By Fareed Zakaria, CNN
The group has come to everyone's attention because of Anders Behring Breivik's killing spree in Norway, now just over a week ago. He claimed in his rambling manifesto to represent a modern-day "Knights Templar".
But who are they?
The name might ring a bell, especially if you've seen The DaVinci Code or National Treasure or one of any number of recent films. But these are, of course, all fictional. What are the facts?
The Knights Templar were a Christian military order founded in the early 12th century. Its members were said to be elite warriors who wore distinctive white mantles with a red cross. They made their reputation by winning a series of battles in the Crusades.
Ironically, the Knights' first headquarters were in a mosque - the Al Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem - because they believed it was built on top of the ruins of Solomon's Temple. Their name, templar, comes from that legendary temple.
The Knights' main job was said to be protecting Christian pilgrims from Muslims (amongst others). To this day, the site of the mosque and the temple mount remains one of the most heavily disputed place on earth.
The order of the Knights Templar was dissolved in 1312, but its legacy lives on. Rumors still swirl that the group exists in total secrecy and guards the Holy Grail.
From what sounds like fiction, back to fact: We know that Brevik saw himself as a Knight Templar.
But get this: Halfway across the world from Norway, a new drug gang has recently arisen in Mexico. They call themselves quite simply "The Knights Templar".
And they claim to live by a religious code, a copy of which the Associated Press recently obtained. It says the drug-dealing knights will "defend the values of society...against materialism, injustice and tyranny" and that its members will be "honorable", "noble", "courteous" and "honest".
So they are "honest" drug dealers, selling marijuana, cocaine and whatever else in the name of God?
Anders Breivik's fascination with the Knights is less bizarre - in fact, he's part of a larger movement. People like Breivik are trying to resurrect the idea of a modern-day Crusade, a real clash of civilizations against what they see as an Islamic invasion of Europe.
In fact, Muslims make up only about 3 % of Europe's population and are likely to rise to between 5% and 8% by 2025 and level out at that point. But that doesn't change the reality of the anger, hatred and violence.
Ironically, in Breivik's nostalgic view of the medieval world, the Knights Templar resembles nothing so much as al Qaeda, a terrorist organization that is fundamentally opposed to the modern world.
We still don't know if Breivik's boast that there are more lone knights like him waiting to act is true. But if his depiction of the knight as a self-sacrificing assassin on a larger holy mission sounds familiar, it's because it too is mirrored in Islamist terror. That's exactly what a suicide bomber is: A lone fighter, often acting in the so-called interests of a larger movement and willing to kill innocents to draw attention to the cause.
While we have all focused on the dangers of radical Islam and of Muslim terror, the attack in Norway should remind us that there is actually a pretty large problem of other sources of terrorism in the West.
The European Union's 2010 Terrorism Situation and Trend Report has some fascinating findings. It showed that of the 294 terror attacks committed in Europe in 2009, only one was conducted by Islamists. That's a third of one percent.
The most recent statistics show there were 249 terror attacks in Europe in 2010. Only three of those attacks were carried out by Islamist terrorists. Again, that's about one percent. Most of the attacks were by separatist groups or anarchists.
So perhaps that's the lesson we can learn from the events in Norway. Islamic radicalism is a real problem and Islamic terrorism a real threat. But if we ignore other kinds of threats we're likely to be blindsided by another Gabby Giffords shooting or another Virginia Tech massacre.
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Well explained and a good warning to all of us.
Templars still exist. Sounds like modern Jesuits
You mean the modern Jesuits at places like Georgetown University?
(Knight) Templar
1. a member of a military religious order ( Knights of the Temple of Solomon ) founded by Crusaders in Jerusalem around 1118 to defend the Holy Sepulchre and Christian pilgrims; suppressed in 1312
2. ( Brit ) ( sometimes not capital ) a lawyer, esp a barrister, who lives or has chambers in the Inner or Middle Temple in London
[C13: from Medieval Latin templārius of the temple, from Latin templum temple 1 ; first applied to the knightly order because their house was near the site of the Temple of Solomon]
Another interesting article is also at:
http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/did-medieval-knights-templar-influence-norway-gunman-161312473.html
It's not at all limited. The sin nature of men and boys is the problem. They love the membership of secret societies – it's quite universal. More legendary, the better. And they LOVE fighting and destroying and having dominance. It's in their blood. Men must be properly educated by the Bible regarding sin and hell and that every hidden thing will be exposed and everyone will be judged by God at the end.
Massacres and atrocities are crimes done by anyone or carrying any name. Muslims, though numerous in population, by their doctrines don't tolerate the existence of infidels and apostates. That fact sets them and atheistic communists apart from others. Muslims must change from the very foundation in the Muslim-majority land. People reveal what they are when they are majority or in power. Being a minority is only a temporary status, not the true selves. Unless all the Muslim-majority land gets complete religious freedom and human rights, no argument works as execuses for them. Walk the talk.
Every crazy man has something he looks forward in the things he thinks he knows while he himself is a pure evil incarnated and a justification of the evil he does.
Jesuits uphold a militant duty, just as the templars did.
The Jesuits maintain a "militant duty" out of more tradition. St. Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits was a soldier before his conversion. You'll often hear the term "soldiers for Christ" associated with the Jesuits, but this saying has been skewed. "Soldiers for Christ" is sometimes used by modern Crusader groups, but the Jesuits were never violent. They use the term "soldiers for Christ" to explain their loyalty and duty to build God's Kingdom through love.
The Norwegian terrorist has claimed himself to a right-winged extremist. The Jesuits are almost notoriously (among a mostly conservative faith) known their liberalism.
Well said Bonita... The west is really not aware of Muslim doctrines and how their religion encompasses a socio-economic-political agenda. They exist as a semi-passive minority, but become quite dominating upon achieving majority status. Their goal is to convert ALL since Muhammed was the last prophet of God, so man...by nature should follow the Q'uran which is the last revealed word of God. The Sharia is a religious doctrine which gives non-Muslims status as secondary citizens and calls for their eventual conversion. They are taxed heavily by jiziya and economically get bribed into Islam...(at least the poor people). Higher classes are often bred out when Muslim men marry non-Muslim women, because they can! Mind you, Muslim women HAVE to marry Muslim men according to the Q'uran. If you are listening in the WEST, keep Islam out of your countries. You must understand their agenda!!!
Breivik's idea of a knight came from the German composer Richard Wagner, who was admired by Adolf Hitler! Many of Wagner's works, especially "Parsifal" or "Perceval" – a opera about the quest of the holy grail, focus on medieavl chivalry and honour.
Why did they have to go talking about a new mexican drug gang? That was pointless and represented us marijuana users as bad people. I AM IN NO WAY PART OF ANY GANG. But i smoke pot. But according to the federal law, im a threat to my family, friends, neighbors, and myself in general. PLEASE HELP LEGALIZE MEDICAL MARIJUANA! LEAVE US NON-VIOLENT CITIZENS AND OUR MARIJUANA ALONE!
Because they call themselves the Knights Templar, he didn't say your bad, the dealers are.
Yes that was a rather strange correlation. Tthe Knights of Templar is a racist organization heavily tied with the government instead of saying kkk they say they are Knights of Templar or White Knights. Little do people no that mexican drug cartel fighting is somewhat based on skin color although I do not know much about their knights of templar organization except for what has recently been brought to light. Just probably a wrench in the fire by CNN for their next big story. Some people will find a way to degrade a healing herb or cannabis culture until the day they day they die because healing of the people is not what they want.
One of the biggest Knights of Templar organizations is the Red Cross claiming to help so many people but waiting for so many people to die so they can suck their blood. The history of this blood sucking sickness goes I don't know how far back and is based on a lot of wickedness that I don't care to dig up.
Keep smoking your peace pipe and peace will prevail. she free.
I think your pot may be laced with something else...paranoid much?
Pot users aren't necessarily bad people, just DUMB people. Medical marijuana my foot. What, for treatment of short hair, achievement, and too much concern for life?
You're smoking too much pot if you think that Fareed somehow linked violent drug cartels with peaceful people who smoke marijuana for pleasure and medicinal reasons.
Sekemet, if you're not receiving psychiatric care, you should be. The Knights Templar never have been a racist organisation and never will be. From about 1127, the KT had a number of non French members, many of whom were converts from Islam.
No gang is affiliated with the Knights Templar. Drugs are spiritually repressive mostly. Virtually all gangs claim to be honourable but they aren't. They are normally greedy, cruel, hateful, selfish people out for financial gain. They will feed off as many people as they can get hooked.
The Templar belief is that all faiths are inter-related, there is only darkness and light...and that has nothing to do with skin colour.
What warning? Don't buy mexican drugs from strange Norweigens?
The warning is that wack-jobs are unpredictable and could be living right next door. Nothing new really.
hahahahahaha!!!
Wait a minute... 294 terrorist attacks and only 1 was carried out by muslims? That is absolute Bu****it, someone playing fast and loose with the figures in order to advance the media PC agenda. Or maybe the bully stealing your lunch money is now considered a "terrorist act" in europe. Thats the only way any rational person could come up with these figures...
@Dorkus
Well, you might want to check out the studies he quoted, before dismissing it out of hand.
Not saying you're wrong. Just might want to check it out. If you do... get back to us, i would love to see what you have come up with.
Regards,
Peace...
Don't be such a dork, Dorkus.
Just because you're surprised by the numbers, it doesn't mean that the source is not legitimate. The numbers are official and come from the European Union itself. I don't see "fast and loose" anywhere here.
Graffiti outside mosque, a child throwing an egg outside a muslim house, a drunk screaming at muslim shop keeper, a crazy man shouting at women etc. This, while I was in europe was recorded as act of terrorism so the numbers are correct but, you should see what these people did to make it to the list and that is a totally different story.
I'm sure the numbers are accurate they just sound more significant then they are. Everytime they find explosives or a cache of weapons somewhere someone gets a terrorism related charge. That goes for terrorists and idiots building pipe bombs in their basement. Europe still has groups like the IRA around. The only terrorist attacks in Europe last year big enough to make the news would of been the one involving the Islamic terrorists and the ones involving the IRA in some way.
What an ignorant article this so called "reporter" has written! He quotes a code from the "Knights templar of Michoacan", which is a drug cartel! It's no wonder there are so many people drinking the "kool-aid" if you only believe what one fool has to say! This guy did about as much research on this article as an 8 year old! If you don't believe me, look it up yourselves. Reference ""The Code of the Knights Templar of Michoacán," The real Knights Templar were NOT drug dealers...but I'm thinking Fareed is, a "Kool-Aid" vendor!
@Steve
I don't see the author referring anywhere to the original Knights Templar as drug dealers.
I think his point was that *anyone* could refer to themselves as a Knights Templar, including drug dealers and notorious mass murderers like the one in Norway.
Check the facts...His explanation is totally ficticious and slanted! He did about as much research as an 8 year old on this article, and is obviously as ignorant as his article depicts him to be! His editor should be ashamed of letting him publish this article!
Might there be a reason why there have been so little attacks by Muslim extremists? Could a small, but significant reason be the attention we have put into that problem?
Good point... Attention though should not be limited to islamists, that's what the author is saying.
Im glad CNN chose a muslim man tell report on this...
Please tell Don Lemon to allow his "guests" to finish their answers, and not cut them off. That is rude. Thanks!
The Knights Templar did have some astonishing tales of dedication, faith, and honor.
But make no mistake, they were the militant arm of fundamentalist Christianity in the Middle Ages. These were people, motivated primarily by greed for land in the Middle East, who set out to "save" the Holy Land from "the infidel".
They committed mass murder in the name of God.
That is true. The amassed a fortune which infurated the Church and they claimed they were criminals, broke them up and took the money and jewels that they had stolen from others. They started out well but all that wealth corrupted them.
They were destroyed by the King of France who turned on them with an edict declaring them evil and unChristain.
The Knights Templar amassed a fortune that didn't make the church angry, it made the French government angry, who owed them a lot of money. After trying to get the popes to intimidate and excommunicate the members of the order, the French monarchy decided to arrest and torture them to get them to admit to heresy, sodomy, and other things. It was only then that the papacy ordered the arrest of the order across Europe.
That aside, this article didn't say anything about the Knights Templar that you couldn't read in the Da Vinci Code, which is kind of disappointing.
Is there a Middle-Eastern religion which hasn't committed mass murder in the name of God?
True they were the militant arm of the Christian Church at the time , but their real talent was to create a banking system that for the most part today's system is still modeled on. They were the first group to organize Trusts for the wealthy that went from Western Europe to fight in the crusades. Essentially, the Templars bankrolled the later crusades an the French King's expansion at home. Philip was deeply indebted to them and up until the time of their dissolution the Templars were well thought of because aside from their warrior monk status, the organization was also the most charitable end of the Catholic Church. Philip decided not to pay them and the only way to effectively default on the Templars was to basically turn them into pagans in the eyes of the public and some of the nobility. The Pope knowing that Philip had more power than he did acquiesed and on Friday the Thirteenth in October of I believe 1312, all the Templars were rounded up . There were rumors at the time that the Templars also had cut a peace deal with the Muslims which cut Philip out and kept him from effectively recruiting for a crusade.
Yes, Judaism, Zoroastianism, Druze, and a few others I can't think of right now.
They did? being a history major I can tell you they fought battles in the name of God. They didn't simply go out and kill people randomly.
They did not fight, but they did become Europe's bankers.
It's why they were murdered, and why the French eventually lopped off Louie's head in retaliation.
Among other things.
Actually James, Study the history of thier marches and embarcation/disembarcations by sea and land(This is often overlooked research). They absolutely slaughtered people starting at the Austro-Hungarian border, through Romania along their routes of march-HUGE ammounts of people(more casualties in Europe during the march then in all of the middle east...). And it was everyone-not just one religion or another. When they disembarked in Turkey/Lebanon-they killed everyone in a robe and headdress-which at those places were not influenced as yet by Islam. S side bar that you might enjoy reading is the "lesser campaigns" into North Eastern Europe(Poland, and the Baltics toFinland) that occured at the same period.
