They're Not Muslims!
As, on Monday morning, I am heading across the Channel to spend a week in London, recent events in the Metropolis have naturally got my attention.
In common with most Londoners and indeed most Brits, terrorism or the threat of it is not going to make one iota of difference to the way I conduct my life. It does, however, cause the airport authorities to go into a sort of panic overdrive concerning security and consequently not only will you not be allowed to take a tube of toothpaste on board your flight, but gas canisters are now banned into the bargain.
Somehow, the facts concerning the 9/11 disaster have been overlooked. In that case, the hijackers did not carry anything on board with them, the tools of their trade were already on board the aircraft, thanks to employees at the airport. Since then, not one potential hijacker has been uncovered by the arcane and tedious restrictions placed upon passengers.
But if the recent terrorists had even a smidgen of common-sense, they would realise that, of all the cities in the world, British ones are the least likely to be affected, no matter how much carnage might be produced.
At the height of the IRA bombers efforts, I was in Oxford Street one evening during the Christmas shopping rush. Bombs had been discovered in one large department store and the management had wisely elected to turn everybody out on to the street. The pent up fury of the crowd on the pavement was terrible to behold. But it was directed, not at the IRA, but against the store management. How could they deprive the shoppers of access to their store?
The day after the tube bombings I strolled across London. The Queen emerged from Buckingham Palace and waved to the crowd assembled outside and the only signs of panic and paranoia were outside the American Embassy in Grosvenor Square.
This insouciance perhaps has something to do with the five years of bombing earlier generations were subjected to.
There was a good deal of luck involved in averting disaster this time. But the performance of everyone involved was highly creditable and deserving of the highest honours a nation could bestow. But as no sportsman, pop star or pseudo celebrity was involved, no doubt they will be overlooked at the New Year's Honours list.
The real losers in this are the members of the law abiding Muslim community and perhaps it is time to remove the 'Islamist' label from these perverters of their religion. As so often, they hide behind a shield of religious right in order to justify their actions, actions which are expressly forbidden by their religion. Nowhere does the Koran advocate terrorism.
So these are not Muslims, except by their own distorted definition, merely deranged terrorists totally undeserving of sympathy – especially from the Muslim community.
In common with most Londoners and indeed most Brits, terrorism or the threat of it is not going to make one iota of difference to the way I conduct my life. It does, however, cause the airport authorities to go into a sort of panic overdrive concerning security and consequently not only will you not be allowed to take a tube of toothpaste on board your flight, but gas canisters are now banned into the bargain.
Somehow, the facts concerning the 9/11 disaster have been overlooked. In that case, the hijackers did not carry anything on board with them, the tools of their trade were already on board the aircraft, thanks to employees at the airport. Since then, not one potential hijacker has been uncovered by the arcane and tedious restrictions placed upon passengers.
But if the recent terrorists had even a smidgen of common-sense, they would realise that, of all the cities in the world, British ones are the least likely to be affected, no matter how much carnage might be produced.
At the height of the IRA bombers efforts, I was in Oxford Street one evening during the Christmas shopping rush. Bombs had been discovered in one large department store and the management had wisely elected to turn everybody out on to the street. The pent up fury of the crowd on the pavement was terrible to behold. But it was directed, not at the IRA, but against the store management. How could they deprive the shoppers of access to their store?
The day after the tube bombings I strolled across London. The Queen emerged from Buckingham Palace and waved to the crowd assembled outside and the only signs of panic and paranoia were outside the American Embassy in Grosvenor Square.
This insouciance perhaps has something to do with the five years of bombing earlier generations were subjected to.
There was a good deal of luck involved in averting disaster this time. But the performance of everyone involved was highly creditable and deserving of the highest honours a nation could bestow. But as no sportsman, pop star or pseudo celebrity was involved, no doubt they will be overlooked at the New Year's Honours list.
The real losers in this are the members of the law abiding Muslim community and perhaps it is time to remove the 'Islamist' label from these perverters of their religion. As so often, they hide behind a shield of religious right in order to justify their actions, actions which are expressly forbidden by their religion. Nowhere does the Koran advocate terrorism.
So these are not Muslims, except by their own distorted definition, merely deranged terrorists totally undeserving of sympathy – especially from the Muslim community.
posted by Diary of a Ghost Writer at 9:26 pm
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