People who share values stand together when they face a common enemy. They gather together to confront that enemy. They band together to fight that enemy.
Today, the Western world faces a barbaric scourge called, ISIS. ISIS is an evil plague. Its bubonic ideology spreads murder, beheadings and brutal rape. It buries people alive.
Its very existence mocks our Western values. It laughs at our belief in freedom and human rights. It makes Western humanitarianism look like a farce: you talk about human rights and freedom, ISIS seems to say. Well, here's what we think of human rights--another barbaric beheading, a hostage burnt alive on video.
The West watches in horror. It stands mute, immobile and helpless.
That's not exactly a spine-chilling pose for ISIS to contemplate.
The message is clear. Barbarism trumps Western human rights.
ISIS presents the West with a proposition so stunning, the West stands speechless: when barbarism rules, human rights don't exist.
The West is totally impotent. Compared to the visual power of an ISIS beheading or burning, the humanitarianism of the West is worthless.
Here, in full, is a short essay by Claudia Rosett. It's entitled, "Shoulder to shoulder, watching ISIS murder hostages". It appeared February 1, 2015 at PJ Media.
The essay:
-When ISIS beheaded British hostage David Haines, last September, the White House released a statement by President Obama that the U.S. “strongly condemns the barbaric murder,” and — with reference to Britain — “stands shoulder to shoulder tonight with our close friend and ally in grief and resolve.”
When ISIS beheaded British hostage Alan Henning last October, the White House released a statement by President Obama that the U.S. “strongly condemns the brutal murder” and –with reference to American hostages Jim Foley and Steven Sotloff beheaded by ISIS — “standing together with our UK friends and allies, we will work to bring the perpetrators of Alan’s murder — as well as the murders of Jim Foley, Steven Sotloff and David Haines — to justice.”
When ISIS beheaded Japanese hostage Haruna Yukawa on January 24, the White House released a statement by President Obama that the U.S. “strongly condemns the brutal murder of Japanese citizen Haruna Yukawa, and “we stand shoulder to shoulder with our ally Japan and applaud its commitment to peace and development in a region far from its shores.”
When ISIS (a.k.a. ISIL) released a video on January 31 that appears to show the beheading of Japanese hostage Kenji Goto, the White House released a statement by President Obama that the U.S. “condemns the heinous murder of Japanese citizen and journalist Kenji Goto,” and reiterated that the U.S., while “standing together with a broad coalition of allies and partners… will continue taking decisive action to degrade and ultimately destroy ISIL.” Secretary of State John Kerry provided the rest of what is by now the formulaic response: “We share the sorrow and continue to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our ally Japan in confronting terrorism.”
What are we to make of these statements?
There is much to be said for standing together — including shoulder to shoulder — with a broad coalition of allies and partners to stop terrorism and destroy the butchers of ISIS. But the message that comes through so far is that three of the world’s great powers — the U.S., Britain and Japan — along with other allies and partners, have been standing shoulder to shoulder for months, condemning and resolving and sharing grief and resolve. Nothing in all that standing together has been potent enough to stop these barbaric, brutal, heinous beheadings of American and British and Japanese citizens. That is a dangerous message of impotence for these great powers to be sending, shoulder to shoulder, to the rest of the world.
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My comments:
ISIS scorns our Western beliefs. It mocks our self-defined notion of Western 'solidarity'. It makes the West's attacks against Israel's supposed 'human rights violations' look affected, sneering and pretentious. In the face of the horror of ISIS, the West's obsession with Israel seems irrelevant--if not downright mean-spirited.
The West will not survive by ignoring ISIS in order to 'fight' Israel. Indeed, compare how the world responds to Israel and ISIS: Israeli soldiers arrest a 15-year old Arab for stoning Jewish cars on an Israeli highway--or they shoot an Arab teenager who throws a Molotov cocktail at Jews. The West immediately gets its panties into a twist because a minor's human rights have been abridged.
ISIS thugs, meanwhile, behead an innocent Western journalist on a celebratory video. The scene is horrific. But all the West can do is declare, 'we strongly condemn murder and stand shoulder-to-shoulder with our allies and friends'.
ISIS doesn't just demonstrate the West's impotence. It showcases the West's utter helplessness.
The West's 'moral fiber' is a lie. The only time the West has any 'moral fiber' at all is when it demonizes and criminalizes the only Westernized nation to stand up against ISIS-style terror--Israel.
Fighting your only defender isn't 'moral fiber'. It's stupidity-- or the ultimate expression of a Jew-hate so intense you can't see the train bearing down on you.
No wonder our Tanach says Israel will become triumphant. As ISIS continues to behead its way across the Middle East, the only thing the West does is burnish its humanitarianism by attacking Israel.
That's powerful, isn't it? The West defends its humanitarianism by fighting Jews while it stands mute before barbarism.
In the face of a bubonic ideology, the West presents us with a message of cowardice and impotence. Only Israel stands firm.
Only Israel--and those who chose to stand with Israel--will survive.
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