And they were all hunted down and murdered by King's order on October 13, 1307, a day so infamous that Friday the 13th became known throughout the western world as an unlucky day. Sucks to be a crusader without a crusade; they had ammased too much power to be left with idle hands.
Wikipedia – At dawn on Friday, October 13, 1307, scores of French Templars were simultaneously arrested by agents of King Philip, later to be tortured in locations such as the tower at Chinon, into admitting heresy in the Order. Over 100 charges were issued against them, the majority of them identical charges that had been earlier issued against the inconvenient Pope Boniface VIII: accusations of denying Christ, spitting and urinating on the cross, and devil worship. The main interrogation of the Templars was under the control of the Inquisitors, a group of experienced interrogators and clergy who circulated around Europe at the beck and call of any European noble. The rules of interrogation said that no blood could be drawn, but this did nothing to stop the torture. One account told of a Templar who had fire applied to the soles of his feet, such that the bones fell out of the skin. Other Templars were suspended upside-down or placed in thumbscrews. Of the 138 Templars (many of them old men) questioned in Paris over the next few years, 105 of them "confessed" to denying Christ during the secret Templar initiations. 103 confessed to an "obscene kiss" being part of the ceremonies, and 123 said they spat on the cross. Throughout the trial there was never any physical evidence of wrongdoing, and no independent witnesses; the only "proof" was obtained through confessions induced by torture.[7] The Templars reached out to the Pope for assistance, and Pope Clement did write letters to King Philip questioning the arrests, but took no further action.
Bob –
Got a source to cite for that?
perhaps bob u should read your history...the holy land was an area that was shared by christians and and jews....it was invaded by the moors...."muslims"...who proceded to murder all jews and christians....as well as destroy and desecrate sites considered holy by judeo christians as well.......the crusades was to stop this murder and "take back" the holy land from these invaders.....
The Muslims did nothing of the sort.
Jews, Christians and Muslims lived peacefully in Palestine until the Crusades were ushered in by one more evil pope hellbent on pretending he was a living representative of Jesus...... who'd not have laid a hand on anyone.
Do some homework.
John,
Actually, the first crusade was started because the muslims were attacking the byzantine christians. The european christians came to their aid. There were some heinous acts by christians (mostly individual nobles leading their own bands) as well as muslims.
Both of you are bit right and wrong. Just read the real histories and be honest. The Arabs, NOT Moors, came into Palestine (named by the Romans after destroying Judea), which was populated by Christians, Jews, and many other types such as Druze and even Zoroastrians, and killed many, but also left many. The Islam was invented by a merchant who sought to create a mercantile empire with a supporting religion. Dead people don't pay taxes or render tribute, and dead people don't make good slaves. The chief object of trade was slaves. Arabs were and have always been the largest slave trading ethnic group in the world. So when Muslims invaded, they killed to make an impression on those they left alive, wherein, the Crusaders, initially killed far more when they took Jerusalem, and later Constantinople, as it was the custom to not leave any to intrigue and overthrow. Remember while all this was going on, Genghis Khan will slaughtering millions in Asia and Eastern Europe, far out doing both the Crusaders and the Muslims in religious genocide.
You're mistaken. They did not.
Anymore than the Vatican was holier than the Cathars, walking, living saints it butchered simply because they were.
That is NOT true what you say about mass murder. Knights Templar were NOT mass murders. Thw MUSLIMS were. They killed anyone who would not convert to Islam. WATCH YOUR MOUTH!
brother terry...plz watch the kingdom of heaven atleast!!
Fareed: I think that you are trying to appease terrorists and Islamists by totally distorting the statistics about terrorism. You are trying to create an equivalency between Islamic terrorism and the few examples outside of Islam. You ignore the role of the Koran and the hadiths in inspiring terrorism around the world. By looking at Europe only you are attempting to water down the number of Islamic terrorism incidents which worldwide are predominantly (over 94%) Islamic terrorism incidents and the top 24 terror groups are Islamic. That is not to mention the slaughter, forced conversions, sharia-related death sentences, Muslim-on-Muslim killings taking place each and every day (look at Africa, Mr Z!!). The fact that you are unwilling to call terrorism a problem for both Muslims and everyone else makes you a dhimmi accomplice who reports propaganda rather than truth in his reports.
I think you hit the nail on the head! No true Christian can kill another human being outside of self defense, defense of others, or defense of country. This wacko in Norway may think he was defending his country but he murdered a bunch of innocent people who were unarmed and did NOTHING to him...he can disagree politically but what he did was murder...no less.
You can make the same argument about Muslims. No true Muslim would kill innocent people...see how that works?
No true Christian can kill another human being outside of self defense, defense of others, or defense of country.
Outside of self-defense, defense of others, or defense of country. That leaves a lot of wiggle room, doesn't it?
Heliocracy is right. Just as the Bible says not to kill, the Quran says that if you kill an innocent, it is as if you have killed all of mankind.
Tom,
The big difference is who is called and "innocent". You can't be an innocent unless you convert or subjugate to islam. If you don't take one of those two options, the only alternative is death.
Didn't make it to the last paragraph, eh Dean?
"So perhaps that's the lesson we can learn from the events in Norway. Islamic radicalism is a real problem and Islamic terrorism a real threat. But if we ignore other kinds of threats we're likely to be blindsided by another Gabby Giffords shooting or another Virginia Tech massacre."
Crazy people going off on shooting sprees is different than the proclaimed political reasons that Breivik cited for his unfortunate action. There will always be a crazy person who wants attention and gets it via violence. But Breivik was different and one of the distortions, aside from false stats of Zakaria's article is the attempt to ignore the difference.
Dean.... "examples outside of islam" ????? call them what they are......
Christian fundamentalist zealots!!! There has always been 'friction' among religions (I am right... no I am...etc.) Jews/christians... protestants/catholics.... muslims/everybody... etc. All religions have 'shared' in the carnage that is religion..... some god, huh?
–as i am reading this,it appeared to me that this seemed to be written by a Moslem-so a scrolled up to see the name- sure enough IT WAS!!!!!!!!
.. was gonna say the exact same thing. CNN doesn't even bother to cover-up it's bias anymore. I sure miss the good old CNN... back in the day when they actually did fair, open reporting. The only reason I even read this site is because of the somewhat rare/odd stories they cover. Otherwise, it would never be found in my browser history.
So, you guys need a Christian to give a fair and unbiased look at history? Right.
Yeah.... its MUCH better to bury your head in FAUX NEWS or talk radio..... they tell you what you WANT to hear!
Uh... He's not religious at all. He's just smart.
As if his religion somehow changes the facts he's relaying.
Just because his name is Fareed doesn't mean he's Muslim. His family is Sikh. Your cultural illiteracy betrays you; learn something or speak with insight before you make yourself look like a fool again.
Last I read was that he was from Egypt and was Muslim. So he is all of these things now, eh?
Zakaria and his editors are to be commended for publishing an unbiased apolitical description on the Knights Templar!
You've got to be kidding. He doesn't even scratch the historical fact much less the modern equivalent.
Totally agree! Instead of digging deeper they seem to have cut and pasted. Has he even looked into the modern Knights Templars? I don't think so. The Knights Templars I know are horrified by this. So sad that folks don't do their own research and take news organizations word at face value.
Precisely.
Mr. Zakaria's piece is a news article, not a dissertation. It is unreasonable to criticise it for not going into every minute detail.
mhr – This article is NOT a news piece, but an editorial opinion. Editorial opinions are mean to influence thinking and action.
The mosque in Jerusalem is not thought to be on the site of the ancient temple of Solomon, it IS built on the last remaining segment of Herrods temple following the sacking of Jerusalem by the Romans in the first century AD.
... Which was built on the site of the first temple, yes?
Perhaps. No one really knows.
Exactly right. The only reason that some people, mostly Muslims, make statements such as "believed it was built on top of the ruins of Solomon's Temple" is because the Muslims have refuse to allow archeologists to examine the Al Aqsa Mosque grounds. Everybody, even the honest Muslims, know that it was the site of the 2nd Temple and 1st Temple ( Solomon's Temple ).
The Muslims have a long history of destroying Churches, Synagogues and Temples, then erecting Mosques at the same site, or in some cases, like the famed Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, they merely expelled the Christians, converted it to a Mosque, then added the Minarets.
Islam was spread by the sword at the direction of its founder, Muhammad just as the Spanish and to a much lesser degree, the French, spread Christianity, at times. That is just how things were done back then, to the victor belonged the spoils.
The really absurd thing is the sanitized historical revisionism to make what happened 500 – 1000 years ago seem less uncivilized by making statements such as “believe to have…..” or “allegedly”.
Fareed Zakaria is an Indian Muslim, who like anyone else could quite understandably have difficulty admitting how his early coreligionists handled themselves in the 6th – 12th centuries.
Just admit it. The Al Aqsa mosque is built on Solomon’s Temple.
Fareed Zakaria is a Sikh, dimwit.
Actually, the Al Aqsa mosque is down the hill from where the Temples were. It is the site where Muslims believe Mohammed was transported to by God and worshiped with all the past prophets. The Dome of the Rock is a shrine built on the Temple site. Before it there was a Roman Temple to Jupiter on the site which was destroyed by the Persians when they captured the city in 614AD. And it has been a Church at times as well. All groups either erect or take over houses of worship when they conquer others. Read some history on the Hagia Sophia and how many times it was either destroyed or nearly destroyed by rival Christian sects, the only reason it still exists is because of Muslims who recognized it's significance.
The original nine KTs excavated under the Mosque, but some deny that. But an Englishman did do archeological research in the late 19th century under the Mosque. He found tools common to Europeans in the time of the Crusades, but nothing else. But this confirms what is otherwise known by tradition, the Mosque is built on the ruins of Herod's Temple. The other confirming historical evidence is that Josephus and Roman historians mark the spot as the ruined Temple. The ruins were available to Jews and Early Christians until the Mosque was built, so there is plenty of witness to its location and existence. The Wailing Wall of the Jews in Jerusalem is part of the Temple as well. Muslims today fear what modern archeology would add to the legitimacy of the Jewish temple politically, so they refuse to allow any investigation today. Zakaria is supporting that effort by representing the site as "legenday" rather than factual, as it actually already is.
Umm fareed rafiq zakaria is NOT a Sikh name, thank you. Please stop being very ignorant.
Secondly, a loving God would not cause death in His name therefore there cannot be a God. Please stop living the hoax and unite as people, as humans.
We need to grow up and stop being so primitive.
I ;am not so sure that christianity was not spread to the african slaves the same way. Offering food to an extreamly poor country under if they but go to services is the same thing
This author is completely downplaying the amount of heinous terrorist acts by Muslims. What Breivik did is unforgivable, but it doesn't change the fact that Islam is a huge source of terrorists.
You say "Islam is a huge source of terrorists," but the facts - as collected by the European Union - are otherwise. 1 attack out of 294 in 2009: that seems a difficult fact to ignore, if you're trying to stay safe, which is all anyone wants to do.
We should bring back Lobotomies.
jimzcarz:
I would love to medically recommend that you be the first recipient of a lobotomy. You first!
Wow. This author knows basically nothing about the templar knights, historical fact, myth or modern-day groups claiming affiliation. Did he do any research at all I wonder besides hearing that some wacko called himself one? That deluded soul seems to have no connection to any recognized group claiming to be the templar knights based on his actions. Go CNN, you're on par with the watercooler for news.
"The Knights' main job was said to be protecting Christian pilgrims from Muslims (amongst others). To this day, the site of the mosque and the temple mount remains one of the most heavily disputed place on earth."
The difference is that anarchists attack banks, whereas Muslims generally want to re-instate Islamic rule over Europe. Little difference there ZACK. Also the Knights Templar would have routed out every mooslim from Europe. Whether this guy is crazy or not is another story – STOP re-writing history or interpreting modern events with a pro-Islamic flavor. The mooslims are quite evil as a group, and a definite threat to our way of life. They scarcely tolerate a Jew or Christian in their midst unless they are a tourist. (Trust me I know.)
Whew....nothing like a little 'christian hatred'....eh Greg.
The Knights Templar were about a code of conduct – learned from a Muslim by the way who introduced the very concept of honor and chivalry to a barbaric serf ridden Europe ruled over by brutal armed men (what we refer to as "nobles" today).
They and the modern US military have nothing in common and the modes in which the West fights it "wars" today are about as far removed from honorably conduct as can be. The West is without honor or common decency. The Knights would side with Al Qaeda today.
And Al Qaeda *is* honorable and decent? Just to start with, how many Muslims did that organization kill in Iraq? How many innocent people - of all religions - died in the September 11th attacks? The US has made a massive number of mistakes and hardly has its hands clean, sure. But don't you dare assume, little troll, that Al Qaeda has done anything other than spread destruction and death among its own people.
Hoody Doody; Good name for you. It is true that the Templars admired the chivalry of some Muslims like, Saladin, but they had their own brand of chivalry already. At times, the chivalric deeds of both impressed the other and there were periods of honorable treaty and near permanent peace. Read up on the Crusades. Richard the Liionhearted showed this European chivalry best, as his interactions with Saladin, the most chivalric Muslim in the Crusades shows. But y ou also had the Assassins, who were duplicitous deceivers. They got their name form the Hashish they smoked and their adherence to the model for today's Osama bin Laden – The Old Man of the Mountain. His adherents would get the confidence of his target and then stab him with a special dagger. Not particularly chivalrous, is it? St Bernard of Clairveax espoused it and called upon European Chivalry of knights in stirring up the cause of the First Crusade. He reminded knights of their duty to do good, etc. As warriors, European knights carried on the Nordic/Germanic traditions of honor and chivalry that existed long before the time of the Crusades or even Rome.
