Mein Kampf
Finally, there is solid evidence from a country besides America that there really is a link between the ISI, the Taliban, and the increase in terrorism in Pakistan and Afghanistan: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081001/ap_on_re_eu/eu_spain_pakistan_taliban
I wouldn’t be surprised if the major rebuttal here would be something like “the entire Western media is dominated by evil Zionist Jews bent on world domination, and focused on targeting Muslims.” It’s a circular logic that can’t be falsified, as every explanation can be traced back to that conspiracy.
Speaking of which, I have noticed something odd about books in Karachi. Many open-markets and local book stores, called “book wallas” (literally “he has books”) carry Hitler’s Mein Kampf. This is true whether it’s big or small, a normal bookstore or one saturated with Islamic literature.
Once, when visiting someone’s apartment, I also noticed that he had the same tome. I asked why he had it, and he said he was just curious about the mind of a madman, not that he agreed with his views in any way. That’s valid; I myself have read books on Hitler for historical reasons.
But the thing is, if that were the case with these book sellers, then you would expect to find other books that the majority of Pakistanis would find objectionable. Yet I haven’t, with the exception of Liberty Books, where you might find stuff by Alan Dershowitz (pro-Israel/American foreign policy), books on atheism, and even some criticism of Islam. But the aforementioned bookstores carry typical, uncontroversial selections. And I’m sure that the book sellers would ban books they really found offensive. So that only conclusion I can come to is the most disturbing one – many book buyers/sellers really agree with Hitler’s views.
Another disturbing book I frequently see is one called “The Wisdom of Jihad.” Before perusing it, I figured that it probably had an expanded notion of jihad, which in Islamic conception encompasses a lot more than just physical warfare. However, this book is really just about war in Islam.
First, the author divides the world into Muslims versus non-Muslims. War is allowed against Muslims who are considered traitors, what the Qur’an calls “munafiq” (hypocrites) who only pretend to be Muslims. It is also a duty of Muslims to defend against non-Muslim aggression, though what he considers “defense” and “aggression” is quite different than international law, or how most governments use those terms.
To him, non-Muslims are OK if they have a holy book acceptable to Islam, and peacefully accept the absolute right of Muslims to rule them, or pay the poll tax (jizya) levied on subjects exempt from the required Islamic charity (zikaat). If non-Muslims don’t allow Muslims to rule them, even if their lands have been conquered, then they are “hostile” to Muslims. So in theory, even a group in some isolated hinterland, who just want to be left alone, are potentially “hostile” if they are non-Muslims and freely practice a religion besides Islam.
If this is what passes for “wisdom,” then I don’t even want to know what a lack of wisdom would be.
