A Response to Terror Apologists....

I'm still hearing in the press those who are looking for the "root causes" of Islamic terrorism. They say that by identifying and addressing these causes, we can defeat the terrorists. They sometimes differ on their identification - poverty; US foreign policy; Israel; humiliation of Muslims, etc.

This is a good academic... even practical approach: define and control your input variables, and the output will change. The argument would make a six sigma consultant proud.

While this scientific approach works well in manufacturing and sometimes even sociology, it doesn't apply here.

Why not? Because I reject entirely the idea that the wholesale slaughter of civilians is an acceptable response to whatever "root causes" can be identified. The (Islamist) arguments can be well reasoned and logical. But, like the Nazis well reasoned, logical arguments for extermination of the Jews, they are, at their core morally bankrupt.

Asking the question, "why do they attack us" assumes that there might be some acceptable answer. There is not. Therefore we must reject the question as the vacant intellectual exercise that is is.


Head back to Mudville