A battle (well worth fighting) is brewing on the right
Today, Dean Esmay has a strong post about conservatives who are making the claim that Islamic countries can never become democricies. He is calling out Michelle Malkin in particular.
Does the Conscience of a Conservative Still Exist?
This very statement–that Islam is incompatible with democracy–is why I fight so hard with many of my friends on the Right: accepting that statement means we have to declare war on the entire Muslim world if we’re to hope for human freedom to survive.
To me it would be akin to, in World War II, declaring ourselves at war with “Germanic People,” “Latin People,” and “Southeast Asians.” Not Nazi Germany and Mussolini’s Italy and Tojo’s Japan. No, we would have declared that we were at war with anyone of Germanic or Latin descent, and anyone who happened to be short, yellow, and slant-eyed (to put it rudely and crassly).
There are some on the Right who believe this. But I think they’re badly hurting our efforts. I think such people on the Right are hurting the war effort and not helping it.
This is a very similar arguement to the one we recently discussed on the radio show between Jihad Watch’s Robert Spencer,
Peters’ Assumption #1: the Islam of moderate Muslims is the genuine Islam, and all they need to do is “recapture” their faith. In fact it is not for Peters or any other non-Muslim to say what genuine Islam consists of, and there is no Pope of Islam to rule on what is Islamic orthodoxy and what isn’t. What we can do is look at the teachings of the various sects and schools of law — which I have done, and have found that all mainstream Sunni and Shi’ite sects and madhahib (schools of jurisprudence) teach that it is the responsibility of the umma to subjugate unbelievers under the rule of Sharia.
and Ralph Peters,
But a rotten core of American extremists is out to make it harder for them.
The most repugnant trend in the American shouting match that passes for a debate on the struggle with Islamist terrorism isn’t the irresponsible nonsense on the left - destructive though that is. The really ugly “domestic insurgency” is among right-wing extremists bent on discrediting honorable conservatism.
How? By insisting that Islam can never reform, that the violent conquest and subjugation of unbelievers is the faith’s primary agenda - and, when you read between the lines, that all Muslims are evil and subhuman.
I sympathize and understand with those who think Islam is simply incompatible with democracy. Just look around. When Islamic radicals slaughter innocents in the name of Allah, there is hardly a word of condemnation. When someone draws a cartoon of Mohammed or the Pope utters a benign statement of advancing religion through dialogue, the Muslim â??streetâ?ť leaps into action, has rallies in their capitals around the world and sets out to intimidate those who even question them.
However, as Dean points out, look at Afghanistan. Listen to what Harmid Karzi said this week. Wanting freedom and autonomy over oneâ??s live is a basic human desire. Democracy, maybe not as we know it, can work in Iraq, and elsewhere. I believe that. Given my relentless defense of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, count me in with Ralph, and Dean. Your thoughts?
War On Terror | Kevin | 
September 28, 2006 5:50 am
A recent poll (discussed here) suggests that the Iraqi people have an unfavorable opinion of Al Quaeda and Osama bin Laden. Likewise they want no part of an Iranian-style theocracy.
Those two factors along with the increasing confidence in the Iraqi military’s ability to protect them are positive factors. Maybe it will be an imperfect democracy, but I believe it’s a healthy start.
Once the security issues are resolved, the market forces will stablize the politics — Iraqis want prosperity not jihad and the poll numbers show how they feel about terrorism.
Dean Esmay, spittle flying defends Islam against insults……
(Updated for clarity)
Dean Esmay darling of a certain section of the blogsphere doesn’t much like anyone to disagree with him. Which is somewhat hilarious when you consider his bleatings in the past about the nastiness of the conversation.
It is …
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I could not agree more with Dean. Although some paleo-cons such as Buchannan and Will have made this argument to varying degrees, however, the notion that Muslims “don’t want democracy” or are not capable of self govt is mostly perpetuated by those on the liberal left. Most of them are limosuine liberals such as Dean, Kerry, and Kennedy, who seem to believe that only pointy head intellectuals like themselves have a monoploy on self rule. The other neandrathals are fundamentally unique in their desire to be ruled over by tyrants and despots. This argument is absurd, but it is dangerous in that this mind set has the potential to hinder the free world’s ability to aid these Muslim theocracies in achieving peace and freedom. Bush has been right all along in saying in that every human being’s heart and soul is the desire to live freely (democratically). Liberals, by and large, and some paleo-conservatives don’t share this view and that is too bad b/c it is a elitist view in my humble opinion. But people like Roberty Spencer are also correct in that Muslims can never really live in freedom if “moderate” Muslims don’t condemn their fellow Muslim brothers who believe in Jihad and a global Caliphate/Sharia Law and subjugation of all non-muslims (Jews, Christians, and pagans). This is where I tend to agree with people like Spencer that these “moderate” Muslims are few and far between.But Dean is correct in that we are at war with Islamic Jihadists not all Muslims. Just the Muslims who seek to destroy our nation and the rest of Western Civilization. I really wish that the Muslim “moderates” would surface. In the meantime, we cannnot afford to wait and must purge the world of every terrorist Jihadist troat cutter.
Gregg