Islam knows no compromise

The importance of Terry Jones’ threat to burn Korans is not his crass exhibitionism.  Rather it lies in the fact that Jones’ behaviour is  a symptom of the catastrophic failure of the American elite to accept the reality of Islam, a failure which causes them to represent the creed as simply another religion no different in principle to, say, the Quakers or Methodists, and consequently a matter for private conscience alone.  This blindness is encapsulated in the absurd liberal mantra that “Islam is a religion of peace and love”. As someone who has taken the trouble to read the Koran let me give a flavour of this supposed paragon of non-violence and political correctness: Koranic Quotations ‘Because of their iniquity, we forbade the Jews the good  things  which  were  formerly  allowed  them; because  time after time they debarred others  from the  path of Allah;  because they practice usury  – although they were forbidden it – and cheat  others of their possessions.’ (Chapter entitled ‘Women’). ‘Men  have authority over women because  Allah  has made  the  one superior to the other,  and  because they  spend  their wealth to  maintain  them.  Good women are obedient.  They guard their unseen  parts because Allah guarded them.  As for those from whom you fear disobedience,  admonish them and send then to  beds  apart and beat them.’  (Chapter  entitled ‘Women’). ‘As  for the man or woman who is guilty  of  theft, cut  off  their  hands to  punish  them  for  their crimes.  That is the punishment enjoined by Allah.’ (Chapter entitled ‘The Table’). ‘As  for the unbelievers,  the fire of Hell  awaits them.  Death shall not deliver them,  nor shall its torment be ever lightened for them.  Thus shall the thankless  be  rewarded.’  (Chapter  entitled  ‘The Creator’). ‘Prophet,  make  war  on the  unbelievers  and  the hypocrites and deal vigorously with them.  Hell  is their home.’ (Chapter entitled ‘Repentance’). ‘You shall not wed pagan women, unless they embrace the faith. A believing slave-girl is better than an idolatress…’ (Chapter entitled ‘The Cow’). ‘When the sacred months are over slay the idolators wherever you find them. Arrest them,  besiege them, and  lie in ambush  everywhere for them.’  (Chapter entitled ‘Repentance’). ‘Believers,  retaliation  is  decreed  for  you  in bloodshed: a free man for a free man, a slave for a slave,  and  a  female  for  a  female.’   (Chapter entitled ‘The Cow’). That is a very small selection of the vast number of  Koranic exhortations to Muslims to behave in ways which would chill the blood of the politically correct.

In principle, Muslims can never be loyal subjects or citizens of any nation or discrete political entity because Islam enjoins its adherents to give their allegiance only to Allah. This is a more extreme theological position than that of Catholics whose temporal allegiance is to a man, the Pope, although the doubts raised about Muslims’ loyalty today are similar to those raised by about Catholics in the past when the Papacy had real political power. .

Islam also has profound developmental differences from Christianity. The latter grew organically over three centuries as a persecuted religion before Constantine made it the state religion of Rome. Those three centuries of persecution made Christianity a pacific movement and its conversion into the state religion of Rome ensured that any fanatical proselytising tendencies were kept in check.

Islam on the other hand became a politically dominant religion immediately and from the outset was extremely aggressive. In addition, Islam has a Holy Book which, unlike the Bible, is supposedly the work of a single person relating the direct word of God. This makes anything other than a literalist interpretation next to impossible.

Most importantly for the present day, Islam is a totalitarian creed. There is no distinction between the religion and the rest of life. Islam touches every aspect of life in the most intimate way.  It is politics, the law, economic life, culture and customs.

Most dramatically, the desired end of devout Muslims is that the world should be peopled entirely by Muslims who are bound together in a single human entity. For the Muslim there is no concept of peaceful and equal coexistence between Islam and non-Muslims as a desired end.  Islam accepts that as a matter of practical necessity that coexistence may be necessary where Islam does not have the immediate power to enforce its will, but wherever it has the power the will is enforced and non-Muslims are either driven out of the state through direct state action or the inaction of the state to prevent t laissez faire persecution or pressured to turn to Islam. At best non-Muslims in majority Muslim states can expect an inferior status, both legal and social.

The upshot of this mentality is a resolute refusal to compromise. At its most extreme this results in terrorist acts such as 9/11 and 7/7. But it is naive to say “it is only a tiny proportion of Muslims who are terrorists” because the support of  terrorist acts is pyramidal. At the top are the bombers. Below them the bomb makes. Beneath them the providers of money, safe houses, munitions. Under them those willing to demonstrate. Finally, comes the mass of people who take the IRA complicit line of “I don’t agree with their methods but….”.

The refusal to do anything other than follow the dictates of their faith can be seen in Muslims involved in the proposed 9/11 site mosque. They  have shown no willingness to compromise in any way let alone display any sensitivity to the feelings of non-Muslims. This is par for the course as the normal behaviour of Muslims is to insist upon their will while ignoring the will of non-Muslims.

The majority of Americans may think or at least say in public that Jones’ behaviour is beyond the Pale, but the vast majority of Americans find highly obnoxious the demands Muslims in the USA routinely make, for example the 9/11 mosque and  their constant assaults on free expression whenever any criticism of their religion occurs.  The fact that a fifth of Americans think Obama is a Muslim is indicative of the intense concern Islam is generating in the USA.

The problem with condemning unreservedly Terry Jones is that it drives further a wedge which has already gone deep not only into the USA but Western society generally, namely, that caused by the incessant appeasement of Muslims by Western governments. People such as Jones may be crass in their behavior, but they are expressing a widespread fear and anger which elites are ignoring. At bottom, what is called Islamophobia by Western elites is simply the natural reaction of any people to having their territory, both physical and intellectual, invaded.  Because of that elite failure and betrayal, Jones should be seen as a useful if unwitting catalyst who has  forced a subject hated and feared by liberals –  the mess created by mass immigration and multiculturalism –  into public view.

I will leave you with this thought. The official estimate of Muslims in Britain is two million. That estimate is almost certainly an underestimate because  official estimates of ethnic groups invariably are. There are probably three million.   If one in a thousand turn terrorist that is 3,000 terrorists. That would represent a far greater threat than ever the IRA did simply in numbers. The Muslim threat is amplified by the fact that unlike the IRA, they have no restraint.

Robert Henderson

12 9 2010