"The lunatic is all idée fixe, and whatever he comes across confirms his lunacy. You can tell him by the liberties he takes with common sense, by his flashes of inspiration, and by the fact that sooner or later he brings up the Templars." – Foucault's pendulum, by Umberto Eco.
One of my favorite books about secret societies and conspiracy theories.
I agree. Focault's Pendulum was great! Another good one is The Black Robe.
This article is very biased...
I agree.
Its Fareed Zakaria, what else can we expect. He is CNN's liberal version of Glenn Beck.
I totally disagree with the facts in this one sided article. The threat of extreme Islam is greater than you imagine and your facts about Muslim populations in Europe is delusional. Please get your facts correct before you try and sell them here.
Islam itself was created to make Christianity irrelevant.Its says Christ is a prophet and Christ did not die on the cross but escaped at the last minute. The ideology of islam should be feared more than the terrorists.
Tom:
Islam doesn't deny Jesus. Actually, Jesus is the most revered prophet in Islam, along with Moses, Abraham, et. al. The only difference is, in Islam, God has no son and Jesus is no god. He was one of the holiest messengers. Islam also doesn't deny that he died on the cross. It actually says that he was ascended to heaven by God. No where in Quran it says that Jesus escaped. You should check your facts.
No, Muslims say that Simon of Cyrene took his place and was crucified in his place. Other Middle Eastern sources have traditionally claimed this as well.
It is nice to see that someone else sees this guys also as a terrorist. Great article!
Whatever the Templars were they were a well over a thousand years ago.Muslim terrorists are now. Breivik is insane as I believe anyone who would such a thing must me. But he is not a Christian no matter what he writes or says. After all calling yourself something will not make you that.
Like most "Christians"...
Muslims have been in the business of terrorism since at least 7th century when their so-called prophet mohammed accidently ingested some cow dung,dreamed an angel appeared to show him what God intended,and convinced a bunch of camel jockies into believing his"trip".Then they started converting people to their perverted religion,or relieved them of their filthy lives if they didn't convert.They were a scourge upon the earth then and continue to be so today.
Really? Like when he returned to Mecca from Medina with an army of 10,000, and chose to forgive the very people who had oppressed and tried to kill him numerous times? Read some books, troll.
I believe the author is Muslim himself, and this is why this article is completely biased
He is a Muslim, Biased or not, I do not know. I think he looks at everything very even mindedly and should be commended for that
Bias is when BBC, Washington Post, NY and several other western media outlets alleged the Breivik's attack again to Muslims without waiting for facts.
"The European Union's 2010 Terrorism Situation and Trend Report (shows) that of the 294 terror attacks committed in Europe in 2009, only one was conducted by Islamists."
And that same report states that the reason for the small number of Islamist attacks is because of increased vigilance on behalf of the legal authorities of the E.U. That should not be overlooked.
Zack IS A Muslim!
Notice how cnn didnt tell you how the TKT disbanded. They were all burned alive or assassinated by ORDER OF THE POPE! That they were " Too powerful to be left alive"<---COVER UP!
The Knights Templars were the miltant wing of the Vatican Catholic Church who finance the crusades.. .The Catholic Church in the 12-16th centure controlled paid for the hospitals, schools and colllected 10% of all income from people...Anyone not a church as an outcast much like the Islamic manefistor. or Sharia Law. Many of the great artist were patronized and paid by the Catholic treasury. The Vatican is separate state. The age of enlightenment and subsequent separattion of church of church in the 1700's ended the power of the catholic church.
"The most recent statistics show there were 249 terror attacks in Europe in 2010. Only three of those attacks were carried out by Islamist terrorists."
Seriously CNN? Don't even try to make muslims to look like they've been beat up on. This is exactly what Anders Breivik said was happening, and also states it in his manifesto.
Europe is controlled by the multiculturalists. What are they counting as "terrorist attacks"? People setting fires? 1 or 2 people getting killed? Yeah, ok, sounds like terrorist attacks to me.
THIS ARTICLE AND THE AUTHOR IS BIASED.
correct. the statistics presented here are wrong
Correct.
Wow, I read this news piece and some of the "Facts" are off or biased. The Original Knights Templars started off as a very small organization that grew very powerful before their fall. They founded their Headquarters were they did because they were looking for religious artifacts because in those days whoever had religious relics had great prestige. In the end the Knights Templar was a military order as well as powerful bankers and they worked with the Muslims all the time. The Order was NOT broken up by the church but rather the French king who wanted their supposed wealth (France was hurting for money) and he (The french king) forced pope too turn their back on the Knights. The Knights did not just die away but rather broke up and took on different forms. The Knights Templar did fight against Muslims but they were not racist or Terrorist. For this modern day murderer or other criminals too call themselfs Knights Templar is a slap in the face too their honor. If a modern day MUSLIM went and killed people and claimed he was a modern day soldier of Saladin I would laugh in his face as Saladin could be brutal but he had honor. This man has no honor and the Author does not know what he's talking about.
Thank You, M Gonzales Edgewood NM
Aside from the bombs of Islamic terrorists, Islam in Europe is more like the Hashishim of Hasan bin Sabah, The Old Man of The Mountain, whose followers smoked hashish and murdered their victims close up, by lulling them and getting next to them and then stabbing them with a dagger. This is symbolic of what Islam is doing in Europe. They don't need bombs, they are doing it one by one, and using the mask of harmless religious piety to gain entry.
The present day Salvation Army is left-overs of the militant wing of the Knights tempars...activist Christians who are involved in all aspects of society including war, schools, and hospitals and business and charity work..
No, the Knights Templar hasn't come to everyone's attention because of a Norwegian madman, but why does CNN's resident Islamo-fascist want everyone to think that?
Doesn't CNN have anybody better ?
Who owns CNN these days ?
It would be interesting to know the relation of the terrorist to the Masons. The current Order of DeMolay is a group based upon the principles of the Templars which is sponsored by the Masons and often is a stepping stone to joining the Masons.
Extremists cannot become a member of the Masonic order.
Some people just can't accept reality.
The Order of de Molay is the Masons equivelent to The Boy Scouts and is for young boys, who might or might not later enter FM as an adult. For girls there is Job's Daughters. Don't make it sound like something it isn't.
In addition, De Molay was invented by an American Mason in the 1930s. My father was a Mason, but I only recall being asked once if I was interested in joining De Molay. I wasn't and that was the end of it.
The Templars never protected anyone – the original knights were carefully chosen and well connected – they had a very specific mission and that was to excavate below the Temple Mount – research the names of the original Templars and much will become clear.
Nephilim: You need to read your history so you won't embarass yourself by making such ignorant comments. The Knights Templar were organized for the very purpose of protecting pilgrims in the Holy Land soon after the First Crusade (by Hugues de Payens and Godfrey de Saint-Omer). Many thousands of pilgrims died enroute to (or on the journey back from ) Jerusalem, murdered by bandits, prior to the origin of the Knights Templar.
Meemee: Thank you for your many thoughtful and intelligent posts.
I am both stunned and appalled at the oxymoronic irony of the phrase "christian military".
Well said.
I'm amazed that this is new enough to you to amaze you. The only difference of Christianity and other religions is that it claims to not do what it has always done. I know liberal Christians who are in Ecuador right now, converting natives to their form of Christianity, hoping to get them into the U.S. so that they can vote Democratic.
On Friday 13th, October 1307 many Templars were arrested, and killed.
I am a Christian
I believe Jesus is the son of God
I believe in Holy Trinity The Father The son and The holy Spirit
What is the Knights Templar, they were chosen by the Pope
The Pope is The Father's chosen represenative and Voice here on earh
*slow claps*
The Knights were NOT chosen by the pope. Rather, they blackmailed the papacy with the knowledge they uncovered under the Temple. Coupled with their banking prowess, it was the pope Innocent III who was installed by Phillippe of France to do his bidding untilt he Knights were summoned to Paris and massacred for the debt Phillippe owed them he could not repay.
It worked out nicely for the Vatican to have the truth expunged for a time, but that day is quickly drawing to an end.
It was 'aboput' John the baptists, not Jesus and the Knights knew it.
Someday you will, too.
No time like today.
You are full of conspiracy theory distortions. The Knights Templar were sanctioned by the Pope and answered only to him. At the time of the suppression of the Templars, the Holy See had long been set in Avignon, France, not The Vatican. There is no proof that he was blackmailed, but rather rewarded for recovering some Holy Relics which also seemed to make them instantly wealthy. Remember, there were only nine of them for the first ten years when all they were doing was excavating under the Temple.
And... The Templars in France were arrested, some tried, few burned, and many eventually released. Some had advance warning and the entire Templar fleet escaped with much Templar treasure from the harbor at St. Rochelle. There destination is uncertain, but this is one reason while many researchers think that the treasure on Oak Island is a Templar treasure. Also, the Templar naval jack was the Skull and Crossbones. The skull and crossbones was a symbol of eternal life. There are two legendary myths of explanation for it origin. One I can recall now is the story of a Templar who sinned in lusting after a woman of high standing. She died of some tragedy and his passion compelled him to excavate her grave to lie with her body. All he found was her skull and two crossed thighbones, accompanied by the voice of God who told him to not denigrate such a holy woman's remains. He redoubled his own piety and took the symbol as a reminder, connoting the warning of God on any who would blaspheme.
Please John
Enlighten us
Today you can have the privilege of the world knowing the truth
I have had the honest feeling of letting the world know where I stand
In His Name
Amen
Great. In just a few sentences, you illustrate the complete Christian delusion and conceit.
Hate to tell you but the pope doesn't have the stamp of God.
He's the vicar of the devil. You are in total darkness to believe such a lie.
You have no love for the truth that you will be dammed.
The sins of the Catholic Church have reached into heaven. The pope is the main false Christ, decieving practicly all of Christianity.
Let me ask you this this: Who was the first pope and who appointed him? It was St. Peter and it was Jesus Christ himself who said, "On this rock I will build my church." How could they get the idea of a Pope so wrong considering it JESUS CHRIST HIMSELF who appointed him?
'In fact, Muslims make up only about 3 % of Europe's population and are likely to rise to between 5% and 8% by 2025 and level out at that point.'
I seriously doubt this number. I just see no reason that it will level out at that time.
@ BRENT and other Catholics in total darkness
Mat.16:18 You are Peter ( little pepple) upon this Rock ( Christ refering to himself) I will build my church.
The Bible thru and thruout, refers to Christ as the rock. If you would only dig a little.
Verse 23 of Mt. 16 Christ calls Peter Satan. In 1 Peter , Peter calls Christ the Chief corner stone.
You probably still don't get it. The pope is the counterfeit Christ. or anti Christ.. Your totally deceived. You'll find out for sure at the 2nd resurection, and thats sad. It really is. You trust a false system over the Word of God.
I was deceived myself. The Lord brought me to a 7th Day Adventist Church and I learned the truth.
Every group now a days say they have a good cause but most prove evil is portrayed as good. Only ones that are not corrupt usually are the ones not influenced by the world such as monks sitting on top a mountain. It's a hard job to walk in this corrupt world without being tempted. Most are sheeps in disguise. Show yourself evil one! I can smell you.
There's no good reason for the invasion of Europe by islam and muslims. It's better someone stops them now before it's too late.
Well, one great reason would be the food (at least from the Middle Eastern Muslims). Dunno much about the cuisine of other ones. Halal is yummier than Kosher food.
In war, anything can happen. Good people can become killers over night no matter what beliefs they hold.
what do you do when a monster is coming to kill you....you shoot the monster.
read the bible war in heaven...angels and demons battle..........revelations....knights templars=militant wing.
DA VINCI CODE!!! Dan Brown nailed it! only tom hanks can save us now!!
No Assassin's Creed mention but those trashy movies get a mention? I am disappointed.
I must say, I'm disappointed that we're not getting coverage in everything that has to do with Templars.
I do not agree with killing but we should re-enact the Knights due to the the world allowing muslims to to persecute Christians. Due to materialism and the corruption in the world trying to lead all the persons to Hell.
We need the assassins.
Mr Fareed is a member of the bilderberg group which is an secretive elite group that has a goal of establishing a new world order. His views will always be biased in favour of the the groups goals. His description of the knights templar is very weak. He does not mention that is was formed by the VATICAN and it evolved into FREEMASONRY.
the connection between the templars and the masons is just a myth
No.
It is not.
Yes.
It is.
No.
More conspiratorial hog wash.
PLEASE FAREED GIVE US ALL A BREAK!!!!!
This man is so biased and wrong that it is not even funny. The order of the Knights Templar still exists and is part of the Masonic order. They are comparable to Scottish right and the Shriners. They busy themselves with researching Masonic science and by helping the poor. There is nothing secret about it. You have to be a Master Mason to become a member. There is nothing extremist about it either. Each meeting starts with the oath of allegiance and if you want to become a Mason you have to declare that you will accept the government and will do nothing to undermine it.
The Freemasons are from ancient Egypt, Jesus was a Freemason and it is their rites he was performing whenever you see a "naked young man" with a linen cloth and nothing more in the New Testament.
"Scottish rite"? By the time Scotland came of age, Freemasonry was millennia old.
Scotland is the key to the Grail.
How long have you traveled?
Hiram. I've traveled since I was raised.
For some time, Hiram.
And you?
I supect just as long.
