The main cause of contention between Jews and Muslims is Israel. Before the creation of Israel there were few Jews in the region and although relations were not exactly friendly, it was nothing like the situation now. And I wasn't wrong, you didn't say modern you said Pan-Islamic. You're the one 'sliding' the issue. I just can't see how you think the Nazi's are to blame for the rise of Islamic Extremism. Like I said, a lot of people agreed with the Nazis, and an animosity towards Jews was usually the reason, although suppression of the working class appealed to a lot of people. Still does in the corporate fascist oligarchy that runs the world today.
I refuse to get into a debate with you where I am actually defending any form of religious extremism. All religious extremists are nuts, with the exception of radical Buddhists who are incredibly pious, hard working, soft-natured and could kick your ass in a second, but they don't because that would be wrong. Of course it would also be wrong to play on the stereotype that all Buddhist Monks know kung fu. But thats a discussion for another day.
While I will of course agree that Islamic extremism is dangerous, and when it leads to terrorist atrocities and human rights abuses it can be fatal. The sad fact is that more people are enslaved, brutalised and oppressed by fascism even today. The huge oligopolous corporations which have a near limitless control over peoples lives, especially in the third world and reach out on a global scale unlike any of the mighty empires of the past are truly fascist institutions. With the help of Western governments and their militaries and themselves producing the Weapons of Mass Destruction we all live in so much fear of, they export their influence all over the world and usually the effects are detrimental. Yet what form of public oversight do we have over these Pillars of Western power, these 'captains' of industry. The U.S. government, by far the most influential over, or should that be influenced by these billion dollar corporations seeks 'de-regulation' endlessly. A lie in itself, as the rules aren't being removed, but rewritten in favour of these behemoths of capitalism. And so the role of government in regulating industry and trade has been underwritten and they seek their 'free' markets endlessly.
'Free' trade is another good lie, the W.T.O., the global champion of free trade, one of the most protectionist institutions in the world, the E.U. as well as a matter of fact. China is the best example of this these days. The clamour over Chinese attempts to buy Unocal recently, where was talk of free-trade then? You don't ask me to believe that human-rights abuses were a problem do you? When Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Guatemala and many other countries guilty of heinous crimes against their own populations are such valuable trading partners. Saudi Arabia more so than any other perhaps, and that being one of the countries home to the 'Pan-Islamic Fascism' Trajan is so worried by. That and Germany, obviously. And speaking of Germany, Europe in general, recently millions of pounds worth of Chinese textiles were recently impounded as Chinese imports exceeded quotas. Doesn't sound so free to me. But hey, I'm no economist.
So while I can't disagree that Islamic fundamentalism, or extremism or Islamo-Fascism or whatever you want to call it, is a clear and present daner in the 21st century, I think the danger rests more in the middle east and attacks in the West, although more frequent than perhaps any time in history (thats attacks originating from outside the West) they are still far less frequent than deaths in the middle east, and still far far less frequent than crimes committed by 'client' states under the auspices of the 'War on Terror'. And excluding violent death, the corporate oligopoly has a much more devestating impact on not only people but entire cultures, societies and nations. The genetic material of remote South East Asian island tribes has been copyrighted by an American bio-engineering outfit! This is not freedom, it is slavery and if any of you are familiar with George Orwell, the reference and hopefully it's significance will not be lost on you.
LONG LIVE EMMANUEL GOLDSTEIN!!!