A Positive Change?

Ahmad Al-Akhras Vice chairman of National Council on American-Islamic Relations, Columbus wrote in June that “What has happened in Somalia, for the majority of Somalis inside and those who are abroad, is a positive change. I truly suggest that we should not prejudge this change, or any change for that matter, based on the religious affiliation of those in power.”

How then should we judge this change sir? When the Islamic Courts recently conducted its second suicide bombing attack against the Transitional Federal Government, and when the same government states that: “Peace talks with Somalia's Islamic movement are no longer an option,” with the clear warning that the Islamic Courts is allowing al-Qaida terrorists to "set up shop" in the Horn of Africa?

If this is a positive change for the people of Somalia, then we can tell that you are clearly on the side of the Islamists.

Somalia is descending into a chaos the likes of which haven’t been seen since the over throw of dictator Mohamed Siad Barre in 1991 and you sir are not helping the matter when you state that it is clearly US policies that create terrorism the world over when in fact it is your statements that empower those same terrorists’ to continue the killing. To state "the numerous incidents cataloged suggest that the United States could reduce the chances of such devastating, and potentially catastrophic, terrorist attacks by adopting a policy of military restraint overseas," when many of those events occurred long before US intervention in Iraq and Afghanistan is to take a lie to the highest level.

To further compound your falsehoods with even more inflammatory langue and state that “[t]he gulag at Guantanamo Bay breeds terrorism. The torture at Abu Ghraib and extraordinary renditions breed[s] terrorism. Occupation of others’ lands breeds terrorism,” is to ignore the Islamists’ role in their predicament, a predicament wholly of their own making. Might I remind you that Islamic terrorism existed before Guantanamo Bay and Abu Ghraib as well as this so called occupation about which you cry. Terrorism was not created by those constructs they are simply “excuses” that you find convenient to use to explain your belief that sharia should prevail over all.

How are we to believe that you have the interest of any one other than the Islamists’ at heart when you promote such falsehoods and speak out against some unheard of claim that Western and US governments are “Imposing unlawful, punitive and inhumane sanctions on the whole Palestinian population for electing their own government…” and promoting the proven false claims of Hamas that “[a]n Israeli bombing that killed a whole family on the Gaza beach?” These claims have no basis in fact and are obviously only used by you to inflame your listeners.

We hear your words and we will judge you by them don’t be surprised when we stop listening to you, and place you squarely in the camp of the enemy.