"Jesus was freemason." That is probably the stupidest comment I have ever seen in my life! You are a complete joke for posting that! There is actually no conceivable way that Jesus was a Freemason. The organization didn't begin (by ANY estimate) until AT LEAST 1300 years after his death...and probably many more! Your ignorance is almost comical!
well, there is a problem in Europe, but make no mistake, European people are very tolerant until some group comes to their countries and instead of integrating start forming little "ghettos" , don't want to learn their language and want to cultivate barbaric laws. This will never pass in Europe. Either integrate, embrace European traditions and ways of living or do not move to Europe. It is like inviting guests to your house and those guest try to take your house. This is never going to happen in Europe. People are mad and I am not surprised...there are some huge cultural differences between the West and the Middle East that I doubt will disappear.
if it's religion...cnn hates it......islam excepted of course
Good job Fareed(the strongest Ive ever seen you)
Now, next you gotta ask questions to our president about Libyan war..
You possibly could end the crisis
Why is this man not being called a terrotist frankly in the media? Would someone please explain it for me?
That's because that word doesn't exist. He's called a "terrorist" often enough. The label doesn't change what he did. He's been called a "Christian Fundamentalist Terrorist", partly because his rants stem from a misplaced notion of Christian superiority and the ousting of the "infidel" (non-Christians). Some folks object to this term, because they offer the roundabout logic which says that a true Christian, one who exactly follows the teachings of Jesus, wouldn't murder anybody. Thus, the same logic must apply to any self-identified Muslim Terrorist, since murder also goes against the teachings of Muhammed.
Religion is illogical and unprovable... that's true, but the majority are simply misled and not actually harmful. But when the unbalanced are misled to a way of violent thinking that almost nobody can conceive of, it's natural that religious folks would want to disassociate themselves from it.
So maybe some people in the Christian world will understand why so may Muslims also want to disassociate themselves from that tiny minority of so-called "Muslim Terrorists". Osama Bin Laden is every bit "not really a peace-loving Muslim" as much as Breivik is also "not really a peace-loving Christian".
And even though the total number of murders done in the name of Islam are tiny compared to the total number of murders done in the name of Christianity, they're both full of crap.
America blindsided
kight templars had never run with any bit of good luck. the mexican army is beating the hell out of the mexican own templars
Typical negative article about the Catholic Church and the Knight Templar. They were monks, some were knights, not all. They gave everything away when they joined the order. Their job was to protect Christians going to the Holy Land. They did not kill for the pleasure of killing like some might say. Of course, protestants gave the crusades a bad name as well as the knights. The order was rich, but not individual Templar. They establish the banking system.
Do not join the Templars with the Catholic church of Pauline misogyny.
They were and remain mutually exclusive.
The article is "negative" only if you are looking to be offended. Look up: self fulfilling prophecy. Read without prejudiced it seems an even handed and not particularly negative historical recapitulation.
That sick murdering MF is a joke, unworthy to clean Knights Templar toilets (if they had toilets) let alone compare himself to anything remotely resembling nobility.
What I can't understand is why a discussion of the Knights Templar and the Norweigan crazy man is allowed to become a monologue by Fareed Zakaria about how RELATIVELY harmless Islamist terrorism is in Europe, or how FEW Muslims are sneaking in to Europe and fulfilling the Dawa of Settlement (taking over the world through population/demographics as their multiple attempts at armed takeover have failed). Strange, is Mr. Zakararia HIMSELF a Muslim, trying to make Islamicists less threatening to our eyes? If so, WHY?
You seem quite confused and/or offended by facts. Why?
Were the Knights Templar a bunch of pathetic cowards who mass slaughtered the youth of their enemies? Not according to credible historical sources. Bringing youth into the equation is an act of cowardice when one doesn't have the balls to fight adults. What a legacy that Norwegian buffoon left, hardly worthy of mention with Knights Templar in the same breath.
Agreed.
They fought for the church believing at the time that what the church said was true. They had won a lot of battles which had gained them fame. However near the end under bad leadership lost a series of battles in the last crusades which also lessened their stature and purpose. The Knights Templar hid items from the holy land to protect those items. They also were master builders and built a lot of those fancy churches you see in Europe from medieval times. They developed a banking system and France was in deep in debt with them. When France asked for another loan to help fight the English the Knights Templar's said no. Then the French King Phillip IV betrayed them because he didn't want to pay them back and was paranoid of there growing strength economically and militarily. On Friday, 13 October 1307, hundreds of Knights Templar in France were simultaneously arrested and then some were tortured to the point were bones would fall out of there skin and had limbs ripped off so they would confess in order to discredit them and get the Pope to arrest them in other countries. He burned the top grandmaster at the stake and he cursed Phillip IV and the Pope that they would die in 1 year. And oddly enough both the Pope at the time and Phillip IV died one year later and his house had ended with no heir. Many of the remaining Templar became Teutonic knights and other various directions. The real order does exist today but its more hidden and has nothing to do with the Norway guy or the drug cartel.
Who were the Knights Templars in 4 paragraphs? Temple of Solomon is "legendary?" I do not believe that the Templars would recognize themselves from Zakaria decryption; certainly they would not describe themselves that way. How can you describe a Roman Catholic religious order, without mentioning the Roman Catholic faith? For readers interested in the real history of the Templars there are some very good non-fiction books available; however, it you want a greater understanding into their motivation, how they thought, what they believed - you need to look at the Order of Cistercians. The Templars live on - not in neo-orders, or in popular fiction - but in the Cistercians of the Strict Observance: "....communal life wholly ordered to contemplation.... we joyfully embrace an ascetic discipline which fosters conversion of life to the pattern of Christ's life of prayer, sacrifice, and loving service to our neighbor..."
I almost threw up reading this baloeny. The freemasons are the new Templars. A secret society ,controlled by the jesuits. Most members aren't aware that the leaders or insiders, hold fast to a Luciferien doctrine.
The new world order is coming. Satan is setting up his kingdom using his human agents. The illuminatti. Headed by the boss. The pope
The sin nature of men and boys is the problem. They love the membership of secret societies – it's quite universal. More legendary, the better. And they LOVE fighting and destroying and having dominance. It's in their blood. Men must be properly educated by the Bible that every hidden thing will be exposed and everyone will be judged by God at the end.
You sound like a feminazi with an adgenda yourself. If you are trying to be Biblical about sin, then it is on females. According to the Bible (which I do not personally believe in), women are the cause of calamity on earth. Women have their own "secret societies" in the gossip networks they always create. Women are far crueler than men, psychologically. Men prefer a public display for judgement, like one on one combat, as in the earliest Western practice of trial by combat, while women plot and poison. That is history. Also history is the demonstration that if women are not disciplined in the same manner you claim men require, they run wild, copulate with beasts and destroy society. Just about what is going on in The West today, it seems, greatly helped along by Feminism.
If you want to know the truth about how little Zakaria cares about you, just google "post democracy zakaria"
He is a CFR goon an deserves to be filleted by the masses. I hope we can rub salt into every one of his open nerves. The time is coming soon. These people will meet their demise and we will cause it.
I'm pretty sure threats of violence are a violation of CNN's terms of service.
The order was dissolved 700 years ago. Anyone today claiming to be a member of the Knights Templar is a loon of the first degree. No different than the loons who play Druid dress up or claim to be modern witches (all modern recreations).
Well, there is a grade in York Rite Freemasonry that is called Knight Templar, but FM scholars admit that it was created in homage to their symbolic history. Many credentialed scholars have linked FM to the KT, and they certainly appear to share similar history and mystical history, but the KTs of FM do charity work, as FM does in general. These KTs are likely as not to be middle aged, punchy, enthusiasts of history and Western mysticism. That is the worst you can say about them.
nice dumbing down of the brutality that was the knights templar.
Then you know nothing about them.
And why you are at that, why not mention the activities of Genghis Khan, who slaughtered millions of civilians all across Asia and Eastern Europe at the same time as the Crusades? Do we forget about the most bloodthirsty religious murderer in history because he is NOT white and European?
Massacres and atrocities are crimes done by anyone or carrying any name. Muslims, though numerous in population, by their doctrines don't tolerate the existence of infidels and apostates. That fact sets them apart from others. Muslims must change from the very foundation in the Muslim-majority land. People reveal what they are when they are majority or in power. Being a minority is only a temporary status, not the true selves. Unless all the Muslim-majority land gets complete religious freedom, no argument works for them. Walk the talk.
The writer needs to get his facts straight:
1. The Knights Templars were famous for guarding the routes that the Crusaders took. Not for being a military force. They were also the first modern "bankers". A merchant could deposit his funds in Europe and receive a draft. After he arrived at his destination in Asia, he could redeem the draft at a Knight Templar officer.
2. In 1312, the King of France, and his false pope, tricked the Knights into have their annual gathering in France. During one terrible night, all of the Knights in France were arrested and charged with heresay. These poor guys were tortured and then killed. The Grand Knight was first tortured and later burned to death over a slow fire. The remaining Knights kept the name alive for hundreds of years and it is still alive in parts of the world.
P.S. Legend has it that the Grand Knight, before he left for France, assembled a vast treasure. This treasure was transported to a secret location by certain selected knights who guarded it during the lifetimes.
It's amazing to so often see posts like this that claim to be factual and start off with such inaccuracy. The KTs stated purpose was to protect pilgrims, but they never did that. Their fame was made as a military order and the fierce discipline that won them battles, usually outnumbered. There were only 9 for the first decade. Rather than write a book here, I will recommend that anyone who really wants to know about the KTs read a credentialed history book on them. One good one is Stephen Howarth's "The Knights Templar." He is a Fellow of The Royal Geographic Society. There is no better credential.
"The Code of the Knights Templar of Michoacán," a drug cartel...Not the real Knights Templar! Fareed, you are a fool, and so is your editor for letting you post this garbage as a real story!
Gee dude, did you even read the story?
Every crazy man has something he looks forward in the things he thinks he knows while he himself is a pure evil incarnated and a justification of the evil he does.
So, who carried out the other 246 terrorist attacks in 2010 if not Muslims? All the right or left-wing extremist lunatics that the news never reports about?
"What is the Knights Templar?"
It's how they say "T. Party" in Europe.
Rather insulting to the memory of the original KT to tie them in with the loons of the (never) right.
Why are the crazies always interested in the Templars? Off subject a bit, but the Knights Hospitaller was a similar militant holy order started during the crusades with a much more noble and interesting history(IMO).
The Knights Templar also served as one of the first international banks - monies deposited in one chapter house (say France) could be withdrawn at another chapter house (say Jerusalem). That was huge event considering how fractured Europe was with all the infighting and huge aid to commerce. And the only reason the order was dissolved was that the King of France was hugely in debt and figured he'd trump up some charges and confiscate the wealth of the main chapter house in France.
wow that's crazy, I thought this was going to be about The Knights Templar but it turned out to be Zakaria explaining that muslims really aren't the bad guys. History lesson turned commentary.
Might there be a reason why there have been so little attacks by Muslim extremists? Could a small, but significant reason be the attention we have put into that problem?
I thought the knights wanted to to get the grail and keep the knowledge of the power of the grail away from the muslems. and wipe them out so that no one would remember that they had a pass full of knowledge and wisdom which kicked off the rise of the illuminiti... At least tell the full insted of a forth of the truth behind the first and start of the fn phycos power hungry fuks....
Zakaria, you referenced terrorism to Islam several times but not once did you reference terrorism to Christianity. If you are casting stones to one why not cast stones to the other, and label the perpetrators as Christian Terrorist. Your stupefied correlation of such heinous acts to Islam is appalling.
No true follower of these two religions condones such idiotic behavior.
Funny how you think Zakaria is "anti-Muslim" and other posters think he is "anti-Christian!" I guess that's pretty good indication the article is accurate and even handed.
Fareed Zakaria always makes so much sense. Intelligent commentary, thoughtful, well-researched–wish we had more like him in the news-analysis business.
The Knights were suppressed in France by King Phillip IV. Many fled to Scotland where it is believed they formed the Masonic Order. Like any secret society, much of what is known about them is supposition. It is widely known though, that the Templars where NOT anti-Islamic. They fought Muslims for land, but generally held a favorable opinion of them. Breivik is NOT a templar, modern Masons are the closest we have to Templars, and they certainly aren't anti-Islamic. Any connection Breivik claims to the Templars or to Christianity for that matter, is a by-product of his delusional paranoia. I'm neither a Christian or a Mason, but I find it disturbing that anyone would believe there is any real correlation between a lunatics delusional claims and the otherwise sane people who happen to belong to the groups he identifies with. If Dahmer had stated he was eating children to save the animals, would we be looking into PETA right now?
Well, it's a nice legend but really they were formed in the 16-17th Century. They have based themselves on the Knights Templar (and the fabled Egyptian pyramid builders as well) but there was a distinct centuries long break in lineage.
yeah. It's a nice story, but there is no evidence of an actual connection.
Oh... Oh .... KNIGHTS OF TEMPLAR tried to bring back blond hair jesus. You didn't know Blond hair Jesus is white horseman of apocalypse which bring war, famine, death, diseases.
In 7th DEAD SEAS SCROLL they found out second coming Jesus was evil that come out blond hair. Christians had to burn millions of banned version of bible and replace king james bible. Adolf hitler banned ancient bible; hilter said blond hair and blue eyes would be superior.
After reading the comments by different Islamphobes, I as a practicing and proud Muslim will congratulate you all for understanding the threat so well. Every Non-Muslim should be threatened by Islam – not Muslims(present day Muslims dont follow the real Islam, they just follow cultural traditions) – but the real Islam. Because when it reaches you in its pristine form, It will challenge you to the core, it will challenge the most fundamental of your beliefs, whatever dogmas you practice, traditions you follow(blindly) or try to preach and explain illogical theologies it will challenge you at spiritual level, intellectual level and moral level.
I have hard time understanding the phrase "killing in the name of God" Jesus never preached killing, so who gave these cults the permission to kill in the name of religion?
On the other hand if one argues that the brave in any society has an obligation to defend the weak from an outside enemy and if the brave execute this duty then they be treated as Heroes not as Killers, then with this logic every war, every killing can be justified by the respective sides. Who will decide who has more right to kill and who doesn't?
