re: #52 lawhawk

Though to be a bit more serious about the ISIS claim of establishing a caliphate, one has to have a caliph that one would follow. Who is the one that anyone outside of ISIS true-believers would follow?

It also ignores that ISIS will barely be able to hold on to what territory they’ve claimed thus far.

As it is, the Iraqi government is continuing their pushback against ISIS advances, and it’s not likely that ISIS will be able to hold what they’ve taken.

It’s also not something you just wave your magic wand and declare. You’re basically saying that you’re creating an Islamic state, therefore you’d need to be prepared to provide everything that implies—a functioning government with judges & courts, local representatives (governors, mayors, etc.), law enforcement & other first responders, hospitals, schools, etc.

A caliphate (in Arabic: خلافة‎ khilafa, meaning “succession”) is an Islamic state led by a supreme religious and political leader known as a caliph — i.e. “successor” — to Muhammad. The succession of Muslim empires that have existed in the Muslim world are usually described as “caliphates”. Conceptually, a caliphate represents a sovereign polity (state) of the entire Muslim faithful (the Ummah, i.e. a sovereign nation state) ruled by a single caliph under the Constitution of Medina and Islamic law (sharia).

In its earliest days, the first caliphate, the Rashidun Caliphate, exhibited elements of direct democracy (shura). It was led, at first, by Muhammad’s immediate disciples and family as a continuation of the religious systems he had introduced.

The Sunni branch of Islam stipulates that as a head of state, a caliph should be elected by Muslims or their representatives. […]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caliphate

Also, and perhaps just as importantly, the Caliph would need to be someone who neither asks for nor is covetous of the position. Good luck with that.*

It has been narrated by Abu Musa who said:

Two of my cousins and I entered the apartment of the Prophet (ﷺ). One of them said: Messenger of Allah, appoint us rulers of some lands that the Almighty and Glorious God has entrusted to thy care. The other also said something similar. He said: We do not appoint to this position one who asks for it nor anyone who is covetous for the same.

Sahih Muslim
Book 33, Hadith 17

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*There are also other personality & character traits that would be looked for. Back in Texas we once had an Iraqi guy who was on the board of directors of the local mosque who one day proclaimed himself “Emir of [city name]”. He basically got himself laughed right off of the board.