Friday, December 23, 2011

A Response to Aijaz Zaka Syed at Foreign Policy Journal

I recently read an article by Aijaz at FPJ, which was commenting on the article by Pat Buchanan which I had recently critiqued. I posted this response at the FPJ site, and perhaps there will be a response. First, you do need to read Mr Syed's helpful article. And then my response, which follows:

Thanks for your thoughts on this Aijaz. I also wrote some comments on Pat's article at my blog.

I would first of all take issue with your characterization of Islamic society ruling the roost for 1000 years. So many of those accomplishments actually belonged to Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians. The relatively few Muslims who did great things we often educated by non-Muslims. Once the dhimmis were properly subdued and educational power given mostly to Muslims, well, there were no more accomplishments.

But that is not my main point.

I want to propose that there is no Islamic order that can really fulfill the desires of the young people who ousted the various dictators. Let me say it like this: They want the benefits of Christendom without the Christianity of Christendom. There are great stories about the justice that flourished during the days of the rightly-guided caliphs, but if you read the Islamic material from those days you will find complaints about rampant immorality, not a great golden age of justice and progress.

You can't make a vibrant future of human rights and justice out of the worn fairy tales of past Islamic greatness. If the young people of the Middle East want a brighter future, then they must find another religion, or even no religion at all. Islam will never get them there.

And finally, RE Turkey, it is doing well because it was founded on an explicitly anti-religion basis. So please don't use that as an example of what Egypt or Libya might look like some day.

I would love to hear your response to this comment. Salam. كل عام و انت بخير

4 comments:

joe six-pack said...

I tend to agree, although I believe that if Islam could somehow seperate religion from state, it could work out well. The problem here is that as I am certain that you know, Islam IS a government and system of laws and not just a 'religion' as we in the 'west' know religion.

Abu Daoud said...

Islam can exist in a secular scenario, but it is artificial and cannot be maintained for long, it is like making hydrogen into a liquid. Eventually it will revert to its natural state.

Unknown said...

You have made some interesting comments Mr. Daoud

However, I would appreciate if you could give me some evidence that I could verify for myself.

In particular, I dont understand what it is that Christianity has to offer that Islam doesn't.

If someone (though I dont know if this is your view) wants to argue that shariah is detrimental to society, then I suggest that you read the google ebook of
''Transnational & Comparative Crimonology''

Chapter 9 is interesting because it talks about Saudi Arabai.

Now, I am NOT saying that Saudis follow Islamic law fully. But they do in their criminal justice system.
http://original.antiwar.com/giraldi/2012/04/03/the-islamophobia-excuse/

In that regards, the book states


''''''After the consolidation of the Saudi monarchy in that year (and the implementation of Sharia law throughout the country), crime rates decreased dramatically, while apparent feelings of personal safety and social order improved.'''''


Also

''''Most Scholars attribute the low Saudi Arabian crime rate mainly to the strong influence of Islam in various spheres of life in Saudi society, particularly to the implementation of Shariah. '''

Pages 94-95

Unknown said...

BTW

The book i mentioned was co-edited by
J. W. E. Sheptycki,

a lecturer in socio-legal studies at Durham University and the editor of the quarterly scholarly journal Policing and Society

“Among the most commonly accepted reasons for low crime in Saudi society are harsh punishments, relatice homoneneity, economic prosperity, and most norably the way religions permeates all levels of society and culture”

Comparative Criminal Justice Systems by

----Harry R. Dammer---
professor and chair of Criminal Justice/Sociology at the University of Scranton.

&

---Jay Albanese---, past president of the Academy of Criminal Justice Science
Pg 87