For people claiming that the Masjid was built on the ruins of Temple of Solomon, then I ask you, who is Solomon? how do you know somebody with that name ever existed? even if he ever existed how do you know he worshiped a God? and how do you know that God needed a Temple for worship? Just too many questions! and please dont try to authenticate Bible by quoting from Bible, its a catch22.
Dear people, there are lots of unknowns, if you want truth, study, research, spend time, think, ponder and reflect on realities around you may be some day you will find truth. Its a life long process but its doable. Dont be a keyboard warrior, everybody can do better then that. By the way, this is the core teaching of Quran, to study, to think, to ponder, to reflect and then to reach the truth and if you are that lucky to find it, then practice it. Peace!
Anyone who believes BLONDE HAIR JESUS us false prophet. Beware the false prophet.
I understand what your saying my body was born from the other side of that line .your write in so many way's but please do not fergite all form's starting at black and over time we have been talt reaches white im with and i think that BC if you git my point .That how they /how /what win as long as we are reborn in the spirt then we all understand the truth of the meaning of chirst that we are all the same and are all childern growing as we walk though this life only hoping to make it to the other side if there is evean one or is only about the truth's that we no to be truth's and pass that on to are childeren that hate is not the light or form of the though that chirst tryed to teach us ande we all have to fergive other's and hop they learn and fill and see with there own eay's not in this life but then the next.
Talking about the Church and how it all started let's go back in time and look at the life of what all the churche's say that Crist was the son of the most holy true God the first the last.As most that beleave in chirst would say he is the only one that we can go to in order to speek to the father yes/no.Ok then if your follow chirst life on this planet and have read his word's and have tooking it into your heart and your mind,then think about what I'm going to say if they let this be said . I can not find in his word's with in his time span and hisd walk with us on this planet that he built a church out of stone yes/or no? Then if you have read his word's then think about how his right hand man was and what and how he lived his life after chirst died for us all? Then think go back in those time's and look to the Romen's and how they lead that part of the world ? The person that built the church how was is name and how did he work for
What? Are you like 6 years old or is English not your first language?
You can almost hear a collective thud as hateful minds closed and blocked out those "who's doing the terrorist acts" stats that Fareed Zakaria presents in this piece.
the Knights Templar invented checking accounts, They were not “dissolved. They were very wealthy and one of the politicians of the time, a bankrupt king who wanted their wealth basically partnered with THE CHURCH to torture and kill most of them, the rest went into hiding. The king and the Church split the booty. Also check out the Knights Templar character in the novel “Ivanhoe ”to get a more personal view of who they were.
Hey guys, will you visit HelpFaye.ORG , a friend of mine is fighting for her life... Thank you
Fareed is believing his own CNN promotion ads. This article, or diatribe, is a real shoddy attempt at journalism.
Feel free to provide some actual facts to support your claim.
Militant god nuts. Templar, GOP, AlQeada, Taliban, Zionists, Hamass, So. Baptists, Jehovah's Witnesses, .. all crazy god nuts holding us back from progress
ISLAM AND THE WEST ARE NOT COMPATIBLE.
People who type in all caps are not compatible.
Clowns to the left of me, jokers to the right, here I am; stuck in the middle with you
Islamic terrorism, according to Interpol, represents a *tiny* minority of acts of terrorism worldwide, some 5-6% overall... meaning that 94-95% of terrorism is committed by *non-Muslims". This fact is probably unacceptable to the huge majority of US readers who have been indoctrinated, via the corporate media, that "all terrorists are Muslim, and all Muslims are terrorists". The author of the article takes a position half way between the "Muslim terror conspiracy theory:" outlined above, and reality.. ie he's a cowardly fence-sitter, trying to please everyone.
Clearly somebody has an agenda against everything christian. The acts of one maniac are not a reflection of an organisation that was around hundreds of years ago. The templars were responsible for a lot of good things too and they defended Europe for a long time. So who cares if you have beef with a legendary group like the knights templar. Their place in history is sealed and you can't touch that. For many Europeans they are seen as an integral part of European history and this attempt to attack the templars is just pathetic. Have a nice day.
Uh, no but nice try. No one is trying to "attack" the Templars. Your indignation is false.
CNN is not posting if they do not agree with your post,
Vittoria Agli Assassini!
what a crap, meandering article. Typical shallow, ignorant American reporting/scare-mongering. You make a bold statement about the Norwegian mass mirderer being a member of TKT, using this as a basis your story goes on from there, well, that has never been proven, it's only what the demented turd has been spouting off.
This guy just played Dragon Age II too much and took on the personality of Anders in the game. They both were zealots, both blew up churches and killed people. He even looks like Anders in the game. It's very creepy.
Guy: you say 'The Jesuits are almost notoriously (among a mostly conservative faith) known their liberalism.' beside being a almost unintelligible sentence, (I assume you mean to say that jesuits tend to be politically liberal), is completely wrong because technically a catholic can never be a political liberal. they may be a catholic liberal, which i guess would mean they accept the fact that mass can be said in english or other vernacular languages instead of latin, but no christian of any kind can be both christian AND liberal. they cancel each other out. the christian religion is nothing if not conservative. maintaining the status quo (see, that's latin) and 'notoriously' destroying anyone who disagrees with them.
See you in hell.
Being a Catholic, I must say I take umbrage at your rant. I happen to be a liberally-minded person, and care deeply for my fellow human-being. The term "Liberal", contrary to what seems to be popular opinion, doesn't mean someone who is a simpering, blubbering fool, hell-bent on giving everything away to those who don't deserve it. There are many people, groups, and organizations, that are "in it for the money", and have no other redeeming virtues, and I would not walk across the street and spit on them if they were on fire.
Be that as it may, I vehemently oppose those who take the "Scrooge" position that no one who needs help is worthy of it from those who have more than the rest.
And quite frankly, I am not planning on seeing ANYONE in hell, and certainly not you.
The majority of posts here seem to take the position that the research was scant, that flawed statistics were produced/cited, that the author is a Muslim, and therefore his work is automatically biased. T oall of those comments, I say "prove it". Do your own research, produce your own statistics, all of it backed up by recognized authentic sources, provide the dissertation-level report you all seem to feel is missing here, and oh by the way, please don't tell us you might be a Catholic or Baptist or Muslim or Zoroastrian, or any other religion, as that will automatically disqualify your input.
Until then, PLEASE dispense with all of the defamation and negative rhetoric regarding the author and his efforts, and try, just for once, to provide some constructive input.
For a change. A refreshing change.
Surfers and skateboarders use the Templar Cross. Sounds like we better being to scrutinize them too. It's not Muslims, but surfers!
Nice whitewash Fareed. What you failed to mention is the entire era was a European response to a militant Muslim invasion of the Mediterranean basin that is core to the recent struggle. Muslims love to act as if the countries they captured were always Muslim and should always be Muslim. Norway, a country of 4 million, took in 500k Muslims. The Norwegians should be careful before they become a Muslim state with the Norwegians living as slaves in their own country.
The media really got it wrong when they described this guy as a 'fundamentalist Christian.' He is nothing like the hundreds of millions of Baptists and Pentecostals around the world. His kooky philosophy is no more Christian than white supremacism.
And, on another note, it's not true that islamist suicide bombers usually act alone. They are almost always indoctrinated and armed by religious 'leaders' in their communities.
By the way, "What 'is' the Knights Templar"?
"What 'are' the Knights Templar?"
they are a masonic group of secret society illuminatti, that back the anti christ ( pope) for real. Satan is setting up his kingdom using the pope as his front man, deceiving practicaly all of the christain world.
The pope puts on a cloak of godlyness' When in ecsense if you test his teaching to the Bible it gets pretty ugly. Men are easily missled, cause they don't take the Bible at its Word
This report is a disingenuous. Maybe if you count in countries with an extremely low Muslim population (I don't know, maybe N. Ireland, Wales etc) you can get the percentage down to 3% – but a quick google search comes up with about an 8% Muslim population in France, 6% in Holland, 4% in Germany, 4% in England. And why not look at the terrorism events and wars across the world, not just in Europe and not just in 2009. It doesn't take a genius – Thailand, India, Sudan, Australia, Spain, Bali, former Soviet states, you name it – most of the major violence if fomented by Muslims. Those are just the facts. So easy to skew. Article in the papers about a year ago had a headline about the increase in anti-Muslim crime – but when you read the paper, there were 10x as many hate crimes against Jews who are about the same percentage of the population. Poor Muslims, you gotta feel for them.
While the jesuits garb themselves in saniticity and all kinds of good deeds, they , thru their secret societys masons, mormons, shriners, knights templars etc. are a group of asassins that have secretly controled the world.
Proping up the pope there is no crime to heineous for them to commit. They are the vicars of the devil.
The new world order is coming rather quickly. It will be headed by Satans surrogate, the pope.
Stay tuned for more facts contact the 7th Day Adventist Church. We didn't make the news, we just report it !
While the jesuits garb themselves in saniticity and all kinds of good deeds, they , thru their secret societys masons, mormons, shriners, knights templars etc. The jesuits act like religous figures but are really a group of asassins that have secretly controled the world thru their secret societys. Many of these clubs at the higher level practice whitchcraft,
Satanism and so forth ( Mormons and Masons to name a few)
Proping up the pope there is no crime to heineous for them to commit. They are the vicars of the devil.
The new world order is coming rather quickly. It will be headed by Satans surrogate, the pope.
Stay tuned for more facts contact the 7th Day Adventist Church. We didn't make the news, we just report it !
July 31, 2011 at 6:17 pm | Reply
I wonder who conducted that ridiculous report that claims only one muslim terrorist attack. How many were stopped?
Looking at all people killed by terrorist attacks in Europe and North America during the last 10 years, 97% was committed by Muslim terrorist, or 4703 of 4873 killed. Most of this is September 11 alone. (RAND Database of Worldwide Terrorism Incidents)
http://super-economy.blogspot.com/2011/02/islamists-caus-overwhelming-majority-of.html
Quit trying to whitewash the facts, Fareed. I know you are muslim but I didn't know you practiced taquiya.
I'm telling, u really hit the nail right. What u didn't add is that these were the brain behind terrorism wherever u may find them. They actually phantomed muslim terrorism to discredit muslims.
You should visit Africa and see how bigots and capitalist in the disguise of xtian religious leaders exploit and enslave their sheepish foollowers. Civilised terrorism, isn't it.
I read this today and actually thought to myself that this goes hand in hand with the Tea Party and it's total intolerance and hatred of anything that they don't espose. So, please read this and see if this sounds like History replaying itself.
The New Anti-Semitism
One thing almost all these European and American ultra-Rightist groups have in common is their admiration for Israel. The Oslo murderer proposed an alliance of the European extreme Right and Israel. For him, Israel is an outpost of Western Civilization in the mortal struggle with Islam, notes Uri Avnery.
Middle East Online
The Nazi Propaganda Minister, Dr. Joseph Goebbels, calls his boss, Adolf Hitler, by hell-phone.
“Mein Führer,” he exclaims excitedly. “News from the world. It seems we were on the right track, after all. Anti-Semitism is conquering Europe!”
“Good!” the Führer says, “That will be the end of the Jews!”
“Hmmm…well…not exactly, mein Führer. It looks as though we chose the wrong Semites. Our heirs, the new Nazis, are going to annihilate the Arabs and all the other Muslims in Europe.” Then, with a chuckle, “After all, there are many more Muslims than Jews to exterminate.”
“But what about the Jews?” Hitler insists.
“You won’t believe this: the new Nazis love Israel, the Jewish State – and Israel loves them!”
THE atrocity committed this week by the Norwegian neo-Nazi – is it an isolated incident? Right-wing extremists all over Europe and the US are already declaiming in unison: “He does not belong to us! He is just a lone individual with a deranged mind! There are crazy people everywhere! You cannot condemn a whole political camp for the deeds of one single person!”
Sounds familiar. Where did we hear this before?
Of course, after the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin.
There is no connection between the Oslo mass-murder and the assassination in Tel Aviv. Or is there?
During the months leading up to Rabin’s murder, a growing hate campaign was orchestrated against him. Almost all the Israeli right-wing groups were competing among themselves to see who could demonize him most effectively.
In one demonstration, a photo-montage of Rabin in the uniform of an SS officer was paraded around. On the balcony overlooking this demonstration, Binyamin Netanyahu could be seen applauding wildly, while a coffin marked “Rabin” was paraded below. Religious groups staged a medieval, kabbalistic ceremony, in which Rabin was condemned to death. Senior rabbis took part in the campaign. No right-wing or religious voices were raised in warning.
The actual murder was indeed carried out by a single individual, Yigal Amir, a former settler, the student of a religious university. It is generally assumed that before the deed he consulted with at least one senior rabbi. Like Anders Behring Breivik, the Oslo murderer, he planned his deed carefully, over a long time, and executed it cold-bloodedly. He had no accomplices.
OR HAD he? Were not all the inciters his accomplices? Does not the responsibility rest with all the shameless demagogues, like Netanyahu, who hoped to ride to power on the wave of hatred, fears and prejudice?
As it turned out, their calculations were confirmed. Less than a year after the assassination, Netanyahu indeed came to power. Now the right-wing is ruling Israel, becoming more radical from year to year, and, lately, it seems, from week to week. Outright Fascists now play leading roles in the Knesset.
All this – the result of three shots by a single fanatic, for whom the words of the cynical demagogues were deadly serious.
The latest proposal of our fascists, straight from the mouth of Avigdor Lieberman, is to abrogate Rabin’s crowning achievement: the Oslo agreements. So we come back to Oslo.
