Rob pointed me the STRATFOR last week and I've been enjoying their analysis. Here they give greater insight into Murabak's (Egyptian President) calling for a UN council. Apparently he has difficulty with fundamentalist movements in his own country and his hold on the goverment may be made more tenuous. Moderate people don't like dealing with fanatics because their logic is skewed and their issues are largely irrelevant to daily life. I hope the US will make it clear that we need strong, unwavering support from all moderate Muslims. They are the vast majority of the inhabitants of many of the countries with whom we are attempting to build a coalition. Just as these attacks have rallied support from the right and left in this country, those governments should rally their people by calling the hunting of terrorism essential to the safety of all Muslims. Only by addressing the issues in terms to which citizens can relate will this war be successful. Middle Eastern countries need to make it clear to their people that this conflict is not about religion and that those who attempt to make it so are attempting to turn trajedy to their own sick advantage. This is as fundamental to success as the military action. It's wonderful that governments warn that military force may be met badly in the area, but their responsibility (if they support anti-terrorist campaigns) is to rally their people to support the cause and push the fanatics to the side. Terrorists cannot operate without shadows, and the greater light brought to the table by the true Muslims, the smaller those shadows will become and the easier the terrorist movement will be to crush.

It sounds strange, but what we need is a militant moderate.
- posted by levinson @ 9/19/2001 08:41:00 AM