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POPSTamim Ansary on the future of the Iranian regime Ansary believes that what he calls the "Khomeinist" regime has made such serious tactical mistakes in trying to control dissent that it is probably doomed at this point. Khamenei, in failing even to maintain the appearance of fairness and impartiality, has insulted the intelligence of the people and sacrificed his own legitimacy. Interestingly, Ansary remarks that only intervention from the West -- on behalf of the protesters, that is -- is likely to save the old guard at this point, by restoring their moral authority as the guardians of Iranian nationalism.
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POPSMichael J. Totten's Posts on Iranian Populists' Revolt 
Rural areas in the Middle East are often startlingly conservative, especially from the point of view of Western visitors like me and my colleagues in the media. This does not mean, however, that country people are more likely to support fascist political movements. Egypt’s Bedouin, for instance, are far more open-minded about and friendly toward Jews and Israelis than are the denizens of cities like Cairo. This strange meme in many media reports that Ahmadinejad has a “base” of support beyond Iran’s cities is not only wrong, it has everything backwards. The uprising we’re all watching on YouTube is taking place inside Ahmadinejad’s “strongholds,” such as they are. Ahmadinejad is a “conservative” in the relative sense of the word, as he resists any and all reform of the 1979 revolution. He is not, however, a conservative in the traditional sense. Khomeinism and radical Islamism are 20th Century totalitarian ideologies. Traditional village people, conservative
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POPSWell, yes, it *is* Hell...
"The Western doctrine of just war, echoed in the articles of international law, moreover demands that the Israelis finish what they've started. It doesn't say "never fight," as the ignorant suppose. On the contrary, it says if you must fight, be sure to win; that victory should be achieved as promptly and humanely as possible, while observing the various formal conventions. To those who refuse to observe the conventions, it offers no quarter. Those who, for instance, fire rockets at civilian targets while themselves masquerading as non-combatants are entitled to no consideration, as prisoners of war or otherwise. Those who use civilian "shields" are responsible for their fate. These principles are humanitarian. You don't "attrit" a cancer, then await its regrowth: you root out every speck of it. In the long run, the Germans were better off for the destruction of Nazism; and the Palestinians would be, for the destruction of Hamas. If they don't know this now, they will know it later.
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POPSThe Islamist Role in the 2008 Canadian Elections Hashmi runs an Islamic school for girls. Hashmi wears a full niqab (face covering) and encourages young girls to emulate her. She is known for promoting a very conservative Islamic ideology that is based on Wahhabism. She, like other Islamists is in favor of Sharia in Canada. The results of the Canadian election were an eye-opener because all Muslim candidates from all parties lost, with the exception of Yasmin Ratansi, who for some time has been trying to distance herself from her Muslim identity Most ordinary Canadians, well-meaning and decent folks, are fed up with demands for unreasonable accommodation and are no longer willing to put up with politics disguised as religion in the public sphere. Of course, the usual suspects are already screaming Islamophobia - again. There is no rampant Islamophobia in Canada - only an attempt at gradual Islamization.
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POPSIslam and Secularism Volkhard Krech, professor for religious studies , has come to the conclusion that some religious traditions, such as Judaism and Protestantism, represent "secularization factors." Other faiths, such as Islam and evangelical churches have a tendency to combine a strong sense of both national and religious identity, mixing politics with religion. The Berlin Islamic scholar Gudrun Krämer made clear that a "massive rejection" of secularism prevails in most Muslim countries. In Islamic discourse, secularization is regarded as a "hostile takeover" of Muslim society. Instead of the notion of the separation of religion and state, the idea of "empowerment" is stressed. Islam calls for believers to actively participate in the power structures of the state. As a mixture of nationalism and Islamism, the so-called "national Jihad" is pushing its way into the political arena and has given birth to the notion of the "Islamic welfare state."
