Islam's islam problem

Islam has a PR problem. Last week's attack in San Bernardino is the type of attack that islamic apologists dread the most. The attackers were not the wild-eyed, crazy-haired, zealots that we saw pictures of in the wake of the Paris attacks. These were the nice, moderate, muslim couple that lives next door. Farook was a likable, quiet guy at work. In the words of one of his co-workers "I thought we were all friends.". They thought they were friends when they threw a baby shower for Farook and Tashfeen. They thought they were friends when they went to a Christmas party where Farook and Tashfeen murdered them in the coldest of blood. They thought they were friends.

There is a narrative in play that has taken on somewhat of a life of its own. The narrative advances the idea that the San Bernardino assault was complex, and required a certain level of training. It wasn't, and it didn't. Ignoring the IED collection (which apparently played no role in the event), all they needed was basic equipment, opportunity, and the will to kill. There will be much news-cycle focus on the first item in that list, but the last item in the list is the heart of the problem. Solving that problem is also the key to islam's bad reputation, and it can only be solved from within islam. Unfortunately, until now, islam has largely ignored its islam problem. That isn't a luxury that the rest of the world can afford.

When people talk about "moderate" muslims, the implication is that their value system is similar to western value systems. If the vast majority of people from islamic countries fit into such a category, it's hard to see what might be the source of such a value system. Egregious violations of basic rights are matters of routine in islamic countries - even some of those we consider moderate. Chopping off hands, oppression/ownership of women, apostasy laws, stoning rape victims, throwing gays off of roof-tops, female genital mutilation, honor killings, etc. should not be tolerated by any government that the United States recognizes as legitimate. Such cultures are not simply incompatible with American culture, they represent the antithesis of American culture.

There have been a number of polls taken that clearly indicate that a significant percentage of muslims in foreign countries are OK with things that westerners would consider nothing less than barbarism. The US government sends a mixed message to muslims that immigrate to the United States by ignoring that barbarism in their home countries and by having an immigration policy that similarly ignores the potential of it in the immigrant population. Barbarism isn't a gem of multi-culturalism, and it must be filtered for by the US immigration process. No country or people that tolerates these things can be considered moderate. It simply isn't rational to declare someone moderate if they are willing to accept the taking of a hand as a punishment for theft, or require multiple witnesses to corroborate the testimony of a rape victim. What are the precursors of a moderate sub-culture within a culture that institutionalizes barbarism?

If moderate islam wants credibility, islam needs a civil war - plain and simple. People in polite circles are calling it a "reformation". There should be no misunderstanding that this is a euphemism for what could only be a violent transformation. If there is truly a vast moderate majority being sullied by a few extremists, it is not unreasonable to expect those extremists to be confronted by an aggressive, concerted, and intentional effort directed by all levels of leadership throughout the islamic world. 

In the United States it should be reasonable to expect muslims to side with the "infidel" against the radicals. Or for muslims that dance at the death of non-muslim civilians to be exposed, loudly condemned, and shamed by their own community and religious leaders. Or for spokesmen for groups like CAIR to be unambiguous in their alliance with non-muslims against radicals. Or for imams to call out radicalism as evil and allow no mosque to be a sanctuary or haven for extremist speech, thought, or actors.

In France we've just seen three mosques shut down for supporting extremism. Were there no moderate muslims aware of the extremism in these mosques? In the aftermath of the San Bernardino attack we still see defensiveness and excuses from many muslim spokespeople. If extremism in your own community doesn't offend you into action, can you really be considered a moderate? Where are the voices of condemnation and outrage from the leaders of the moderate muslim community? Where are their vows to do everything they can to make sure it never happens again? The American people need to see some visible evidence that the American muslim community is committed to driving evil from its midst. That is one of the things that Barack Obama should have asked for in his awful national address last Sunday.

The President of the United States has demonstrated once again his inability to comfort his people when the heart of the nation is broken. Given the opportunity to lead a grieving nation he chose instead to stay in his comfort zone of politics and America-shaming. Obama should reserve his invective for a US muslim community that has refused to take an energetic role in confronting extremism, not for unfounded fantasies of muslim abuse at the hands of non-muslim Americans. Feeding into the sense of isolation and abuse of American muslims only serves to bolster the resolve of the terrorists. That resolve will be weakened when the would be perpetrators of violence know without doubt that they will be condemned without caveat by islam. Action against extremism is the only believable test of "moderateness". It's time for islam to step up and deal with islam.