

If We Can't Even Name the Enemy So who is this enemy that everyone refuses to identify? The enemy is radical Islam; what some call Islamism, Islamists, Islamo-fascists or Islamo-Nazis. And what is even worse, radical Islam is becoming the norm instead of the aberration. Politically incorrect as this may be, it is time for the truth to come out. Besides, the evidence is rampant, if only people have the fortitude to face it. Beth Goodtree

OpEds צילום: ערוץ 7 לבן ריק Beth Goodtree Beth Goodtree lives in the New York City metro area and has a background in advertising. She writes political commentary and the occasional science and humor pieces. More from the author ► Beth Goodtree lives in the New York City metro area and has a background in advertising. She writes political commentary and the occasional science and humor pieces.



This enemy uses new tactics and fights an unconventional war. No more massing of uniformed troops on their victim's borders prior to invasion. This enemy infiltrates its targets using the legal means set up by its targets, hides among civilians, covers its face when out in the open, and uses lies and propaganda, as well as blackmail, to establish a foothold. This enemy has no shame, certainly no morals, nor a particle of honor. And yet, all of the aforementioned nations cannot name this enemy, confusing the symptom with the actual pernicious disease.



Unlike US President George Bush and his compatriots have stated, the enemy is not terror. Terror is merely a symptom of a fatal sickness; it is a warfare tactic employed by the adversary. Therefore, stopping the terror is not feasible unless the enemy, and thus the disease itself, is vanquished.



So who is this enemy that everyone refuses to identify? The enemy is radical Islam; what some call Islamism, Islamists, Islamo-fascists or Islamo-Nazis. And what is even worse, radical Islam is becoming the norm instead of the aberration. Politically incorrect as this may be, it is time for the truth to come out. Besides, the evidence is rampant, if only people have the fortitude to face it. As much as the purveyors of political correctness may delude themselves into thinking that everyone will behave nicely and everything will be equal and hunky-dory if only we speak in socio-religious-neutral tones, reality doesn't work that way.



One has only to examine acts of terrorism for the past three-and-a-half years to see that it is almost exclusively caused by Islamists. America, Bali, Madrid, Kashmir, the Philippines, Pakistan, India, Russia -- no place is safe from the cancer of Islamism. And their hideouts include England, France, Germany, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Canada, South America, the US.... Like cockroaches, they go wherever they can infiltrate a society.



If one looks at all the wars currently being waged on the planet, it is almost exclusively Islamists on one side of each conflict. In the Sudan, they enslave the Christians and Animists. In parts of Indonesia, they force conversion to Islam with the threat of having one's head chopped off. Then they sexually mutilate, without anesthesia, the newly converted men and women -- all in the name of Islam.(1)



Last month, I had the honor of meeting Sheik Abdul Hadi Palazzi, secretary general of the Italian Muslim Association. In our all-too-brief conversation, he told me -- in direct contradiction to President Bush's exhortations that most Muslims in the US are peaceful -- Islam in America has become radicalized. And unlike Mr. Bush and his apparently inadequate advisors, this man is an expert on Islam and its adherents.



So I began looking for the evidence. Sadly it is all around me. For example, CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations) is unfortunately still a respected and influential lobbying group, even though it has proven ties to Hamas and Al-Qaeda. It also has no tolerance for anyone other than Muslims, as evidenced by the following frightening statement(2) made by Omar Ahmad, co-founder of CAIR: "Islam isn't in America to be equal to any other faiths, but to become dominant. The Koran, the Muslim book of scripture, should be the highest authority in America, and Islam the only accepted religion on Earth."



While CAIR may be just one group of Muslims in America, the entire Muslim-American community has, at best, been silent whenever a Jew is injured or murdered by Muslims for merely being a Jew. No condemnations, no public examinations (as the Catholics are now doing in light of abuse by priests). Those who keep publicly silent are, in fact, showing their support for genocide (killing someone because of their religion) by refusing to condemn it. (Furthermore, living two towns over from Paterson, New Jersey, I witnessed the virtual glee and the celebrations in the street with which the mostly Palestinian Arabs treated the news of the murderous attacks of 9-11.)