WHEN I first heard the news about the Oslo outrage, I was afraid that the perpetrators might be some crazy Muslims. The repercussions would have been terrible. Indeed, within minutes, one stupid Muslim group already boasted that they had carried out this glorious feat. Fortunately, the actual mass-murderer surrendered at the scene of the crime.
He is the prototype of a Nazi anti-Semite of the new wave. His creed consists of white supremacy, Christian fundamentalism, hatred of democracy and European chauvinism, mixed with a virulent hatred of Muslims.
This creed is now sprouting offshoots all over Europe. Small radical groups of the ultra-Right are turning into dynamic political parties, take their seats in Parliaments and even become kingmakers here and there. Countries which always seemed to be models of political sanity suddenly produce fascist rabble-rousers of the most disgusting kind, even worse than the US Tea Party, another offspring of this new Zeitgeist. Avigdor Lieberman is our contribution to this illustrious world-wide league.
One thing almost all these European and American ultra-Rightist groups have in common is their admiration for Israel. In his 1500 page political manifesto, on which he had been working for a long time, the Oslo murderer devoted an entire section to this. He proposed an alliance of the European extreme Right and Israel. For him, Israel is an outpost of Western Civilization in the mortal struggle with barbaric Islam. (Somewhat reminiscent of Theodor Herzl’s promise that the future Jewish State would be an “outpost of Western culture against Asiatic barbarism”?)
Part of the professed philo-Zionism of these Islamophobic groups is, of course, pure make-believe, designed to disguise their neo-Nazi character. If you love Jews, or the Jewish State, you can’t be a Fascist, right? You bet you can! However, I believe that the major part of this adoration of Israel is entirely sincere.
Right-wing Israelis, who are courted by these groups, argue that it is not their fault that all these hate-mongers are attracted to them. On the face of it, that is of course true. Yet one cannot but ask oneself: why are they so attracted? Wherein lies this attraction? Does this not warrant some serious soul-searching?
I FIRST BECAME aware of the gravity of the situation when a friend drew my attention to some German anti-Islamic blogs.
I was shocked to the core. These outpourings are almost verbatim copies of the diatribes of Joseph Goebbels. The same rabble-rousing slogans. The same base allegations. The same demonization. With one little difference: instead of Jews, this time it is Arabs who are undermining Western Civilization, seducing Christian maids, plotting to dominate the world. The Protocols of the Elders of Mecca.
A day after the Oslo events I happened to be watching Aljazeera’s English TV network, one of the best in the world, and saw an interesting program. For a whole hour, the reporter interviewed Italian people in the street about Muslims. The answers were shocking.
Mosques should be forbidden. They are places where Muslims plot to commit crimes. Actually, they don’t need mosques at all – they need only a rug to pray. Muslims come to Italy to destroy Italian culture. They are parasites, spreading drugs, crime and disease. They must be kicked out, to the last man, woman and child.
I always considered Italians easygoing, loveable people. Even during the Holocaust, they behaved better than most other European peoples. Benito Mussolini became a rabid anti-Semite only during the last stages, when he had become totally dependent on Hitler.
Yet here we are, barely 66 years after Italian partisans hanged Mussolini’s body by his feet in a public place in Milan – and a much worse form of anti-Semitism is rampant in the streets of Italy, as in most [or “many”?] other European countries.
OF COURSE, there is a real problem. Muslims are not free of blame for the situation. Their own behavior makes them easy targets. Like the Jews in their time.
Europe is in a quandary. They need the “foreigners” – Muslims and all – to work for them, keep their economy going, pay for the pensions of the old people. If all Muslims were to leave Europe tomorrow morning, the fabric of society in Germany, France, Italy and many other countries would break down.
Yet many Europeans are dismayed when they see these “foreigners”, with their strange languages, mannerisms and clothes crowding their streets, changing the character of many neighborhoods, opening shops, marrying their daughters, competing with them in many ways. It hurts. As a German minister once said: “We brought here workers, and found out that we had brought human beings!”
One can understand these Europeans, up to a point. Immigration causes real problems. The migration from the poor South to the rich North is a phenomenon of the 21st century, a result of the crying inequality among nations. It needs an all-European immigration policy, a dialogue with the minorities about integration or multiculturalism. It won’t be easy.
But this tidal wave of Islamophobia goes far beyond that. Like a Tsunami, it can result in devastation.
MANY OF the Islamophobic parties and groups remind one of the atmosphere of Germany in the early 1920s, when “völkisch” groups and militias were spreading their hateful poison, and an army spy called Adolf Hitler was earning his first laurels as an anti-Semitic orator. They looked unimportant, marginal, even crazy. Many laughed at this man Hitler, the Chaplinesque mustachioed clown.
But the abortive Nazi putsch of 1923 was followed by 1933, when the Nazis took power, and 1939, when Hitler started World War II, and 1942, when the gas chambers were brought into operation.
It is the beginnings which are critical, when political opportunists realize that arousing fear and hatred is the easiest way to fortune and power, when social misfits become nationalist and religious fanatics, when attacking helpless minorities becomes acceptable as legitimate politics, when funny little men turn into monsters.
Is that Dr. Goebbels I hear laughing in hell?
Uri Avnery, an Israeli writer and peace activist, founded the Gush Shalom movement. He had served three terms as an MP at the Knesset. This article was published by Gush Shalom.
The New Anti-Semitism
One thing almost all these European and American ultra-Rightist groups have in common is their admiration for Israel. The Oslo murderer proposed an alliance of the European extreme Right and Israel. For him, Israel is an outpost of Western Civilization in the mortal struggle with Islam, notes Uri Avnery.
Middle East Online
The Nazi Propaganda Minister, Dr. Joseph Goebbels, calls his boss, Adolf Hitler, by hell-phone.
“Mein Führer,” he exclaims excitedly. “News from the world. It seems we were on the right track, after all. Anti-Semitism is conquering Europe!”
“Good!” the Führer says, “That will be the end of the Jews!”
“Hmmm…well…not exactly, mein Führer. It looks as though we chose the wrong Semites. Our heirs, the new Nazis, are going to annihilate the Arabs and all the other Muslims in Europe.” Then, with a chuckle, “After all, there are many more Muslims than Jews to exterminate.”
“But what about the Jews?” Hitler insists.
“You won’t believe this: the new Nazis love Israel, the Jewish State – and Israel loves them!”
THE atrocity committed this week by the Norwegian neo-Nazi – is it an isolated incident? Right-wing extremists all over Europe and the US are already declaiming in unison: “He does not belong to us! He is just a lone individual with a deranged mind! There are crazy people everywhere! You cannot condemn a whole political camp for the deeds of one single person!”
Sounds familiar. Where did we hear this before?
Of course, after the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin.
There is no connection between the Oslo mass-murder and the assassination in Tel Aviv. Or is there?
During the months leading up to Rabin’s murder, a growing hate campaign was orchestrated against him. Almost all the Israeli right-wing groups were competing among themselves to see who could demonize him most effectively.
In one demonstration, a photo-montage of Rabin in the uniform of an SS officer was paraded around. On the balcony overlooking this demonstration, Binyamin Netanyahu could be seen applauding wildly, while a coffin marked “Rabin” was paraded below. Religious groups staged a medieval, kabbalistic ceremony, in which Rabin was condemned to death. Senior rabbis took part in the campaign. No right-wing or religious voices were raised in warning.
The actual murder was indeed carried out by a single individual, Yigal Amir, a former settler, the student of a religious university. It is generally assumed that before the deed he consulted with at least one senior rabbi. Like Anders Behring Breivik, the Oslo murderer, he planned his deed carefully, over a long time, and executed it cold-bloodedly. He had no accomplices.
OR HAD he? Were not all the inciters his accomplices? Does not the responsibility rest with all the shameless demagogues, like Netanyahu, who hoped to ride to power on the wave of hatred, fears and prejudice?
As it turned out, their calculations were confirmed. Less than a year after the assassination, Netanyahu indeed came to power. Now the right-wing is ruling Israel, becoming more radical from year to year, and, lately, it seems, from week to week. Outright Fascists now play leading roles in the Knesset.
All this – the result of three shots by a single fanatic, for whom the words of the cynical demagogues were deadly serious.
The latest proposal of our fascists, straight from the mouth of Avigdor Lieberman, is to abrogate Rabin’s crowning achievement: the Oslo agreements. So we come back to Oslo.
WHEN I first heard the news about the Oslo outrage, I was afraid that the perpetrators might be some crazy Muslims. The repercussions would have been terrible. Indeed, within minutes, one stupid Muslim group already boasted that they had carried out this glorious feat. Fortunately, the actual mass-murderer surrendered at the scene of the crime.
He is the prototype of a Nazi anti-Semite of the new wave. His creed consists of white supremacy, Christian fundamentalism, hatred of democracy and European chauvinism, mixed with a virulent hatred of Muslims.
This creed is now sprouting offshoots all over Europe. Small radical groups of the ultra-Right are turning into dynamic political parties, take their seats in Parliaments and even become kingmakers here and there. Countries which always seemed to be models of political sanity suddenly produce fascist rabble-rousers of the most disgusting kind, even worse than the US Tea Party, another offspring of this new Zeitgeist. Avigdor Lieberman is our contribution to this illustrious world-wide league.
One thing almost all these European and American ultra-Rightist groups have in common is their admiration for Israel. In his 1500 page political manifesto, on which he had been working for a long time, the Oslo murderer devoted an entire section to this. He proposed an alliance of the European extreme Right and Israel. For him, Israel is an outpost of Western Civilization in the mortal struggle with barbaric Islam. (Somewhat reminiscent of Theodor Herzl’s promise that the future Jewish State would be an “outpost of Western culture against Asiatic barbarism”?)
Part of the professed philo-Zionism of these Islamophobic groups is, of course, pure make-believe, designed to disguise their neo-Nazi character. If you love Jews, or the Jewish State, you can’t be a Fascist, right? You bet you can! However, I believe that the major part of this adoration of Israel is entirely sincere.
Right-wing Israelis, who are courted by these groups, argue that it is not their fault that all these hate-mongers are attracted to them. On the face of it, that is of course true. Yet one cannot but ask oneself: why are they so attracted? Wherein lies this attraction? Does this not warrant some serious soul-searching?
I FIRST BECAME aware of the gravity of the situation when a friend drew my attention to some German anti-Islamic blogs.
I was shocked to the core. These outpourings are almost verbatim copies of the diatribes of Joseph Goebbels. The same rabble-rousing slogans. The same base allegations. The same demonization. With one little difference: instead of Jews, this time it is Arabs who are undermining Western Civilization, seducing Christian maids, plotting to dominate the world. The Protocols of the Elders of Mecca.
A day after the Oslo events I happened to be watching Aljazeera’s English TV network, one of the best in the world, and saw an interesting program. For a whole hour, the reporter interviewed Italian people in the street about Muslims. The answers were shocking.
Mosques should be forbidden. They are places where Muslims plot to commit crimes. Actually, they don’t need mosques at all – they need only a rug to pray. Muslims come to Italy to destroy Italian culture. They are parasites, spreading drugs, crime and disease. They must be kicked out, to the last man, woman and child.
I always considered Italians easygoing, loveable people. Even during the Holocaust, they behaved better than most other European peoples. Benito Mussolini became a rabid anti-Semite only during the last stages, when he had become totally dependent on Hitler.
Yet here we are, barely 66 years after Italian partisans hanged Mussolini’s body by his feet in a public place in Milan – and a much worse form of anti-Semitism is rampant in the streets of Italy, as in most [or “many”?] other European countries.
OF COURSE, there is a real problem. Muslims are not free of blame for the situation. Their own behavior makes them easy targets. Like the Jews in their time.
Europe is in a quandary. They need the “foreigners” – Muslims and all – to work for them, keep their economy going, pay for the pensions of the old people. If all Muslims were to leave Europe tomorrow morning, the fabric of society in Germany, France, Italy and many other countries would break down.
Yet many Europeans are dismayed when they see these “foreigners”, with their strange languages, mannerisms and clothes crowding their streets, changing the character of many neighborhoods, opening shops, marrying their daughters, competing with them in many ways. It hurts. As a German minister once said: “We brought here workers, and found out that we had brought human beings!”
One can understand these Europeans, up to a point. Immigration causes real problems. The migration from the poor South to the rich North is a phenomenon of the 21st century, a result of the crying inequality among nations. It needs an all-European immigration policy, a dialogue with the minorities about integration or multiculturalism. It won’t be easy.
But this tidal wave of Islamophobia goes far beyond that. Like a Tsunami, it can result in devastation.
MANY OF the Islamophobic parties and groups remind one of the atmosphere of Germany in the early 1920s, when “völkisch” groups and militias were spreading their hateful poison, and an army spy called Adolf Hitler was earning his first laurels as an anti-Semitic orator. They looked unimportant, marginal, even crazy. Many laughed at this man Hitler, the Chaplinesque mustachioed clown.
But the abortive Nazi putsch of 1923 was followed by 1933, when the Nazis took power, and 1939, when Hitler started W
The New Anti-Semitism
One thing almost all these European and American ultra-Rightist groups have in common is their admiration for Israel. The Oslo murderer proposed an alliance of the European extreme Right and Israel. For him, Israel is an outpost of Western Civilization in the mortal struggle with Islam, notes Uri Avnery.
Middle East Online
The Nazi Propaganda Minister, Dr. Joseph Goebbels, calls his boss, Adolf Hitler, by hell-phone.
“Mein Führer,” he exclaims excitedly. “News from the world. It seems we were on the right track, after all. Anti-Semitism is conquering Europe!”
“Good!” the Führer says, “That will be the end of the Jews!”
“Hmmm…well…not exactly, mein Führer. It looks as though we chose the wrong Semites. Our heirs, the new Nazis, are going to annihilate the Arabs and all the other Muslims in Europe.” Then, with a chuckle, “After all, there are many more Muslims than Jews to exterminate.”
“But what about the Jews?” Hitler insists.
