There is, for once, a positive trend in the Islamic world. It's that Islamic terrorism, and Palestinian terrorism, are no longer automatically supported. A growing number of Islamic clerics, some of them quite influential, are openly, and unequivocally, condemning Islamic terrorism. Not too long ago, some clerics would condemn terrorists killing Moslems, but allow that dead infidels were less of a problem. No more, and this is a big change. A decade ago, Moslem clerics inclined to condemn Islamic terrorism, had to consider the possibility of threats, or worse, from the militants. That's still a problem in places like Iraq and Afghanistan, but even there, clerics are speaking up against the violence.
This is confusing. We have lots of troops in Iraq. And the prison at Guantanamo Bay is still open. But the clerics are not giving the death-to-America speeches that were once common? They actually preach against killing? The anti-war Left assured us that these two factors were the Islamists' best recruiting tools. So what gives?
What gives is what I've long argued: only ineffective use of force encourages the enemy. Smack them around and send them to Paradise in sufficient numbers, and joining the jihad doesn't seem like such a grand idea for a lot of young, angry, Moslem males.
Tell me you didn't actually believe that our Left collectively had any understanding of military matters or history.
