OUTLINE & SYNOPSIS:

1. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND FOR 21st CENTURY 'MUSLIM' TERRORISM

    'Arab' terrorist groups almost always point to the problem of Palestine
as their main reason for attacking Israel and its supporters in the West.
A fair settlement of this unresolved dispute
would dramatically undercut this 'reason' for terrorism.

2. LONG-TERM SOLUTION: WHEN THERE ARE NO MORE VICTIMS

    Can we prevent the enculturation of new generations of terrorists,
who will grow up to commit acts of terror against their perceived enemies?

3. THEOLOGICAL WARFARE: TERRORISTS GO DIRECTLY TO HELL

    The members of murder-suicide cults need to be convinced
that they do not go immediately to paradise
when they kill themselves in the war against "the enemies of God".

4. PRACTICAL STEPS IN THE HOLY WAR AGAINST TERRORISM

    We must identity individual members of murder-suicide cults
and prevent them from committing further criminal acts.

1. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND FOR 21st CENTURY 'MUSLIM' TERRORISM

     One reason for 'Arab' terrorism is the displacement of
hundreds of thousands of Arabs from the Land of Palestine,
beginning when Israel was formed in 1948.

     The whole world cooperated in the process
that created Israel as a homeland for the Jews,
shortly after the Nazi holocaust that killed millions of Jews in Europe.
But this process put most of the Arabs of Palestine
into 'refugee camps' in the Gaza Strip and into the Kingdom of Jordan.

     No permanent solution to these displaced refugees was ever created.
So, for the last two generations, Palestinians born in these 'refugee camps'
---which have now become permanent settlements with millions of inhabitants---
have as their primary identity being victims of the process that created Israel.
About 65% of the population of Jordan
think of themselves as displaced Palestinians.

     When Palestinian children ask their parents and grandparents:
Who are we?  Why do we live here?
They are told the story of being displaced by the Jews of Israel.
Thus hatred of the Jews and everyone who supports Jews
is part of their personal and family identity.

     Some very intelligent people cannot rise above this ethnic hatred,
even if they have never lived in the Gaza Strip or Jordan themselves.
Millions of other Muslims, all over the world,
identify with the plight of the displaced Palestinians.

     In 1967, more land was taken by Israel in a short war.
United Nations resolutions and international pressure
have not succeeded in getting any of this land returned.

     To put it in a stark phrase: The world has been breeding terrorists
because there is no fair resolution of the problem of Palestine.

     There is no way to reverse history and do it right the second time.
So we must begin with the generations of terrorists we have created.
But we can hope to avoid creating any additional groups of terrorists.

     The world will not soon be rid of ethnic hatred and conflict.
Even some 'Christians' of Northern Ireland (Catholic and Protestant)
commit tribal violence against each other when they have the chance.
And these terrorist acts are sometimes committed in England
---such as random car-bombings on the streets of London---
because 'Catholic' Irish terrorists believe the power resides in London.

     Likewise 'Muslim' Palestinian terrorists commit most
of their acts of terror within Israel itself,
but 'Muslim' terrorists also strike at Western countries
perceived to be supporters of Israel.

2. LONG-TERM SOLUTION: WHEN THERE ARE NO MORE VICTIMS

     We (the civilized world) could attempt to deal with terrorists one at a time.
We will attempt to prevent as many acts of terror as possible,
coping with the terrorists who are already alive and plotting.
Dramatically improved airline security is one means.

     We may not know any workable solutions for the problem of Palestine.
But we all will be able to recognize the solutions when we see them:
Palestinians will no longer think of themselves as victims.
They will be happy to go about their ordinary daily lives,
without always looking for opportunities to do harm to their victimizers.
When Palestinians can say: "We are no longer victims.",
their children and grandchildren will not think of killing themselves
in order to call attention to their victimization.

3. THEOLOGICAL WARFARE: TERRORISTS GO DIRECTLY TO HELL

     One major tool in this holy war has been mostly overlooked: theology.
'Muslim' terrorists are willing to sacrifice their own lives
in the process of killing Jews and their supporters
because they have been told by their religious/political leaders
that they will immediately go to paradise
if they die in the holy war to rid the world of 'infidels'.

     This is not correct:  The terrorists immediately go to hell.
Mass murder of thousands of people who are not involved
in the conflict over Palestine is not an Islamic act.
And the terrorists who commit such acts do NOT go to heaven.

     These simple assertions will not be believed because I say so.
The Muslim believers must hear from their own respected religious leaders
that they DO NOT go to paradise when they commit acts of terror.

     Many Muslim thinkers believe that terrorists go to hell
instead of heaven, as they were expecting.
Many leaders of main-stream Islam have condemned the acts of terror
that killed thousands of innocent civilians on September 11, 2001.

     The terrorists are religious/political fanatics
---members of various murder-suicide cults---
who use their distorted religious ideas to support their political goals.