Nor are Jews the only victims of Islamism. I have yet to hear any Muslim in America condemn the Islamist killings and desecrations of Christian Arabs and their holy sites. Lebanese and other Arab Christians have been systemically slaughtered for being Christian. They have had their lands confiscated, their holy sites held hostage and their bibles used as toilet paper(3) without any official Muslims in this country condemning the practices or offering assistance to the victims.



Even countries that have been officially termed 'moderate' are anything but gentle and accepting. Malaysia has been deemed moderate by the US and yet here is what Malaysia's former leader, Dr. Mahathir, had to say(4) at the Organization of Islamic Countries in the Fall of 2003: "We need guns and rockets, bombs and warplanes, tanks and warships..." And every last delegate there -- from all 57 Islamic countries -- gave that speech a standing ovation. Even the whole concept of an Organization of Islamic Countries is not merely exclusionary, it pits Islam and an Islamist agenda against the rest of the world.



Then there is Saudi Arabia; her royal family honored guests for a Bush barbecue. They are the funders and supporters of the founding movement of Islamism -- Wahabbism. And they continue to fund it to this day. They also prosecute those who would purge their schoolbooks of material offensive to Christians and Jews and advocating armed jihad.(5) Meanwhile Egypt, another country designated 'moderate,' has official state textbooks exalting Islamic holy war.(6)



Until the civilized world gets the moral courage to tell Muslims that certain forms of Islam are unacceptable and merely a cover for a Nazi-like agenda, we will continue being victims, as will the truly peaceful, gentle Muslims who are hiding out of fear. Sheikh Palazzi has said this at risk to his life. It is time for our political leaders to stop being so cowardly and politically incorrect as to put their voting public at risk by refusing to acknowledge the real problem --Islamism -- and make a stand.



