Re: my $0.02 cents

From: Steve Catanzaro (stevencatanzaro@sprintmail.com)
Date: Mon Sep 17 2001 - 06:09:23 CEST

  • Next message: Mark Turner: "RE: my $0.02 cents"

    Joni wrote;

    > Can anyone tell me what Bin Ladin's message is? What does he want? From
    > what I gather it's not purely a religious issue. It goes beyond Israel vs
    > Arab. I see no way these two groups will ever co-exsist. Both groups
    have
    > valid issues...but neither is willing to budge. No one will win, instead
    we
    > will ALL lose.

    Here's what I've been able to gather on Bin Laden. If I'm inaccurate on any
    points, please feel free to correct them.

    (To set the stage, keep in mind that *most* Islamic / Arab states have no
    middle class to speak of, this despite the fact that there is often a
    tremendous amount of wealth. Some countries, like the UAE, have an average
    income in the $20,00 range, but for the most part, the middle-eastern man on
    the street has a huge bone to pick with the wealthy, titled classes leading
    these countries.)

    1) Osama (or Usama) is not an Afghan, but a Saudi. He is the 20th and
    youngest son of a Saudi construction magnate. Had he gone another route, he
    might have turned out to be an international playboy like D. Al Fayed (of
    Princess Diana fame...)

    2) Instead, when the Red Army tried to invade Afghanistan, Osama moved there
    to aid in the resistance. He spent millions and millions of his personal
    fortune aiding the Afghan rebels in their 10 year struggle.

    3) Reports say that he was extremely generous, to the point of literally
    giving away the clothes off his back. He was also extremely modest, living
    in small tents and sleeping on the floor.

    4) Osama was aided in his efforts against the Afghan rebels by the CIA.

    5) After the Russians vacated in the late 80's, Osama concentrated on
    building a network called "The Base." Osama was always a very conservative
    Muslim, but the evolution of his thought sees him going in more and more
    radical directions. (Frighteningly, there are apparently ex-members of The
    Base who are even more radical than him.)

    6) The Base has operations in probably 20 or more countries, including,
    according to some sources, Western Pakistan. These operations are not much
    more than tents, shooting ranges, and the like. It is said that Osama
    himself does not use a cell phone any longer, but gives out directives via
    human messenger. This makes him extremely hard to track with modern
    surveilance equipment.

    7) Osama is the father-in-law of the leader of the Taliban government. The
    Taliban (literally, "Students") control 95% of Afghanistan, and they are the
    strictest sect in Islam. In fact, they are so strict that the governement of
    Iran has called them "The most dangerous regime in the world."

    The leader of the only viable Afghan resistance to the Taliban, called The
    Northern Alliance, was assasinated and buried this week. (Perhaps the bombs
    going off in the Afghan capital were in retaliation for his murder.)

    Afghanistan is probably among the most miserable place on the planet to
    live, especially for women. To "bomb them back to the middle ages" is
    misplaced, as they are already there. There are no roads, no infrastructure,
    and precious little food. Women are not allowed in school, and men are only
    taught to read the Koran... no other subjects.

    It is also a mountainous country which would make it very difficult, if not
    impossible, to conduct an effective air-campaign against the The Base. (And
    even if you bomb them, so what? All they've got is tents.)

    8) Osama, who is now protected by the Taliban, directed his wrath on the US
    in '91, after the Saudi king invited the US to defend the Saudi border in
    the Gulf War. This is key because Saudi Arabia is home to two of Islam's
    three holiest sites, Mecca and Medina.

    9) In some interpretations of the Koran, Christianity (i.e. the US, in their
    eyes), is a polytheistic religion as opposed to Islam, which is strongly
    monotheistic; this, coupled with the massive amounts of moral pollution
    broadcast from US shores, (i.e. Britney Spears on down) led Osama to
    conclude that US citizens are infidels.

    For this reason, it is the highest outrage that US soldiers should be
    allowed to step foot on the hallowed ground of Saudi Arabia. (Remember that
    during the Gulf War, US troops were not allowed to bring either their Bibles
    or their Playboy magazines, both of which are forbidden there.)

    Despite this, Osama feels that the King of Saudi Arabia has sold him, and
    Islam, out. He wants the US infidels completely out of the Middle East.

    10) Although he is, to my knowledge, not a cleric, he has nevertheless
    issued "Fatwahs" which are religious declarations. One of the most famous
    fatwahs was issued by the Ayatollah Khomeni, who declared that author Salmon
    Rushdie must be killed for penning "The Satanic Verses." (This Fatwah,
    interestingly enough, was, I believe, endorsed by none other than Yusef
    Islam... aka the wild one Cat Stevens. Can anyone confirm this?)

    Bin Laden's fatwah is that it is incumbent on all Moslems anywhere to kill
    as many US citizens, military or civilian, as is possible at any time they
    get the opportunity.

    When George HW Bush sent a peacekeeping-humanitarian mission into Somalia,
    Bin Laden took credit for supplying the weapons that killed 18 soldiers.
    However, he has not taken credit for the recent attack, and in a way, this
    is probably the truth. Once the fatwah has been issued, it is up for
    individual Moslems to carry it out in ways that they see fit.

    Today, Bin Laden said, rather craftily, in my view, that those who committed
    the acts were pursuing their own agendas. True enough, but their agenda is
    quite obviously to fullfil Bin Laden's fatwah!

    Bin Laden provides the support, monetarily, for these groups, and the
    training they need to commit acts of terror, but the individual members act
    for themselves. Cheney accurately described the base as sort of an "internet
    chat room" of terror where members come and go, taking what they need to
    fulfill their own purposes. (It is also rumored that Bin Laden is almost
    completely out of money and that he is in ill health. I know many of you are
    heartbroken by that news.)

    It is also probably not an exaggeration to say if the US and Israel were
    both gone, there would be no peace between the Islamic extremist groups
    themselves.

    11) As for Israel. Well, the 3rd of the three holiest sites for Islam is
    Jerusalem, so the presence of the Hebrews there is, in light of these
    radical views, obviously somewhat problematic.

    It must be noted that it is probably fair to say that most Moslems in the
    Middle East do not agree with the radicalized interpretation of Islam or the
    Koran practiced by Bin Laden or the Taliban. Yet these radicals are often
    used by the various leaders of the Arab states, i.e. Syria, Libya, and,
    according to the Isrealis, even by Arafat and the Palestinian Authroity.

    Also, consider that even "moderate" Arab states like Saudi Arabia often have
    abysmal human rights records and women are generally viewed as second or
    third class citizens.

    Let me conclude by saying that the war is not between Islam and
    Christianity, or Islam and Judaism. The war is fundamentally between 2
    irreconcilable forms of governement, theocracy and democracy.

    My rather bleak view is that it will not be enough to eradicate the current
    generation of dangerous, deadly theocratic zealots. As long as the Arab
    states resist democratic reform, the conditions that will produce further
    generations of Osama Bin Ladens will still obtain.



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