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POPSThe Curse of Arabia - No Democracy in the Arab World Trotz zaghafter Reformen in einigen arabischen Ländern ist die Mehrheit der autoritär regierenden Herrscher nicht bereit, ihre Machtbefugnisse einzuschränken. Wahlen dienen den autokratischen Machthabern in der Region oft nur zur eigenen Herrschaftsakklamation. Autoritäre Herrschaft in der arabischen Welt - Der arabische Fluch Die US-amerikanische Geostrategie verdankt ihren Impetus vor allem den Angriffen vom 11. September 2001 und der gemeinsamen Front in Afghanistan und Irak. Diese Strategie war einer der beiden wichtigsten Pfeiler der amerikanisch-saudischen Achse. Diese Allianz hatte in der islamischen Welt zur Folge, dass eine neue Form transnationaler antiwestlicher Subversion gerechtfertigt erschien - ein Grund dafür, dass die arabischen Ordnungsstrukturen sich verfestigt haben.
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POPSZiauddin Sardar on the Quilliam Foundation for ex-jihadis Sardar, whose writing I am only a little bit familiar with, is highly critical of any "lionizing" of former members of Islamic extremist groups, since it implicitly devalues the commitment to peace and pluralism exhibited by most "ordinary" Muslims.
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POPSThe ‘Useful Idiots’ Of Militant Islam Saudi-funded publications admonish Muslims in America “to dissociate from infidels, hate them for their religion, never to rely on them for support, and always oppose them in every way according to Islamic law.” The question: how was it that among the estimated five million Muslim Americans with hugely varied institutions, the president’s advisors picked a Saudi Islamofascist ghetto as a venue? A major New York Times Magazine article argued fervently on behalf of “Islamic democrats” singing the praises of a reborn Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt. An essay in Foreign Affairs, a weighty establishment publication titled “The Moderate Muslim Brotherhood.” Mild Islamism is an oxymoron. Sharia law, which sanctions beating of wives and stoning for adultery, is irreconcilable with human rights. The Muslim Brotherhood founded Hamas, calls suicide bombings a good thing, and is the 21st-century version of the organized fascism of Hitler and Mussolini in the last century.
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POPSBaptism is a hostile act "The whole spectacle... provokes genuine questions about the motives, intentions and plans of some of the pope's advisers on Islam," Nayed, who is director of the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre in Amman, said in a statement."
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POPSState of the world as we end 2007 This is an incredibly powerful paragraph. I wonder if when George Bush looks at the cover of Time Magazine and stares into the eyes of Vladimir Putin, he still says, "ah, those trusting eyes of Vlad." The U.S. is getting completely outplayed at the chess table and its leaders don't have a clue.
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POPSWhereThereIs a Muslim-ThereIsSharia ! FOLLOWING COMMENT FROM BLOGGER peres-fondateurs: --<< "If and when Sharia law and Muslim culture become the law of the land in Germany then that judge will be fully justified in applying the law in the misguided way she did. Up until then as a judge in Germany, that judge is supposed to apply German law as it still is the law of the land. Ethnic culture be damned, murder whether committed by a Christian, a Jew, or a Muslim is simply murder. The culture of the culprit should be meaningless before the law of the land… Yet, some judges while tripping over themselves for the sake of multiculturalism see it differently." >>--
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POPSExtremists and Democracy: Pakistan, Jordan and New Hampshire It's interesting to compare these perspectives from Pakistan, Jordan, and New Hampshire. The use of the word "extremism" is noteworthy. I just got back from a conference on Chinese-Middle-Eastern relations, and the diplomats from Israel, Egypt, Turkey, and Sudan all phrased their ideologies in terms of "moderates" battling "extremists." But doesn't this raise the question: does democracy inherently empower extremism? Consider not just New Hampshire and Iowa, but the general trend in American electoral politics? The party that becomes the most radicalized, the most extreme, normally is the one that succeeds in asserting it's agenda, and the party willing to compromise gets steam-rolled. Think of the Republican Revolution in the 1990s, or the current Democratic surge, or even the New Deal! Is it possible that democracy not only empowers extremists, but needs them in order to work? Is the centrist-democracy a myth?
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