{"id":2027,"date":"2006-10-29T11:05:13","date_gmt":"2006-10-29T17:05:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.edgewiseblog.com\/mjh\/nada\/2027\/"},"modified":"2006-10-29T11:10:22","modified_gmt":"2006-10-29T17:10:22","slug":"2027","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.edgewiseblog.com\/mjh\/nada\/2027\/","title":{"rendered":"The Enemy Within"},"content":{"rendered":"

Columnist Victor Hanson<\/a> writes about the Islamic World forcing us into the Dark Ages. I think he has several good points, but I am sad to realize how one-sidedly we view this issue.<\/p>\n

Hanson has ample, legitimate evidence of the wrongs of the “islamo-fascists.” But I keep thinking about what we’re doing to ourselves.<\/p>\n

“First, the Western liberal tradition is fragile and can still disappear,” writes Hanson.<\/p>\n

Fear can destroy everything. Terror requires a victim; it requires someone who will be terrorized and cannot overcome their own fears. Fear causes paralysis. Fear makes us incapable of thinking.<\/p>\n

“Second, the Enlightenment is not always lost on the battlefield.”<\/p>\n

Enlightenment can be lost in Abu Ghraib, Gitmo, and countless secret prisons. It can die under torture.<\/p>\n

“Third, civilization is forfeited with a whimper, not a bang.”<\/p>\n

Listen for that whimper in line at the airport when you surrender your 3.5 ounces of contraband and take off your clothes for the good of the homeland.<\/p>\n

—–<\/p>\n

There is no arguing against the claim that beheading is barbaric. Is it more barbaric than rape as punishment? Is it more barbaric than stoning? It seems our enemies have a spectrum of barbarisms. But, wait, our enemies?<\/em> Our friends<\/strong>, the Afghans, practice rape as restitution (and keep us supplied with heroin). While our friends the Saudis may be above that, they do broadcast official beheadings on TV.<\/p>\n

Regarding Iraq: proponents for the War Without End claim a democracy in Iraq will be a shining example for the region, the first big domino in a glorious sweep of liberation. We’re bringing freedom to the world!<\/p>\n

In 50 years, the democracy of Israel has only pushed surrounding nations to extremes.<\/p>\n

Now, tossing the royal family out of Saudi Arabia would surely create a shining example of a democracy (and, remember, Bin Laden and most of the 9\/11 terrorists were Saudis). But that democracy might not be as reliable a supplier of oil, so, never mind.<\/p>\n

I think the Simpsons see the future: our 51st state, Saudi Israelia. mjh<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Columnist Victor Hanson writes about the Islamic World forcing us into the Dark Ages. I think he has several good points, but I am sad to realize how one-sidedly we view this issue. Hanson has ample, legitimate evidence of the wrongs of the “islamo-fascists.” But I keep thinking about what we’re doing to ourselves. “First, … Continue reading The Enemy Within<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2027","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-nada"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.edgewiseblog.com\/mjh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2027","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.edgewiseblog.com\/mjh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.edgewiseblog.com\/mjh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.edgewiseblog.com\/mjh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.edgewiseblog.com\/mjh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2027"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.edgewiseblog.com\/mjh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2027\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.edgewiseblog.com\/mjh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2027"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.edgewiseblog.com\/mjh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2027"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.edgewiseblog.com\/mjh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2027"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}