Dreaming for peace
Now that I’ve read James Carroll’s views on Islam (“Bigotry in America,” Views, April 5), I have a dream. Somewhere in the Middle East, a kid in an oversized coat, with a bulge around the middle, is about to board a crowded bus. A friend from the madrasa runs up waving a newspaper. “Wait, wait!” he cries, “Look here.”
He holds out the IHT and reads Mr. Carroll’s words, explaining that in Arabic jihad actually means “spiritual effort.” The friends abandon the suicide mission and spread the news to kings and rulers worldwide, who shut down the madrasas.
William Chase, Geneva
My letter to Ed of IHT, today, offering support, in the hope that, over time the eds will see that their readership is not going to be fooled by the sort of dhimmi nonsense pushed by the likes of Carroll (and, of course the egregious Roger Cohen also in the NYT/IHT):
Congratulations on printing a letter critical of James Carroll’s absurd claim that “jihad” principally means “spiritual effort”.*
Carroll is either ignorant or duplicitous, for the meaning of “jihad”, as is known to all who study and follow that matter, may include the concept of a “spiritual effort”, but is predominantly “holy warfare”, which meaning is most often quoted by Islamists.
Shame on Carroll; for he is either a Fool or a Knave.
Anyway well done, for at least once printing the views of a contributor critical of an aspect of Islam. And this particular aspect — jihad -- is an especially important one, on which your columnists should not try to mislead the “infidels”.
Yours etc, PF, Hong Kong
*Ref: the article in NYT/IHT "Bigotry in America" was first printed as "The roots of anti-Muslim bigotry", in the Boston Globe, April 04, 2011.
