Chindu published an editorial Taliban: a response to modernity where it for a change complained about the medieval practices of the Taliban and the horrors faced by the civilian population.
While it complains about the sins of radical Islam whose blind practice have lead to this abhorable state in Pakistan and Afghanistan, it also lays the blame surprisingly on colonialism as a key contributing cause.
Reading some of Chindu's "authentic" readers whose opinions were published in Letters to the Editor made for some unintentional humor and also exposes a vital flaw in the response i.e. a sense of apology towards the criminals.
For example, Mr. Muthi-ur-Rahman Siddiqui states,
WTF! Did this doofus read the article in the first place? Why is he barking up the wrong tree here?
Another reader B.C. Veeraraj Urs states,
The idea of the Taliban being romantic? This is the first time I've heard such an opinion from a reader not living the caves of Tora Bora. Modernity does give a choice for people to live their lives in whatever way they want under the law of the land. Taliban will kill you if you do not follow the rigid principles of radical Islam.
Another reader(idiot)Saheer Karimbayil claims,
Really how do you do that with a broken economy, impotent military and utterly failed democracy?
And lastly Mr. Thehseen Zakir finishes off with the usual trite by Islamic apologists about Islam,
Really how is that possible when most countries where Islam is the state religion is either a dictatorship or a failed democracy with severe human rights problems?
While it complains about the sins of radical Islam whose blind practice have lead to this abhorable state in Pakistan and Afghanistan, it also lays the blame surprisingly on colonialism as a key contributing cause.
Reading some of Chindu's "authentic" readers whose opinions were published in Letters to the Editor made for some unintentional humor and also exposes a vital flaw in the response i.e. a sense of apology towards the criminals.
For example, Mr. Muthi-ur-Rahman Siddiqui states,
The video showing the flogging of a 17-year-old girl in Afghanistan has given the Islamophobes a chance to indulge in Islam-bashing. They equate Islamic jurisprudence with barbarism and cruelty. To them, the Islamic justice system means punishment and execution without trial — a system where the accused has no chance to be heard. It is time to change this notion.
WTF! Did this doofus read the article in the first place? Why is he barking up the wrong tree here?
Another reader B.C. Veeraraj Urs states,
The idea of the Taliban as a response to the patently inequitable modernity would have surely been romantic had it allowed the people to voluntarily follow its ways. Just as modernity leaves no choice for the people, the Taliban, by resorting to patent barbarity, does not give the people any option.
The idea of the Taliban being romantic? This is the first time I've heard such an opinion from a reader not living the caves of Tora Bora. Modernity does give a choice for people to live their lives in whatever way they want under the law of the land. Taliban will kill you if you do not follow the rigid principles of radical Islam.
Another reader(idiot)Saheer Karimbayil claims,
The Taliban is not anti-modern, but anti-U.S. The article is pegged to the flogging incident — punishment in a society that follows the Sharia — and does not deal with what led to the making of the Taliban. Why does the Taliban find support in Pakistan, where the vast majority is for democracy and a modern way of life? If Pakistan wants a peaceful Swat valley, it should explore ways to reassure all the sections that its sovereignty will not be mortgaged to any external force.
Really how do you do that with a broken economy, impotent military and utterly failed democracy?
And lastly Mr. Thehseen Zakir finishes off with the usual trite by Islamic apologists about Islam,
The western world, by failing to acknowledge the significant scientific, social, and political contributions of Islam, has promoted a worldview that anything Islamic is anathema to modernity. The Taliban applies this in the reverse by defining anything anti-modern as Islamic. This is a gross misinterpretation of all that Islam stands for. Young impressionable Muslim minds repulsed by the excesses of imperialism need not think that Talibanisation is their only option. Islam encourages freethinking. We must understand that the demonisation of all things Islamic is a trap that the Taliban would love the civilised world to wander into. The only way to overcome extremist tendencies is to give voice to the truth and recognise Islam in its purity as a benign influence.
Really how is that possible when most countries where Islam is the state religion is either a dictatorship or a failed democracy with severe human rights problems?
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2 comments:
Off-Topic:
Interesting:
http://www.hindu.com/2009/04/13/stories/2009041355440800.htm
Even more than 60 years after they have left the Indian subcontinent, the colonialists are still being blamed for all the ills of South Asian society. This is nothing but escapism.
Ofcourse, the US erred in fostering islamic fundamentalists, in their fight against Soviet imperialists in Afghanistan. It was like fighting the spread of weeds using napalm bombs. The West is now reaping the harvest from what they have sown then, in the region. Had they tried to promote democracy & human values instead of Islamic fudamentalism, then, Taliban would not have grown out to be the monster, poised to swallow the world, that it has now become. I do agree that promoting democracy & human rights in an illiterate, tribal society like the Afghanistan was not easy. But they should have atleast made an honest attempt.
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