Truth vs. political correctness: Logan’s Warning and Act! for America

ACT! for America, the major “radical Islamic” awareness organization in the US and led by Brigitte Gabriel, has recently partnered with Zudhi Jasser, a self-proclaimed “devout” Muslim of moderate, pro-American disposition as representing the form of Islam they can embrace.

Logan’s Warning, one of the major web blog sites informing us of the problems with the Islamic ideology and its proponents, and unemcumbered by political correctness, has taken exception to ACT’s action which I agree is counter-productive and distorts the truth about Islam.

For the context of this debate check out the summary of Logan Warning’s correspondence with spokesmen of ACT! for America, HERE, HERE, and HERE.

Here is my take on the matter:

Caveat to the following:  Individual ACT Chapters are autonoumous and are comprised of participants who hold a variety of views, some not in accord with the doctrine espoused by ACT! for America national leadership.

I've had difficulty with national ACT's identification of “the Islamic problem” since I first explored that organization several years ago. They insist on referring to the problem as "radical Islam." They insist that all other forms of “Islam” are hunky dory. Once the goon thug bombers and intolerant mad dogs disappear, what’s left will be the OK Islam, and all will be fine.

But the reality is there IS NO "Radical Islam." Islam is Islam. What we see in the bombers and mad dogs is just one aspect of Islam. Peel away these layers and you have Muhammad, his life and teachings – the real Islam – which promotes and motivates the bombers and mad dogs, and intolerance, and Sharia law, and all the rest.

A few years back when I was exploring ACT, I questioned Rogers on why they refer to the problem as “radical Islam” and not just “Islam” since what we call “the radicals” is Muslims informed and motivated by Islam. In reply, Rogers urged me not get involved in ACT until I can gain an appreciation for their way of doing things because my attitude toward Islam might detract from ACTs message and effectiveness. I needed to mature a bit more and become more sophisticated in my understanding of Islam and how one approaches the problem.

I suppose I could become as sophisticated as Mitt Romney and proclaim, like he does, that “Jihad is no part of Islam.” The Romney campaign claims a high degree of sophistication in dealing with the Islamic problem. Unfortunately, that much sophistication creates a lie.

I prefer to deal in facts and truth and logic.

ACT is not truth telling. ACT is ignoring the truth of Islam. And even when ACT glosses over the root of the problem, Islam, to avoid criticism, ACT is STILL condemned and discredited by Muslims and their sympathizers. How is that working out? Don’t forget:  Any insult, real or imagined, is worthy of beheading.

Zudhi Jasser proclaims he is a “devout Muslim.” Jasser is as devout a Muslim as Joy Behar is a devout Catholic. Jasser represents a model Muslim as much as Behar represents a model Catholic. Neither is and neither do. “Typical”, maybe, in that neither practices their faith as it is strictly taught by the leading authorities within their respective groups. It appears that neither holds orthodox views of their respective faiths. In Jasser’s case, since he proclaims he is a “devout” Muslim, we have to sincerely question the truthfulness of what he says and the motivation for what he does. At best, he is an enigma who is confusing a lot of people.

And neither is Jasser reforming Islam. “Reform” means going back to the original as in the protestant reformation of the Catholic Church.

Islam has been in a reformation process for the last several decades. It is coming out of its slumber of the prior centuries. It has been reforming itself back to the original supremacist, intolerant, political, militaristic ideology as modeled by Muhammad.

Jasser is trying to re-make Islam into something it never was at its beginnings and never can become without becoming something other than Islam.

It is confusing and divisive for ACT to pursue a course that avoids the truth about the historic ideology that defines Islam and defines and motivates the huge majority of the 1.5 billion who call themselves Muslim – followers of Muhammad.   ACT declares that it is not concerned about continuing Muslim immigration?  No, Brigitte, most Muslim immigrants will not be Dr. Zudhi Jassers!  They are more likely to be semi-literate versions of Nadal Hasan or politically motivated versions of the ground zero mosque imam, Abdul Rauf .

No, Islam as not a monolithic ideology. There are those like Jasser who do not practice orthodox Islam.   Making matters worse, calling himself “a devout Muslim” one has to question his credibility.  Jasser would be more believable if he simply disavowed Islam.  That would be more consistent with his words and actions.

Such men as Jasser do not define Islam . It is a huge error to pretend he does.