Canada is a “filthy place” – this, according to a handwritten letter sent by a Canadian al-Qaeda agent to his family back in Canada.

Once a University of Manitoba engineering student, Maiwand Yar left in 2007 and mailed the letter from a terrorist outpost in Pakistan.

The letter recently became public, and is being used as evidence in the American trial of Yar’s friend and former classmate, Muhanad al-Farekh, who is facing terrorism charges after being captured in Pakistan.

In the letter, Yar urges his family to leave Canada and instructs them to stop watching Hollywood movies and North American news stations — “nothing but lies”— and to avoid Western fashion and Canadian public schools.

“Put all the kids in an Islamic school and make the kids wear (a) hijab from an early age,” he commands.

This letter offers a rare glimpse into the mind of a radicalized jihadist. In his own words, he explains exactly what he is doing and why.

The letter goes against everything Justin Trudeau and his friends want us to believe about Islamists, and debunks many of the prevailing myths pushed by those who sympathize and apologize for radical Islamists.

First, the letter provides a calm and clear explanation for why this young man left Canada to join a terrorist army. Yar insists he isn’t crazy or under any illusions when it comes to his hatred for Canada.

Far from the narrative that terrorists suffer from mental illness, Yar emphasizes that he’s made a choice, and he believes it’s the right one.

Second, Yar explicitly says he’s not brainwashed. “It hurts me so much that you believe I left because I was brainwashed and didn’t know what I was doing,” he writes. Yar instead accuses his family and the Muslim community in Canada of going astray and betraying his fundamentalist worldview.

Third, this terrorist is incredibly religious, and his letter is filed with references to Islamic scripture and scholars who promote violent jihad against non-Muslims.

It’s clear he’s a devout and fundamentalist Muslim, motivated by his faith. Anyone who still believes that Islamist terrorism has “nothing to do with Islam” should read this letter.

Forth, the letter is surprisingly articulate – revealing Yar as intelligent and well-educated. His beliefs are evil—based on 7th century morality and militant tribalism—but there is no doubt he possesses a thorough and well-researched ideology.

Finally, this letter debunks the prevailing myth that terrorists are driven by a lack of economic opportunity.

Graduating from a top Canadian university with an engineering degree could have landed Yar a high-paying job. He is smart, and could have had a very good life in Canada.

This terrorist didn’t reject Canada because he had no other options. He made a clear choice.

He believed he was fighting in a war of civilizations, and he was willing to die for his cause.

Jihadists repeatedly tell us, in cogent language, that they are fighting a war to destroy our civilization and to impose their Islamist ideology.

We can either choose to take terrorists at their word, and do something to stop the spread of Islamist jihad.

Or we can choose to believe Justin Trudeau – who sees terrorists as victims, deserving of a second chance. Trudeau said the Boston Marathon bombings only happened because someone “feels completely excluded.” He’s rewarded ex-terrorists – with cash and citizenship.

We can choose to be realistic or naive.

That’s our choice. The jihadists have made theirs.