Little Green Footballs - suicide of the palestinians

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suicide of the palestinians

Sat, Mar 16, 2002 at 9:39:22 am PST

Some perceptive observations from David Gelernter: The Suicide of the Palestinians.

We now know what Palestinians want, and what they think of Israelis. After all, what exactly is the point of sending killers to massacre children at random? What do you accomplish? You impose hatred. You ask Israel, in effect: What do we need to do to make you all (not some of you; everyone) hate us? To make you unable to look at a Palestinian without revulsion? To force you eventually to take the terrible step of setting up enclaves where Arabs are banned? Palestinians don't want to live peaceably among Israelis; the natural conclusion is that they think about Israelis as they choose for Israelis to think about them.

Everything has changed, including (for many of us) our ideas about Islam. We ought to have paid more attention to the latest developments. We now learn that suicide bombers are told to expect a heaven full of comely virgins as their next assignment. To the suicide-murderers, those waiting virgins are real as dirt. The killers call themselves "martyrs," but in their own minds they are the next thing to sex criminals. "Pardon me, sir or madam, do you know why I plan to murder your child? Because the authorities are offering me great sex--and, after all, I don't get many opportunities."

People who think this way are shielded from view, up to a point, by their own sheer evil. They are painful to contemplate. We instinctively look away, as we do whenever we are confronted with monstrous deformity. Nothing is harder or more frightening to look at than a fellow human who is bent out of shape. And moral deformity is the most frightening kind by far. How can Muslims of good faith allow such people to call themselves Muslim? But they do allow it. What does that mean? And is it possible that we have located here, in this inspiring vision of heaven as a whorehouse, the most loathsome idea in the history of human thought? This is the civilization that condemns "licentious" America?

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9 comments

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rob Sat, Mar 16, 2002 9:18:48am

While reading this, I found it to be an interesting different point of view - maybe not one I agree with, but interesting nonetheless. Until the part of about Muslims of good faith. The attitude that all Muslims of good faith allow for these people to exist is ignorant of what the religion really teaches.

I could see his point if he were just trying to say that many Arab (and non-Arab) people did little to expel these people, who are marring their religion, from their ranks. But many Muslims have denounced these killers, so that argument is not as universal as is portrayed here.

weston Sat, Mar 16, 2002 11:02:32am

Interesting article. I'm afraid of the "dangerous animal" analogy, because I beleive elements on both sides fall into that category. I think the only way this is ever going to end is if both sides freely back down and clean their own houses out. But I'm afraid he might be right about the dangerous animal bit. There are too many people in the world who see appeasement as weakness.

I think his analyses of the Sep 2000 events is a little shallow, tho'. Barak was fixing to make the offer about sharing the temple mount, Jerusalem, but IIRC, it wasn't a done deal. There were factions on both sides who realized that if the offer was made an accepted, there was no room for conflict. Sharon's visit with a very hawkish delegation could well have been a signal to Barak that the hardliners wouldn't tolerate it, and also, an opportunity for Palestinian hawks (Hamas) to seize on. I'm having trouble finding anything unbiased behind Sharon's intent, but there are a few sources I can find that I trust that point towards sincerity on the part of Arafat during that time period.

Question: Can anyone cite a source that says Muslim Militants are promised life with virgins? I keep hearing this, but I don't know what basis it has. Or if it's something that radical elements beleive (like the whole jihad as modern warfare concept) but is not something necessarily widely accepted in Islam.

Overall, though, I hope the main thrust of the article gets somehow passed on to Palestinians: the suicide bombings accomplish nothing but to make the people of Israel beleive their enemy is irrational, implacable, and the only alternative is eradication.

Of course, that would make elements like Hamas happy: that's what they want. Chips on both shoulders and a fight to the finish.

Especially interesting was the thought of Israel nurturing Palestinian opposition -- those who are tired of the violence.

charles Sat, Mar 16, 2002 11:16:41am

This page has a lot more information about the myth that Sharon’s visit to the Temple Mount somehow “triggered” the intifada. It’s very well-documented by now that the intifada was planned long in advance of the visit, and in fact that the violence started before the visit. Marwan Barghouti (secretary-general of Fatah in the West Bank) has publicly admitted that the violence had been planned since Camp David.

Rick Mueller Sat, Mar 16, 2002 12:57:57pm

"How can Muslims of good faith allow such people to call themselves Muslim? But they do allow it. What does that mean? And is it possible that we have located here, in this inspiring vision of heaven as a whorehouse, the most loathsome idea in the history of human thought?"

It's just another nail in the coffin of God and the perverse notion that one's religion is a legitimate defense for any depravity. Besides its true for any of the world's great religions. Why do Christians allow the KKK and other unstable weirdos to call themselves Christian? Many of these imams pronouncements are no more wacky than Robertson's calling hurricanes and indeed 9-11 God's retribution. Its not neccesary to indict all adherants of the religion to provide a rationale for attacking Islamic extremists as represented by Al Qaeda or other religious militants, they are an immediate and deadly threat to our lives. The "whorehouse" jab is overkill. I gotta admit its more of an incentive than playing harps with sexless angels for eternity or reincarnation as a dung beetle.

The current push to demonize Islam is a little dangerous for Western Christians. They may be asked to justify flouting "turn the other cheek" and "forgiveness, seven times seventy"

John B. Sat, Mar 16, 2002 2:05:04pm

Well Weston, they're either virgins or raisins depending on whose translation of the Koran you believe.

And Rick, feel free to leave the demonization of Islam to us atheists if you'd like.

John B. Sat, Mar 16, 2002 2:06:33pm

Whoops, I forgot the hyperlink to the raisin/virgin story.

[Link: www.guardian.co.uk...]

Eric Sun, Mar 17, 2002 5:45:02am

Weston,

You are beginning to re-write history. If you believe that Arafat was sincere -- I have a bridge to sell you!

Eric

miki Tue, Mar 19, 2002 5:29:38pm

Agree with Eric above.

Anyone who thinks Arafat was sincere, at any point, needs their head read.

M. Simon Tue, Mar 19, 2002 9:22:59pm

The trick is everybody gets the same 72 virgins.

The women are not vey pleasant. Not only are they sore from the sex but becoming a virgin 20 million times a day really hurts.

Besides in America you do not need to die to have 72 virgins. Just go to college. (well I fudged a little on the virgin part). Perhaps that is the real reason they hate us. We don't have to go to heaven to live in paradise.