     Some parallel suicide and murder cults based in other 'religions':

1. Jim Jones, cult-leader of the People's Temple,
forced 900 followers into mass suicide in 1978 in Jonestown, Guyana.
http://www.religioustolerance.org/dc_jones.htm

2. David Koresh, cult-leader of the Branch Davidians,
led his 'Christian' cult to burn themselves to death in Waco, Texas, April 19, 1993:
http://www.religioustolerance.org/dc_branc.htm

3. Timothy McVeigh choose the same date to bomb the federal office building
in Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995.
He did not kill himself, but he did seem to want to be caught and executed.
He belonged to a small movement called "Christian Identity":
http://www.religioustolerance.org/cr_ident.htm

4. In Japan, also in 1995, the Aum Shinri Kyo, a new-age murder cult,
attempted to kill thousands of people (to hasten the end of the world)
in the Tokyo subway system by releasing a poisonous gas, Serin:
http://www.religioustolerance.org/dc_aumsh.htm

5. Marshall Applewhite, cult-leader of Heaven's Gate,
led his New Age believers into suicide in 1997
so they could be picked up be a space-ship
hiding behind the Hale-Bopp Comet:
http://www.religioustolerance.org/dc_highe.htm

     Because there are still millions of potential terrorists
thru-out the Muslim world, Muslim religious leaders
need to say more clearly than ever before that terrorists who kill themselves
in the process of struggling against the 'infidels' of the world
DO NOT get a ticket to paradise.

    Who will be the first high-profile Muslim thinker to declare
that the 9-11 terrorists are now being tortured in Muslim hell
rather than enjoying their virgin brides in Muslim paradise?

     Muslim religious leaders who openly dispute
the religious dogmas of the murder-suicide cults
might become the next victims in this holy war.
High profile disagreement with Muslim heretics or cult-leaders
will invite retaliation from the militants.

     Perhaps the few Muslim 'clerics' who support the murder-suicide cultists
do not really believe that terrorists go to heaven.
But they find it very useful in their political struggle
to indoctrinate young boys (from as early an age as they can get them)
to believe that their highest destiny is to die in the struggle against infidels.

     If the whole of Muslim theology were to shift to the position
that all who commit murder and/or suicide go directly to hell,
then suicidal terrorism would end.

     More conventional acts of terror would continue,
as they do in Northern Ireland and other places of ethnic strife.
But when the terrorists worry about being caught and punished,
they are much easier to control.
Even deadly force does not work against terrorists who WANT to die.

     In the immediate aftermath of Twin Towers Terrorism,
Muslims (and others who were mistakenly believed to be Muslim)
have suffered reprisals from people who responded in a tribal way.
But the struggle is not the good people against the Muslims.
The struggle is between the great majority of good people of every faith
against a few thousand fanatical members of murder-suicide cults,
who distort Islamic belief to support their continued terrorism.

     Our holy war unites all people of good faith
against the forces of evil and darkness,
even when they cloak themselves in the robes of religion.
Main-stream Muslims will lead the holy war against terrorism.

4. PRACTICAL STEPS IN THE HOLY WAR AGAINST TERRORISM

     1. We may need to identify 'Muslims' who believe the heresy
that killing "infidels" (any non-Muslim) is a sure ticket to heaven.
We believe in freedom of belief.
And we will certainly not restrict the lives of ordinary Muslims in any way.
But whenever we discover members of a murder-suicide cult
who are plotting to kill more infidels while killing themselves,
we have a right and a duty to put them in prison.
Once they are safely imprisoned, 
we can consider workable methods to deprogram them.

     2. Identified members of the murder-suicide cults
must be kept out of situations in which they can harm anyone else.
Israel is faced with the largest number of such individuals.
Perhaps the rest of the world can learn from the actions taken in Israel.

     For example, members of murder-suicide cults
should not be allowed to fly airplanes,
especially jet passenger airliners that regularly carry non-Muslims.
We suspect that at least one regular airline pilot
intentionally flew his jet into the ocean as a 'religious' act:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/americas/newsid_531000/531458.stm
http://www.guardian.co.uk/egyptair/article/0,2763,196590,00.html
http://abcnews.go.com/sections/world/DailyNews/egyptair_transcript000811.html

    Other members of murder-suicide cults
might decide to kill large numbers of "infidels"
by flying into buildings or other locations
where "infidels" on the ground will also be killed .
As terrible as it might be to contemplate,
such acts of irrational suicides might become a regular alternative to retirement.
Instead of a quiet life in their hometown in their declining years,
these believers might decide to go out in a blaze of glory,
taking as many of "the enemies of God" with them as possible.

     3. As a corollary to controlling members of murder-suicide cults,
we should take objective, overt measures to protect main-stream Muslims
who will now be endangered both by misinformed members of the general public
and by members of the murder-suicide cults who do not like being told
by main-stream Muslims that they are heretics.

     When main-stream Muslims feel safe in condemning all suicide-bombers,
it will become clear to the whole world
that mass murder is not one of the doctrines of Islam.

     Main-stream Muslims are the best friends the world can have
in the holy war against terrorism.
These Muslims will have some possibility of penetrating the murder-suicide cults
and alerting the proper authorities so that suicide-killings can be avoided.

    By taking reasonable precautions in our daily lives,
we can all help to win the holy war against terrorism.  

AUTHOR:

    James Park is an existential philosopher
and the webmaster for Heart, Mind, & Spirit. 
Much more information about him
will be found on his home page:
An Existential Philosopher's Museum
http://www.tc.umn.edu/~parkx032/

    If "Holy War Against Terrorism" has stimulated you to think,  
pass it on to friends in your computer's address book.  
You might simply send the URL of this article:
http://www.tc.umn.edu/~parkx032/CY-HOLYW.html

    This article is just the beginning
of an on-going discussion of terrorism with a religious twist.
Send your comments and questions to the author,
who promises to respond to all e-mails.
James Park's e-mail address is: PARKx032@TC.UMN.EDU
The best of such exchanges will be posted on the HMS home page
—linked from this spot.
If your comments or questions are used,
your name will not appear.

The views and opinions expressed in this page are strictly those of the page author.
The contents of this page have not been reviewed or approved by the University of Minnesota.