Unhappy masses and the challenge...., by Prof. Said

[Paragon]

But can we all reject the aspects of western influence be it technological or philosophical and yet succeed?

Good question STOIC.

 

Farah, regardless of who wrote the article, YES, I think its criticisms are 'well-placed', but not, as you put it, 'well balanced'. Happy?

[Jamster]

Oh well same difference

[xiinfaniin]

Originally posted by CAAMIR:

No matter how one looks at it, the heart of the Muslim dilemma goes to a problem that the Reformation and the enlightenment movement have permanently solved for Westerners, notably the question of what should be the basis for social and economic development in the community: human reason or revealed faith? Westerners have effectively, and for good, settled that question by the well-known principle of the separation of Church and state. It took Europeans three hundred years of blood and tears to transform themselves from a faith-driven worldview to secularized, reason-driven socio-economic systems. Will Muslims undertake the painful reform of society, and even more painful re-interpretation of their faith to bring Islamic theory and practice in accordance with the dictates of the modern world? Will there ever arise a Muslim Voltaire or a Muslim Ernest Renan to declare war on the body of hidebound conservative Muslim jurists whose narrow, rigid, literalist interpretation of the Qur'an and Hadith, have sunk the Muslim community into the ground?

Here, the good professor indulges a bit of intellectual dishonesty. He seems to follow the line of reasoning presented by the contemporary western Orientalists as to what are the root causes of current Muslim insurgency, or backwardness for that matter.

 

Is it out of envy and jealousy of the rise of western secularism and civilization and the failure of Muslim societies to catch up the ever-accelerating pace of change in the western world?

Is Islam deficient in values necessary to attain political, economic, and technological progress parallel to that of the west, as Bernard Lewis suggests (the good Samatar seemingly agrees with him), and therefore is in a dire need to undergo ‘a painful re-interpretation to bring its theory and practice in accordance with the dictates of the modern world?’

 

or is the helplessness and the humiliation of the Muslim world, as Juan Cole points out, the result of 'the combination of western occupation and weak states.'

 

To erase this fact, Juan Cole concludes, is to commit a basic error in the historical understanding.

 

Two thumps up for Farah and NGONGE.

 

STOIC, good question. But what does the west has to offer? Not much, I say! And I happen to agree with that true conservative of ours, Pat Buchanan that is, when he writes:

 

A society that accepts the killing of a third of its babies as women's "emancipation," that considers homosexual marriage to be social progress, that hands out contraceptives to 13-year-old girls at junior high ought to be seeking out a confessional – better yet, an exorcist – rather than striding into a pulpit like Elmer Gantry to lecture mankind on the superiority of "American values."

 

Jamaal11, I failed to understand your red-herring sxb. :confused:

A little elaboration would do some justice to your take on the good Samatar’s analysis.

[Paragon]

xiinfiniin: Jamaal11, I failed to understand your red-hearing sxb.

A little elaboration would do some justice to your take on the good Samatar’s analysis.

xiin, no sxb, I am blue-hearing, and not 'red-hearing' . Thats why you've failed to understand me. I suppose you meant to say 'red-herring'. If that was your intent, then, I still say there was no 'red-herring', atleast in my opinion.

 

PS: Now, do your own analysis of Samatar's article. Maybe that would do him, atleast, alittle justice.

[xiinfaniin]

Jamaal11,

A little spelling error you felt so compelled to correct! And I should be embarrassed by this, I suppose.

 

But you’re entitled to your opinion, I confirm! :cool:

[Viking]

Originally posted by Farah:

...they are merely hallowing sounding mantra of a secular mind.

My thoughts exactly when I read this article some time back. Alas, the learned man looks at the world through occidental spectales.