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Israel, the United States, the European Union, India and parts of Africa, as well as Jews, Christians, Buddhists, Hindus, Animists and many others, all have a common problem. Actually, three common problems: they are all in a state of war with an organized global entity numbering in the many millions; they refuse to accept this reality; and they cannot even name the enemy.This enemy uses new tactics and fights an unconventional war. No more massing of uniformed troops on their victim's borders prior to invasion. This enemy infiltrates its targets using the legal means set up by its targets, hides among civilians, covers its face when out in the open, and uses lies and propaganda, as well as blackmail, to establish a foothold. This enemy has no shame, certainly no morals, nor a particle of honor. And yet, all of the aforementioned nations cannot name this enemy, confusing the symptom with the actual pernicious disease.Unlike US President George Bush and his compatriots have stated, the enemy is not terror. Terror is merely a symptom of a fatal sickness; it is a warfare tactic employed by the adversary. Therefore, stopping the terror is not feasible unless the enemy, and thus the disease itself, is vanquished.So who is this enemy that everyone refuses to identify? The enemy is radical Islam; what some call Islamism, Islamists, Islamo-fascists or Islamo-Nazis. And what is even worse, radical Islam is becoming the norm instead of the aberration. Politically incorrect as this may be, it is time for the truth to come out. Besides, the evidence is rampant, if only people have the fortitude to face it. As much as the purveyors of political correctness may delude themselves into thinking that everyone will behave nicely and everything will be equal and hunky-dory if only we speak in socio-religious-neutral tones, reality doesn't work that way.One has only to examine acts of terrorism for the past three-and-a-half years to see that it is almost exclusively caused by Islamists. America, Bali, Madrid, Kashmir, the Philippines, Pakistan, India, Russia -- no place is safe from the cancer of Islamism. And their hideouts include England, France, Germany, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Canada, South America, the US.... Like cockroaches, they go wherever they can infiltrate a society.If one looks at all the wars currently being waged on the planet, it is almost exclusively Islamists on one side of each conflict. In the Sudan, they enslave the Christians and Animists. In parts of Indonesia, they force conversion to Islam with the threat of having one's head chopped off. Then they sexually mutilate, without anesthesia, the newly converted men and women -- all in the name of Islam.(1)Last month, I had the honor of meeting Sheik Abdul Hadi Palazzi, secretary general of the Italian Muslim Association. In our all-too-brief conversation, he told me -- in direct contradiction to President Bush's exhortations that most Muslims in the US are peaceful -- Islam in America has become radicalized. And unlike Mr. Bush and his apparently inadequate advisors, this man is an expert on Islam and its adherents.So I began looking for the evidence. Sadly it is all around me. For example, CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations) is unfortunately still a respected and influential lobbying group, even though it has proven ties to Hamas and Al-Qaeda. It also has no tolerance for anyone other than Muslims, as evidenced by the following frightening statement(2) made by Omar Ahmad, co-founder of CAIR: "Islam isn't in America to be equal to any other faiths, but to become dominant. The Koran, the Muslim book of scripture, should be the highest authority in America, and Islam the only accepted religion on Earth."While CAIR may be just one group of Muslims in America, the entire Muslim-American community has, at best, been silent whenever a Jew is injured or murdered by Muslims for merely being a Jew. No condemnations, no public examinations (as the Catholics are now doing in light of abuse by priests). Those who keep publicly silent are, in fact, showing their support for genocide (killing someone because of their religion) by refusing to condemn it. (Furthermore, living two towns over from Paterson, New Jersey, I witnessed the virtual glee and the celebrations in the street with which the mostly Palestinian Arabs treated the news of the murderous attacks of 9-11.)Nor are Jews the only victims of Islamism. I have yet to hear any Muslim in America condemn the Islamist killings and desecrations of Christian Arabs and their holy sites. Lebanese and other Arab Christians have been systemically slaughtered for being Christian. They have had their lands confiscated, their holy sites held hostage and their bibles used as toilet paper(3) without any official Muslims in this country condemning the practices or offering assistance to the victims.Even countries that have been officially termed 'moderate' are anything but gentle and accepting. Malaysia has been deemed moderate by the US and yet here is what Malaysia's former leader, Dr. Mahathir, had to say(4) at the Organization of Islamic Countries in the Fall of 2003: "We need guns and rockets, bombs and warplanes, tanks and warships..." And every last delegate there -- from all 57 Islamic countries -- gave that speech a standing ovation. Even the whole concept of an Organization of Islamic Countries is not merely exclusionary, it pits Islam and an Islamist agenda against the rest of the world.Then there is Saudi Arabia; her royal family honored guests for a Bush barbecue. They are the funders and supporters of the founding movement of Islamism -- Wahabbism. And they continue to fund it to this day. They also prosecute those who would purge their schoolbooks of material offensive to Christians and Jews and advocating armed jihad.(5) Meanwhile Egypt, another country designated 'moderate,' has official state textbooks exalting Islamic holy war.(6)Until the civilized world gets the moral courage to tell Muslims that certain forms of Islam are unacceptable and merely a cover for a Nazi-like agenda, we will continue being victims, as will the truly peaceful, gentle Muslims who are hiding out of fear. Sheikh Palazzi has said this at risk to his life. It is time for our political leaders to stop being so cowardly and politically incorrect as to put their voting public at risk by refusing to acknowledge the real problem --Islamism -- and make a stand.1) http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-duin010202.shtml 2) http://www.anti-cair-net.org/ 3) http://www.rense.com/general25/bibles.htm (Note: this is a notoriously anti-Semitic, anti-Israel website.)4) http://thestar.com.my/oic/ story.asp?file=/2003/10/16/oic/20031016123438 5) http://www.newsday.com/ news/nationworld/world/wire/ sns-ap-saudi-extremes,0,5489561,print.story?coll=sns-ap-world-headlines 6) http://www.worldtribune.com/worldtribune/index_me.html



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