“You won’t believe this: the new Nazis love Israel, the Jewish State – and Israel loves them!”
THE atrocity committed this week by the Norwegian neo-Nazi – is it an isolated incident? Right-wing extremists all over Europe and the US are already declaiming in unison: “He does not belong to us! He is just a lone individual with a deranged mind! There are crazy people everywhere! You cannot condemn a whole political camp for the deeds of one single person!”
Sounds familiar. Where did we hear this before?
Of course, after the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin.
There is no connection between the Oslo mass-murder and the assassination in Tel Aviv. Or is there?
During the months leading up to Rabin’s murder, a growing hate campaign was orchestrated against him. Almost all the Israeli right-wing groups were competing among themselves to see who could demonize him most effectively.
In one demonstration, a photo-montage of Rabin in the uniform of an SS officer was paraded around. On the balcony overlooking this demonstration, Binyamin Netanyahu could be seen applauding wildly, while a coffin marked “Rabin” was paraded below. Religious groups staged a medieval, kabbalistic ceremony, in which Rabin was condemned to death. Senior rabbis took part in the campaign. No right-wing or religious voices were raised in warning.
The actual murder was indeed carried out by a single individual, Yigal Amir, a former settler, the student of a religious university. It is generally assumed that before the deed he consulted with at least one senior rabbi. Like Anders Behring Breivik, the Oslo murderer, he planned his deed carefully, over a long time, and executed it cold-bloodedly. He had no accomplices.
OR HAD he? Were not all the inciters his accomplices? Does not the responsibility rest with all the shameless demagogues, like Netanyahu, who hoped to ride to power on the wave of hatred, fears and prejudice?
As it turned out, their calculations were confirmed. Less than a year after the assassination, Netanyahu indeed came to power. Now the right-wing is ruling Israel, becoming more radical from year to year, and, lately, it seems, from week to week. Outright Fascists now play leading roles in the Knesset.
All this – the result of three shots by a single fanatic, for whom the words of the cynical demagogues were deadly serious.
The latest proposal of our fascists, straight from the mouth of Avigdor Lieberman, is to abrogate Rabin’s crowning achievement: the Oslo agreements. So we come back to Oslo.
WHEN I first heard the news about the Oslo outrage, I was afraid that the perpetrators might be some crazy Muslims. The repercussions would have been terrible. Indeed, within minutes, one stupid Muslim group already boasted that they had carried out this glorious feat. Fortunately, the actual mass-murderer surrendered at the scene of the crime.
He is the prototype of a Nazi anti-Semite of the new wave. His creed consists of white supremacy, Christian fundamentalism, hatred of democracy and European chauvinism, mixed with a virulent hatred of Muslims.
This creed is now sprouting offshoots all over Europe. Small radical groups of the ultra-Right are turning into dynamic political parties, take their seats in Parliaments and even become kingmakers here and there. Countries which always seemed to be models of political sanity suddenly produce fascist rabble-rousers of the most disgusting kind, even worse than the US Tea Party, another offspring of this new Zeitgeist. Avigdor Lieberman is our contribution to this illustrious world-wide league.
One thing almost all these European and American ultra-Rightist groups have in common is their admiration for Israel. In his 1500 page political manifesto, on which he had been working for a long time, the Oslo murderer devoted an entire section to this. He proposed an alliance of the European extreme Right and Israel. For him, Israel is an outpost of Western Civilization in the mortal struggle with barbaric Islam. (Somewhat reminiscent of Theodor Herzl’s promise that the future Jewish State would be an “outpost of Western culture against Asiatic barbarism”?)
Part of the professed philo-Zionism of these Islamophobic groups is, of course, pure make-believe, designed to disguise their neo-Nazi character. If you love Jews, or the Jewish State, you can’t be a Fascist, right? You bet you can! However, I believe that the major part of this adoration of Israel is entirely sincere.
Right-wing Israelis, who are courted by these groups, argue that it is not their fault that all these hate-mongers are attracted to them. On the face of it, that is of course true. Yet one cannot but ask oneself: why are they so attracted? Wherein lies this attraction? Does this not warrant some serious soul-searching?
I FIRST BECAME aware of the gravity of the situation when a friend drew my attention to some German anti-Islamic blogs.
I was shocked to the core. These outpourings are almost verbatim copies of the diatribes of Joseph Goebbels. The same rabble-rousing slogans. The same base allegations. The same demonization. With one little difference: instead of Jews, this time it is Arabs who are undermining Western Civilization, seducing Christian maids, plotting to dominate the world. The Protocols of the Elders of Mecca.
A day after the Oslo events I happened to be watching Aljazeera’s English TV network, one of the best in the world, and saw an interesting program. For a whole hour, the reporter interviewed Italian people in the street about Muslims. The answers were shocking.
Mosques should be forbidden. They are places where Muslims plot to commit crimes. Actually, they don’t need mosques at all – they need only a rug to pray. Muslims come to Italy to destroy Italian culture. They are parasites, spreading drugs, crime and disease. They must be kicked out, to the last man, woman and child.
I always considered Italians easygoing, loveable people. Even during the Holocaust, they behaved better than most other European peoples. Benito Mussolini became a rabid anti-Semite only during the last stages, when he had become totally dependent on Hitler.
Yet here we are, barely 66 years after Italian partisans hanged Mussolini’s body by his feet in a public place in Milan – and a much worse form of anti-Semitism is rampant in the streets of Italy, as in most [or “many”?] other European countries.
OF COURSE, there is a real problem. Muslims are not free of blame for the situation. Their own behavior makes them easy targets. Like the Jews in their time.
Europe is in a quandary. They need the “foreigners” – Muslims and all – to work for them, keep their economy going, pay for the pensions of the old people. If all Muslims were to leave Europe tomorrow morning, the fabric of society in Germany, France, Italy and many other countries would break down.
Yet many Europeans are dismayed when they see these “foreigners”, with their strange languages, mannerisms and clothes crowding their streets, changing the character of many neighborhoods, opening shops, marrying their daughters, competing with them in many ways. It hurts. As a German minister once said: “We brought here workers, and found out that we had brought human beings!”
One can understand these Europeans, up to a point. Immigration causes real problems. The migration from the poor South to the rich North is a phenomenon of the 21st century, a result of the crying inequality among nations. It needs an all-European immigration policy, a dialogue with the minorities about integration or multiculturalism. It won’t be easy.
But this tidal wave of Islamophobia goes far beyond that. Like a Tsunami, it can result in devastation.
MANY OF the Islamophobic parties and groups remind one of the atmosphere of Germany in the early 1920s, when “völkisch” groups and militias were spreading their hateful poison, and an army spy called Adolf Hitler was earning his first laurels as an anti-Semitic orator. They looked unimportant, marginal, even crazy. Many laughed at this man Hitler, the Chaplinesque mustachioed clown.
But the abortive Nazi putsch of 1923 was followed by 1933, when the Nazis took power, and 1939, when Hitler started World War II, and 1942, when the gas chambers were brought into operation.
It is the beginnings which are critical, when political opportunists realize that arousing fear and hatred is the easiest way to fortune and power, when social misfits become nationalist and religious fanatics, when attacking helpless minorities becomes acceptable as legitimate politics, when funny little men turn into monsters.
Is that Dr. Goebbels I hear laughing in hell?
Uri Avnery, an Israeli writer and peace activist, founded the Gush Shalom movement. He had served three terms as an MP at the Knesset. This article was published by Gush Shalom.
Syrian army kills at least 95 in Hama
Libya regime says it is in contact with rebels
Anti-Islam hatred poses serious terror threat to Europe
100,000 protest cost of living in Israel
Ramadan from Monday in Saudi, other Muslim nations
Syrian opposition against foreign intervention
Mass resignations may mark end of era for Turkey military
Norway 'Crusader' planned more attacks
Iraq slims unity cabinet
Alleged Israeli mafia boss murdered amid crime hike
Iraq less safe than a year ago
Yemeni tribes form coalition against Saleh
US-Iraq raid causes 'massacre' of civilians
Moroccan king calls for better Algeria ties, quick election
Syrian forces face demos with bullets
Jordan protesters insist on 'genuine' reforms
WFP: Mogadishu fighting not hampering food distribution
Hariri UN tribunal judge confirms Hezbollah suspects' names
Iraq PM due before MPs on downsizing cabinet
Norway to fly last Libya mission Saturday
Egypt Islamists lead Cairo 'unity' rally
Israel, South Sudan announce diplomatic ties
Bahrain king 'supports' proposed political reforms
Ben Ali sentenced to 16 years for corruption
Top Libyan rebel commander killed
Palestinian forces storm Dahlan’s home
Mubaraks to be tried in Cairo
Tribesmen attack army camp near Sanaa
Black Mauritanians fear census will deprive them of citizenship
Hezbollah denies aiding Syrian regime
South Sudan joins African Union
Twin bomb attacks rock Tikrit
Zawahiri calls Syria pro-democracy activists ‘mujahideen’
US mulls Libya rebel embassy
Baghdad hopeful some US troops can stay post 2011
Abbas: We'll ask Security Council for UN membership
Egypt’s Tantawi: foreign groups interfering
Iraq: Iran shelling of Kurdish rebels damages ties
Britain invites Libyan rebels to take over embassy
$12 mln ransom ‘sought’ for French kidnapped in Yemen
Syrian forces kill 11 in 'vengeance' raid on dissent
NATO warns Gathafi over use of civilian facilities
Women US senators press Saudi king on driving ban
Tunisia prolongs state of emergency indefinitely
US military chief nominee sends stern warning to Iran
The New Anti-Semitism
One thing almost all these European and American ultra-Rightist groups have in common is their admiration for Israel. The Oslo murderer proposed an alliance of the European extreme Right and Israel. For him, Israel is an outpost of Western Civilization in the mortal struggle with Islam, notes Uri Avnery.
Middle East Online
The Nazi Propaganda Minister, Dr. Joseph Goebbels, calls his boss, Adolf Hitler, by hell-phone.
“Mein Führer,” he exclaims excitedly. “News from the world. It seems we were on the right track, after all. Anti-Semitism is conquering Europe!”
“Good!” the Führer says, “That will be the end of the Jews!”
“Hmmm…well…not exactly, mein Führer. It looks as though we chose the wrong Semites. Our heirs, the new Nazis, are going to annihilate the Arabs and all the other Muslims in Europe.” Then, with a chuckle, “After all, there are many more Muslims than Jews to exterminate.”
“But what about the Jews?” Hitler insists.
“You won’t believe this: the new Nazis love Israel, the Jewish State – and Israel loves them!”
THE atrocity committed this week by the Norwegian neo-Nazi – is it an isolated incident? Right-wing extremists all over Europe and the US are already declaiming in unison: “He does not belong to us! He is just a lone individual with a deranged mind! There are crazy people everywhere! You cannot condemn a whole political camp for the deeds of one single person!”
Sounds familiar. Where did we hear this before?
Of course, after the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin.
There is no connection between the Oslo mass-murder and the assassination in Tel Aviv. Or is there?
During the months leading up to Rabin’s murder, a growing hate campaign was orchestrated against him. Almost all the Israeli right-wing groups were competing among themselves to see who could demonize him most effectively.
In one demonstration, a photo-montage of Rabin in the uniform of an SS officer was paraded around. On the balcony overlooking this demonstration, Binyamin Netanyahu could be seen applauding wildly, while a coffin marked “Rabin” was paraded below. Religious groups staged a medieval, kabbalistic ceremony, in which Rabin was condemned to death. Senior rabbis took part in the campaign. No right-wing or religious voices were raised in warning.
The actual murder was indeed carried out by a single individual, Yigal Amir, a former settler, the student of a religious university. It is generally assumed that before the deed he consulted with at least one senior rabbi. Like Anders Behring Breivik, the Oslo murderer, he planned his deed carefully, over a long time, and executed it cold-bloodedly. He had no accomplices.
OR HAD he? Were not all the inciters his accomplices? Does not the responsibility rest with all the shameless demagogues, like Netanyahu, who hoped to ride to power on the wave of hatred, fears and prejudice?
As it turned out, their calculations were confirmed. Less than a year after the assassination, Netanyahu indeed came to power. Now the right-wing is ruling Israel, becoming more radical from year to year, and, lately, it seems, from week to week. Outright Fascists now play leading roles in the Knesset.
All this – the result of three shots by a single fanatic, for whom the words of the cynical demagogues were deadly serious.
The latest proposal of our fascists, straight from the mouth of Avigdor Lieberman, is to abrogate Rabin’s crowning achievement: the Oslo agreements. So we come back to Oslo.
WHEN I first heard the news about the Oslo outrage, I was afraid that the perpetrators might be some crazy Muslims. The repercussions would have been terrible. Indeed, within minutes, one stupid Muslim group already boasted that they had carried out this glorious feat. Fortunately, the actual mass-murderer surrendered at the scene of the crime.
He is the prototype of a Nazi anti-Semite of the new wave. His creed consists of white supremacy, Christian fundamentalism, hatred of democracy and European chauvinism, mixed with a virulent hatred of Muslims.
This creed is now sprouting offshoots all over Europe. Small radical groups of the ultra-Right are turning into dynamic political parties, take their seats in Parliaments and even become kingmakers here and there. Countries which always seemed to be models of political sanity suddenly produce fascist rabble-rousers of the most disgusting kind, even worse than the US Tea Party, another offspring of this new Zeitgeist. Avigdor Lieberman is our contribution to this illustrious world-wide league.
One thing almost all these European and American ultra-Rightist groups have in common is their admiration for Israel. In his 1500 page political manifesto, on which he had been working for a long time, the Oslo murderer devoted an entire section to this. He proposed an alliance of the European extreme Right and Israel. For him, Israel is an outpost of Western Civilization in the mortal struggle with barbaric Islam. (Somewhat reminiscent of Theodor Herzl’s promise that the future Jewish State would be an “outpost of Western culture against Asiatic barbarism”?)
