Hi Clark - thanks for sharing the article. It is insightful, especially to people like myself without much understanding of the Islamic tradition in general and its history in particular. While it may be old hat to make paralllel, it does remind me of Hitler's corrupted idea of the Nistzschean Ubermensch. History will tell what kind of place humanity will reserve for ObL. A blip of zealotry [or lunacy] in a long human history of savagery and occasional sobriety? The shape of things to come? Or the evil that unites all good, at least in the convention sense?
Well, maybe good vs evil is a bit far fetched. After all, at the risk of inviting counterpoints from others, we Americans were forced to open our eyes when our houses were burning. I am hopeful though that we are not going to come our back from the light and go back to the cave when [a big if,] this subsides. It is not surprising that many dispossessed and disenfrancised identify with ObL. After all, they were supposed to be good Muslim but they were in such wretched condition. So, even without any historical justification, the mind would demand an explanation. Any romantic clinging to the glorious past [which is more fiction than fact anyway,] like the article from NYT or this one in SF Chronicle
sfgate.com
does not help matter any. Personally, I do not wish humanity having another Crusade, or Spanish Inquisition, or the sacking of Nalanda. And let's pray we are merely making a two-step-forward-and-one-step-back in our time.
best, Bosco |
