http://www.mikaelstrandberg.com/2010/01/01/guest-writer-1-cuchullaine-o%e2%80%99reilly-a-k-a-asadullah-khan/ Explorer, Motivational speaker, Lecturer, Tour Guide, Film maker, Author and Photographer Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:46:55 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.3 http://www.mikaelstrandberg.com/2010/01/01/guest-writer-1-cuchullaine-o%e2%80%99reilly-a-k-a-asadullah-khan/comment-page-1/#comment-6204 Explorer Mikael Strandberg » Guest writer # 28 on Ethical Exploration Sun, 14 Nov 2010 15:07:15 +0000 http://www.mikaelstrandberg.com/?p=1182#comment-6204 [...] lights fade away. This compelled one of the most honest and genuine explorers on earth in my view, CuChullaine O´Reilly, also a very good friend, to write this much sought after article on the [...] [...] lights fade away. This compelled one of the most honest and genuine explorers on earth in my view, CuChullaine O´Reilly, also a very good friend, to write this much sought after article on the [...]

]]> http://www.mikaelstrandberg.com/2010/01/01/guest-writer-1-cuchullaine-o%e2%80%99reilly-a-k-a-asadullah-khan/comment-page-1/#comment-102 Leila Franklin Fri, 01 Jan 2010 22:44:36 +0000 http://www.mikaelstrandberg.com/?p=1182#comment-102 The elephant in the room that this analysis does not address is the question of why Islamic inspired terror is occurring in the first place. Despite the fantasies of Dick Cheney it is true that direct US military engagement has fanned the flames, but it did not start it. No the roots lie in two main issues which date back more than 100 yrs; 1) a battle within religious Islam as to what is orthodoxy and true Islam with terror being a tool of a large fanatical minority who believe that Islam is the final word of God and that they must defeat his enemies both within and without. 2) the nature of most modern Islamic states which are dictatorships of varying type and degree in which corruption and state violence suppress the dreams of a huge underclass who want nothing more than a job and fair chance in life. The ruling elites of the Islamic world know just how precarious their grip on power is and have cynically allied with the religious fanatics who tell the disaffected masses that the reason they are poor and downtrodden is that it is a punishment from God for not being pious enough and that the way to heaven is through martyrdom by killing infidels. These issues will only be resolved by Muslims themselves and especially by moderate Muslims standing up to the fanatics. A good start would be an very public and unequivocal condemnation of the use of terror for political ends by western muslim leaders - something so far missing. The elephant in the room that this analysis does not address is the question of why Islamic inspired terror is occurring in the first place. Despite the fantasies of Dick Cheney it is true that direct US military engagement has fanned the flames, but it did not start it. No the roots lie in two main issues which date back more than 100 yrs;
1) a battle within religious Islam as to what is orthodoxy and true Islam with terror being a tool of a large fanatical minority who believe that Islam is the final word of God and that they must defeat his enemies both within and without.
2) the nature of most modern Islamic states which are dictatorships of varying type and degree in which corruption and state violence suppress the dreams of a huge underclass who want nothing more than a job and fair chance in life.
The ruling elites of the Islamic world know just how precarious their grip on power is and have cynically allied with the religious fanatics who tell the disaffected masses that the reason they are poor and downtrodden is that it is a punishment from God for not being pious enough and that the way to heaven is through martyrdom by killing infidels.
These issues will only be resolved by Muslims themselves and especially by moderate Muslims standing up to the fanatics. A good start would be an very public and unequivocal condemnation of the use of terror for political ends by western muslim leaders – something so far missing.

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