PERHAPS THE U.S. SHOULD LET THE BRITS DO ALL THE TALKING
“I believe that this is precisely because we have developed a highly successful model of integration which enables people of all backgrounds and faiths to prosper and live together within the safeguard of common values. Our society is itself an affront, and a reproach, to the ideologues who believe that only their way of living life is the right one.
And make no mistake: The threat we face is ideological. It is not driven by poverty, or by social exclusion, or by racial hatred. Those who attacked London in July, those who have been engaged in terrorist networks elsewhere in the world, and those who attacked New York in 2001 were not the poor and dispossessed. They were, for the most part, well educated and prosperous. In the case of terrorists in the UK, they have also been ethnically and nationally diverse.
What drives these people on is ideas. And, unlike the liberation movements of the post-World War II era, these are not political ideas like national independence from colonial rule, or equality for all citizens without regard for race or creed, or freedom of expression without totalitarian repression. Such ambitions are, at least in principle, negotiable and in many cases have actually been negotiated.
However, there can be no negotiation about the re-creation of the Caliphate; there can be no negotiation about the imposition of Sharia law; there can be no negotiation about the suppression of equality between the sexes; there can be no negotiation about the ending of free speech. These values are fundamental to our civilization and are simply not up for negotiation.”
– The Rt. Hon. Charles Clarke, M.P. Home Secretary of the United Kingdom
The power of moral and intellectual clarity combined with actual mastery of the English language, you can read the whole thing here.
Now many of our top officials are just as smart and sometimes better educated than their British counterparts, so why do our officials come off sounding more like the president of the Akron, Ohio All-City Bowling League ?
October 23rd, 2005 at 5:52 pm
What drives these people on is ideas. And, unlike the liberation movements of the post-World War II era, these are not political ideas like national independence from colonial rule, or equality for all citizens without regard for race or creed, or freedom of expression without totalitarian repression.
Ha! Either
1. Clarke is trying to form some distinction between good Enemy terrorism / bad Enemy terrorism, which is bizarre, or
2. Clarke is trying to form some distinction between unreasonable Conservative/Authoritarian politics(Caliphate, Sharia, etc) v. unreasonable Liberal/Totalitarian politics (secular equality, etc)
all while engaging in double-speak.
Like the song of a bird, Clarke’s words are beautiful and meaningless.
Dan tdaxp
October 23rd, 2005 at 6:31 pm
“What drives these people on is ideas. And, unlike the liberation movements of the post-World War II era, these are not political ideas like national independence from colonial rule, or equality for all citizens without regard for race or creed, or freedom of expression without totalitarian repression.”
Clarke is making a great statement here. It seems he understands that Al Qaeda, like other such organizations across the globe, are simply the warriors of a greater movement. What drive them are their deeds and not their ideology. They leave that up to someone else. Until we understand we are at war with the whole Middle East, like Condoleezza Rice has said, we have to simply attack these warriors as they come out. That is what war is about. One vertical force attacks the other’s horizontal force. As the Middle East becomes democratic, or not, these warriors will disappear.