I think every so-called “Islamic Scholar” and fundamentalist opposed to the overthrow of Saddam and the establishment of Democratic government in Iraq should be asked this one question:

[i][b]Which version of Iraq do you fear more; one which, under Saddam Hussein, Islam, as well as every other religion, was actively oppressed OR one in which there is free Democratic government and freedom of religion, including Christianity?[/b][/i]

My guess is that most of these folks would decline to answer the question, but the answer would be obvious I think to anyone who heard the question… Islamic fundamentalists are [b]deathly[/b] afraid of the concept of freedom of religion. To them, the very idea is anathema; that someone would be allowed to worship as they see fit, whenever they saw fit, or not at all!

To a fundamentalist of the Islamic faith, worship of Allah is mandatory, and the goal of their faith is to establish the “proper” worship of Allah in every nation on Earth, even if it must be done at rifle-point. Ironically, in some Middle East nations today, worship does take place under the careful watch of armed soldiers. Failure to worship Allah will earn you a nice long visit to your local prison, and a confession of faith to a religion other than Islam, especially the Christianity, will earn you a bullet to the head.

The fact is, radical muslims prefer to treat christians as a doctor might cancer; cut it out, poison it out, or burn it out, but [b] never, ever tolerate it or allow it to spread[/b]. Christianity tends to be a dangerously prolfic religion and has served as a persistant roadblock to the spread of more radical forms of Islam for about a thousand years now. Not that people of the Islamic faith have been prevented from moving out into the western world, its just that, when those members of the faith do go and live amongst free peoples, they or their children tend to take on one very bad habit… tolerance!

Once muslims move into the larger world and become more socialized to western culture, they learn that freedom of worship is not such a bad thing as they first thought. First of all, there are no soldiers with guns to enforce worship, which is kind of nice. Secondly, members of their faith are free to participate in government, or not, and to express their opinion, even if it does differ from what anyone else thinks.

Thus, Islamic scholars may come to the US and denounce government intervention in Iraq or Afghanistan as “colonialism,” or “imperialism,” and nothing happens; except that some will listen and even perhaps agree. However, if a Christian scholar were to travel to, say, Syria, to speak to members of a university about the wonders of Democracy and religious freedom, well, its probably accurate to say that they would likely spend some time in prison, at the very least.

So, here is my suggestion; if you have the chance to attend a talk or debate regarding US actions in Afhganistan or Iraq with Islamic scholars insisting that the US is an imperialist nation that is intent on “recolonizing” the Middle East, please go. When you get the chance, get up and ask the question posed above and see what answer you get.

No matter what the answer is, please forward it to me at my email address, [email]david@viewpointjournal.com[/email], and let me know what they said. Inquiring minds want to know!

David Flanagan
Viewpointjournal.com