Islam and terror
So, here we are, trying to make distinctions between Shiiites and Sunnis, Arabs and Indonesians, true believers and recent converts, moderate and extreme Muslims. And what happens: well, first of all, 19 Arabs, mainly Saudis, attack New York and Washington DC; Indonesian radicals blow up a nighclub in Bali; a black army vet does target practice in the DC suburbs; and Chechen rebels threaten to blow up hundreds of Russians in a Moscow theater. And, what do the attackers have in common? Yes, they're Muslim.
Sure, the motives are mixed. Arab nationalism, dislike of the American-backed Saudi regime, Javanese fear of losing control of the Indonesian archipelago, personal failure, misdirected resentment, national liberation. But they are all coming together under the banner of Islam. Inevitably, Western governments and Western people will begin to treat Muslims as potentially hostile. Which is, in part, a self-fulfilling prophecy.
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