A Free, Independent Kosova!

After nearly 20 years of Serbian oppression and occupation, the Kosova has finally declared its independence!

The Kosovars are to be congratulated that they have achieved their freedom through peaceful, democratic means in cooperation and under the supervision of NATO and the international community (note to the Palestinians). Meanwhile in Belgrade, Serbian leaders are calling for war and more violence, while trying to a lid on anti-Kosova riots. The contrast couldn't be more stark.


In many of the published pictures in the past few days leading up to this historic day the American flag is seen prominently with the Albanian flag. Through the brave and tireless service of our US military, particularly those who served in KFOR, we have won an important ally in the Balkans. It's unfortunate that the late Kosovar Prime Minister Ibrahim Rugova, a man committed to peaceful resolution of the Kosovar situation, and Rep. Tom Lantos, a devoted friend of the Kosovar people and a brave champion for their cause on Capitol Hill, didn't live long enough to see this day.

Congratulations to Kosovars everywhere!

Islam, Science and Christianity

(Note: I'm cross-posting this from WorldMagBlog)

Popular mythology holds that while Christian Europe was in the so-called "Dark Ages", where intellectual inquiry and human progress was allegedly weighted down under Christian dogma, the Islamic world was flourishing with advancement and learning. But bestselling author Robert Spencer challenges the assumptions underlying this "Golden Age of Islam" narrative, primarily constructed by 19th Century European historical revisionists, in his new book, Religion of Peace?, and in a recent blog post where he notes that virtually all of the scientific and technological achievements following the initial Islamic wars of conquest relied on the Christian and Jewish intellectual capital of the areas they subdued. Spencer concludes:

In sum, there was a time when it was indeed true that Islamic culture was more advanced than that of Europeans, but that superiority corresponds exactly to the period when Muslims were able to draw on and advance the achievements of Byzantine and other civilizations. But when the Muslim overlords had taken what they could from their subject peoples, and the Jewish and Christian communities had been stripped of their material and intellectual wealth and thoroughly subdued, Islam went into a period of intellectual decline from which it has not yet recovered.

Bestselling author Dr. Andrew Bostom also recently addressed another component of the "Golden Age of Islam" myth, that Islamic Spain was a model of religious ecumenism while Christian Europe was simultaneously wracked with inquisitions and intolerance, by examining the writings of the "Second Moses", Jewish medieval philosopher Maimonides, who fled Muslim Spain because of religious persecution there directed against Jews and Christians alike.

Both the Spencer and Bostom articles are well worth reading. I would also note my previous June 2006 post, "The 'Golden Age of Islam' Myth", which covers additional ground on this topic.

An unofficial Fred Thompson campaign ad

Fred Thompson on the GWOT

Yes, I'm now writing for Pajamas Media (watch for my article next Monday), but I'm only posting this because it is a rare look at one of the viable presidential candidates in an extended, unedited setting. No 60 Minutes edits to twist things out of context. Nothing here but unvarnished opinion. Fred's views on the Global War on Terror. Entirely worth 15 minutes of your time.

Welcome back, Columbus Dispatch!

Well, Mike Curtin's crew is back on the prowl and digging for dirt. Someone from the Dispatch appeared this morning from a Google search looking for "Patrick Poole and Curtin". Seriously Mike, don't your people have anything better to do than to do your ego surfing for you?

Ahmadinejad's Apocalyptic Faith

In light of the present visit to the US by Iranian dictator Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, I would direct readers to an article I wrote more than a year ago at FrontPage, "Ahmadinejad's Apocalyptic Faith". There I wrote about the Hojjatieh brand of Shi'ism that Ahmadinejad follows, which I described as follows:

Most Shiites await the return of the 12th Shiite Imam, Muhammad ibn Hasan, the last direct male descendent of the Prophet Mohammed’s son-in-law Ali, who disappeared in 874AD and is believed to be in an invisible, deathless state of existence, or “occultation”, awaiting his return. Though it is discounted even by the most extremist clerics, a popular belief in Iran holds that the 12th Imam, also called the Mahdi or the sahib-e zaman (“the Ruler of Time”), lives at the bottom of a well in Jamkaran, just outside of Qom. Devotees drop written requests into the well to communicate with the Mahdi. His reappearance will usher in a new era of peace as Islam vanquishes all of its enemies. The Sunnis, who reject the successors of Ali, believe that the Mahdi has yet to be born.

