce terrorism. Recognize the right of all good nations and people to live in peace and enjoy freedom. If you do that, many of us in the West will help you (all your peoples) achieve the highest good life possible. If you do that, Muhammad, Jesus, and Abraham would be proud, for I have no doubt they second my motion. If you do that, God would bless you, I am sure. Think about it.

Recommended Reading: Ercian Testament - Part One, chapter 3 “The Psychology of the Chain.”