But rooted in the Shiite ideology of martyrdom and violence, the Hojjatieh sect adds messianic and apocalyptic elements to an already volatile theology. They believe that chaos and bloodshed must precede the return of the 12th Imam, called the Mahdi. But unlike the biblical apocalypse, where the return of Jesus is preceded by waves of divinely decreed natural disasters, the summoning of the Mahdi through chaos and violence is wholly in the realm of human action. The Hojjatieh faith puts inordinate stress on the human ability to direct divinely appointed events. By creating the apocalyptic chaos, the Hojjatiehs believe it is entirely in the power of believers to affect the Mahdi’s reappearance, the institution of Islamic government worldwide, and the destruction of all competing faiths.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has clearly indicated that he is a true believer in this faith. It has been reported that he has told confidants that he anticipates the immanent return of the Mahdi. When he previously served as Mayor of Tehran, he advocated for widening the roads to accommodate the Mahdi’s triumphal entry into the city. One of his first acts of office as President was to dedicate approximately $20 million to the restoration and improvement of the mosque at Jamkaran, where the Mahdi is claimed to dwell.

This personal belief directs his official policies as President. He has publicly said, “Our revolution’s main mission is to pave the way for the reappearance of the 12th Imam, the Mahdi. We should define our economic, cultural and political policies on the policy of the Imam Mahdi’s return.”

However, Ahmadinejad’s messianism doesn’t stop with the Mahdi. In fact, he has made it clear that he believes he has personally received a divine appointment to herald the imminent arrival of the Mahdi, tacitly acknowledging his own role in setting aright the problems of the world.

The Hojjatieh sect is so extreme, it was banned by Ayatollah Khomeini (which is saying something). Ahmadinejad's spiritual mentor is Ayatollah Mesbah-Yazdi, known affectionately (or not so) by his moniker, "Professor Crocodile". Mesbah-Yazdi has been pushing to succeed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as I noted in another article, "The War Ayatollah".

Understanding the worldview of our enemies (Iranian-made IEDs and EFPs are killing dozens of American soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan each month) is essential for understanding their intentions. You might also want to visit my friend Timothy Furnish's website, MahdiWatch.org, and read his History News Network article, "What's worse than violent jihadists?" for additional background on the virulent brand of Shi'ism practiced by Ahmadinejad.

Hello Columbus Dispatch visitors!

Over the past few days we've received a number of visits from the good folks at the Columbus Dispatch, who have spent some time riffling through our past blog posts. This was true yet again today. Perhaps their doing opposition research for their good friends at the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR), so Ahmad Al-Akhras doesn't have to anymore while sitting at his cushy government MORPC job?

If so, they are no doubt looking for the smoking gun that will prove once and for all that I'm some crypto-bigot, because I say such unkind things about their friends at CAIR, who have assured Mike Curtin that they are peaceful and moderate and really don't support Islamic terrorism (except, of course, when they get caught red-handed speculating on the activity of the "Jewish lobby" in town or saying that Palestinian terrorists are "guerrilla groups").

Or maybe it's just that the Dispatch just holds a grudge against me and they want to do another hit piece for their pain. After all, they cleared Hilliard-based terror cleric Salah Sultan in May 2006, only to have him flee the country following my series of FrontPage Magazine reports over the past year that revealed his appearances at overseas rallies praising HAMAS and doing political analysis for the Muslim Brotherhood. My FrontPage report led to Sultan's US citizenship application getting tossed. Ouch! That had to hurt, especially for Dispatch reporter Felix Hoover who "cleared" Sultan. And then there was the LA Times article back in July which disclosed that Sultan was "glorifying holy war" and stirring up Sunni-Shi'a strife in Bahrain. Double ouch! I know what Felix Hoover is thinking: "But he told me he signed a fatwa condeming terrorism?" And then to have me publish pictures of Sultan cavorting with global terror cleric Yousef Al-Qaradawi at a conference in Qatar just a few weeks ago (wait until they see the video!). You wonder how they gather the courage to go to work every morning to do Mike Curtin's bidding.

So here's an open-ended question for the Dispatch: what exactly is it that you want to know? You know how to get ahold of me. Don't be afraid to ask. I won't bite. Promise.

UPDATE (09/06/07): It seems the Dispatch's curiousity for yours truly is growing, as we had visitors from there again today. Do you people have anything better to do? I don't update this blog nearly enough for it to be that interesting.

UPDATE #2 (09/10/07): OK, this is getting a little weird, guys. I really don't update this blog enough to warrant this much attention from the folks at the Dispatch. Haven't you all downloaded all the previous posts already?