Part of the professed philo-Zionism of these Islamophobic groups is, of course, pure make-believe, designed to disguise their neo-Nazi character. If you love Jews, or the Jewish State, you can’t be a Fascist, right? You bet you can! However, I believe that the major part of this adoration of Israel is entirely sincere.
Right-wing Israelis, who are courted by these groups, argue that it is not their fault that all these hate-mongers are attracted to them. On the face of it, that is of course true. Yet one cannot but ask oneself: why are they so attracted? Wherein lies this attraction? Does this not warrant some serious soul-searching?
I FIRST BECAME aware of the gravity of the situation when a friend drew my attention to some German anti-Islamic blogs.
I was shocked to the core. These outpourings are almost verbatim copies of the diatribes of Joseph Goebbels. The same rabble-rousing slogans. The same base allegations. The same demonization. With one little difference: instead of Jews, this time it is Arabs who are undermining Western Civilization, seducing Christian maids, plotting to dominate the world. The Protocols of the Elders of Mecca.
A day after the Oslo events I happened to be watching Aljazeera’s English TV network, one of the best in the world, and saw an interesting program. For a whole hour, the reporter interviewed Italian people in the street about Muslims. The answers were shocking.
Mosques should be forbidden. They are places where Muslims plot to commit crimes. Actually, they don’t need mosques at all – they need only a rug to pray. Muslims come to Italy to destroy Italian culture. They are parasites, spreading drugs, crime and disease. They must be kicked out, to the last man, woman and child.
I always considered Italians easygoing, loveable people. Even during the Holocaust, they behaved better than most other European peoples. Benito Mussolini became a rabid anti-Semite only during the last stages, when he had become totally dependent on Hitler.
Yet here we are, barely 66 years after Italian partisans hanged Mussolini’s body by his feet in a public place in Milan – and a much worse form of anti-Semitism is rampant in the streets of Italy, as in most [or “many”?] other European countries.
OF COURSE, there is a real problem. Muslims are not free of blame for the situation. Their own behavior makes them easy targets. Like the Jews in their time.
Europe is in a quandary. They need the “foreigners” – Muslims and all – to work for them, keep their economy going, pay for the pensions of the old people. If all Muslims were to leave Europe tomorrow morning, the fabric of society in Germany, France, Italy and many other countries would break down.
Yet many Europeans are dismayed when they see these “foreigners”, with their strange languages, mannerisms and clothes crowding their streets, changing the character of many neighborhoods, opening shops, marrying their daughters, competing with them in many ways. It hurts. As a German minister once said: “We brought here workers, and found out that we had brought human beings!”
One can understand these Europeans, up to a point. Immigration causes real problems. The migration from the poor South to the rich North is a phenomenon of the 21st century, a result of the crying inequality among nations. It needs an all-European immigration policy, a dialogue with the minorities about integration or multiculturalism. It won’t be easy.
But this tidal wave of Islamophobia goes far beyond that. Like a Tsunami, it can result in devastation.
MANY OF the Islamophobic parties and groups remind one of the atmosphere of Germany in the early 1920s, when “völkisch” groups and militias were spreading their hateful poison, and an army spy called Adolf Hitler was earning his first laurels as an anti-Semitic orator. They looked unimportant, marginal, even crazy. Many laughed at this man Hitler, the Chaplinesque mustachioed clown.
But the abortive Nazi putsch of 1923 was followed by 1933, when the Nazis took power, and 1939, when Hitler started World War II, and 1942, when the gas chambers were brought into operation.
It is the beginnings which are critical, when political opportunists realize that arousing fear and hatred is the easiest way to fortune and power, when social misfits become nationalist and religious fanatics, when attacking helpless minorities becomes acceptable as legitimate politics, when funny little men turn into monsters.
Is that Dr. Goebbels I hear laughing in hell?
Uri Avnery, an Israeli writer and peace activist, founded the Gush Shalom movement. He had served three terms as an MP at the Knesset. This article was published by Gush Shalom.
Syrian army kills at least 95 in Hama
Libya regime says it is in contact with rebels
Anti-Islam hatred poses serious terror threat to Europe
100,000 protest cost of living in Israel
Ramadan from Monday in Saudi, other Muslim nations
Syrian opposition against foreign intervention
Mass resignations may mark end of era for Turkey military
Norway 'Crusader' planned more attacks
Iraq slims unity cabinet
Alleged Israeli mafia boss murdered amid crime hike
Iraq less safe than a year ago
Yemeni tribes form coalition against Saleh
US-Iraq raid causes 'massacre' of civilians
Moroccan king calls for better Algeria ties, quick election
Syrian forces face demos with bullets
Jordan protesters insist on 'genuine' reforms
WFP: Mogadishu fighting not hampering food distribution
Hariri UN tribunal judge confirms Hezbollah suspects' names
Iraq PM due before MPs on downsizing cabinet
Norway to fly last Libya mission Saturday
Egypt Islamists lead Cairo 'unity' rally
Israel, South Sudan announce diplomatic ties
Bahrain king 'supports' proposed political reforms
Ben Ali sentenced to 16 years for corruption
Top Libyan rebel commander killed
Palestinian forces storm Dahlan’s home
Mubaraks to be tried in Cairo
Tribesmen attack army camp near Sanaa
Black Mauritanians fear census will deprive them of citizenship
Hezbollah denies aiding Syrian regime
South Sudan joins African Union
Twin bomb attacks rock Tikrit
Zawahiri calls Syria pro-democracy activists ‘mujahideen’
US mulls Libya rebel embassy
Baghdad hopeful some US troops can stay post 2011
Abbas: We'll ask Security Council for UN membership
Egypt’s Tantawi: foreign groups interfering
Iraq: Iran shelling of Kurdish rebels damages ties
Britain invites Libyan rebels to take over embassy
$12 mln ransom ‘sought’ for French kidnapped in Yemen
Syrian forces kill 11 in 'vengeance' raid on dissent
NATO warns Gathafi over use of civilian facilities
Women US senators press Saudi king on driving ban
Tunisia prolongs state of emergency indefinitely
US military chief nominee sends stern warning to Iran
The New Anti-Semitism
One thing almost all these European and American ultra-Rightist groups have in common is their admiration for Israel. The Oslo murderer proposed an alliance of the European extreme Right and Israel. For him, Israel is an outpost of Western Civilization in the mortal struggle with Islam, notes Uri Avnery.
Middle East Online
The Nazi Propaganda Minister, Dr. Joseph Goebbels, calls his boss, Adolf Hitler, by hell-phone.
“Mein Führer,” he exclaims excitedly. “News from the world. It seems we were on the right track, after all. Anti-Semitism is conquering Europe!”
“Good!” the Führer says, “That will be the end of the Jews!”
“Hmmm…well…not exactly, mein Führer. It looks as though we chose the wrong Semites. Our heirs, the new Nazis, are going to annihilate the Arabs and all the other Muslims in Europe.” Then, with a chuckle, “After all, there are many more Muslims than Jews to exterminate.”
“But what about the Jews?” Hitler insists.
“You won’t believe this: the new Nazis love Israel, the Jewish State – and Israel loves them!”
THE atrocity committed this week by the Norwegian neo-Nazi – is it an isolated incident? Right-wing extremists all over Europe and the US are already declaiming in unison: “He does not belong to us! He is just a lone individual with a deranged mind! There are crazy people everywhere! You cannot condemn a whole political camp for the deeds of one single person!”
Sounds familiar. Where did we hear this before?
Of course, after the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin.
There is no connection between the Oslo mass-murder and the assassination in Tel Aviv. Or is there?
During the months leading up to Rabin’s murder, a growing hate campaign was orchestrated against him. Almost all the Israeli right-wing groups were competing among themselves to see who could demonize him most effectively.
In one demonstration, a photo-montage of Rabin in the uniform of an SS officer was paraded around. On the balcony overlooking this demonstration, Binyamin Netanyahu could be seen applauding wildly, while a coffin marked “Rabin” was paraded below. Religious groups staged a medieval, kabbalistic ceremony, in which Rabin was condemned to death. Senior rabbis took part in the campaign. No right-wing or religious voices were raised in warning.
The actual murder was indeed carried out by a single individual, Yigal Amir, a former settler, the student of a religious university. It is generally assumed that before the deed he consulted with at least one senior rabbi. Like Anders Behring Breivik, the Oslo murderer, he planned his deed carefully, over a long time, and executed it cold-bloodedly. He had no accomplices.
OR HAD he? Were not all the inciters his accomplices? Does not the responsibility rest with all the shameless demagogues, like Netanyahu, who hoped to ride to power on the wave of hatred, fears and prejudice?
As it turned out, their calculations were confirmed. Less than a year after the assassination, Netanyahu indeed came to power. Now the right-wing is ruling Israel, becoming more radical from year to year, and, lately, it seems, from week to week. Outright Fascists now play leading roles in the Knesset.
All this – the result of three shots by a single fanatic, for whom the words of the cynical demagogues were deadly serious.
The latest proposal of our fascists, straight from the mouth of Avigdor Lieberman, is to abrogate Rabin’s crowning achievement: the Oslo agreements. So we come back to Oslo.
WHEN I first heard the news about the Oslo outrage, I was afraid that the perpetrators might be some crazy Muslims. The repercussions would have been terrible. Indeed, within minutes, one stupid Muslim group already boasted that they had carried out this glorious feat. Fortunately, the actual mass-murderer surrendered at the scene of the crime.
He is the prototype of a Nazi anti-Semite of the new wave. His creed consists of white supremacy, Christian fundamentalism, hatred of democracy and European chauvinism, mixed with a virulent hatred of Muslims.
This creed is now sprouting offshoots all over Europe. Small radical groups of the ultra-Right are turning into dynamic political parties, take their seats in Parliaments and even become kingmakers here and there. Countries which always seemed to be models of political sanity suddenly produce fascist rabble-rousers of the most disgusting kind, even worse than the US Tea Party, another offspring of this new Zeitgeist. Avigdor Lieberman is our contribution to this illustrious world-wide league.
One thing almost all these European and American ultra-Rightist groups have in common is their admiration for Israel. In his 1500 page political manifesto, on which he had been working for a long time, the Oslo murderer devoted an entire section to this. He proposed an alliance of the European extreme Right and Israel. For him, Israel is an outpost of Western Civilization in the mortal struggle with barbaric Islam. (Somewhat reminiscent of Theodor Herzl’s promise that the future Jewish State would be an “outpost of Western culture against Asiatic barbarism”?)
Part of the professed philo-Zionism of these Islamophobic groups is, of course, pure make-believe, designed to disguise their neo-Nazi character. If you love Jews, or the Jewish State, you can’t be a Fascist, right? You bet you can! However, I believe that the major part of this adoration of Israel is entirely sincere.
Right-wing Israelis, who are courted by these groups, argue that it is not their fault that all these hate-mongers are attracted to them. On the face of it, that is of course true. Yet one cannot but ask oneself: why are they so attracted? Wherein lies this attraction? Does this not warrant some serious soul-searching?
I FIRST BECAME aware of the gravity of the situation when a friend drew my attention to some German anti-Islamic blogs.
I was shocked to the core. These outpourings are almost verbatim copies of the diatribes of Joseph Goebbels. The same rabble-rousing slogans. The same base allegations. The same demonization. With one little difference: instead of Jews, this time it is Arabs who are undermining Western Civilization, seducing Christian maids, plotting to dominate the world. The Protocols of the Elders of Mecca.
A day after the Oslo events I happened to be watching Aljazeera’s English TV network, one of the best in the world, and saw an interesting program. For a whole hour, the reporter interviewed Italian people in the street about Muslims. The answers were shocking.
Mosques should be forbidden. They are places where Muslims plot to commit crimes. Actually, they don’t need mosques at all – they need only a rug to pray. Muslims come to Italy to destroy Italian culture. They are parasites, spreading drugs, crime and disease. They must be kicked out, to the last man, woman and child.
I always considered Italians easygoing, loveable people. Even during the Holocaust, they behaved better than most other European peoples. Benito Mussolini became a rabid anti-Semite only during the last stages, when he had become totally dependent on Hitler.
Yet here we are, barely 66 years after Italian partisans hanged Mussolini’s body by his feet in a public place in Milan – and a much worse form of anti-Semitism is rampant in the streets of Italy, as in most [or “many”?] other European countries.
OF COURSE, there is a real problem. Muslims are not free of blame for the situation. Their own behavior makes them easy targets. Like the Jews in their time.
Europe is in a quandary. They need the “foreigners” – Muslims and all – to work for them, keep their economy going, pay for the pensions of the old people. If all Muslims were to leave Europe tomorrow morning, the fabric of society in Germany, France, Italy and many other countries would break down.
Yet many Europeans are dismayed when they see these “foreigners”, with their strange languages, mannerisms and clothes crowding their streets, changing the character of many neighborhoods, opening shops, marrying their daughters, competing with them in many ways. It hurts. As a German minister once said: “We brought here workers, and found out that we had brought human beings!”
One can understand these Europeans, up to a point. Immigration causes real problems. The migration from the poor South to the rich North is a phenomenon of the 21st century, a result of the crying inequality among nations. It needs an all-European immigration policy, a dialogue with the minorities about integration or multiculturalism. It won’t be easy.
But this tidal wave of Islamophobia goes far beyond that. Like a Tsunami, it can result in devastation.
MANY OF the Islamophobic parties and groups remind one of the atmosphere of Germany in the early 1920s, when “völkisch” groups and militias were spreading their hateful poison, and an army spy called Adolf Hitler was earning his first laurels as an anti-Semitic orator. They looked unimportant, marginal, even crazy. Many laughed at this man Hitler, the Chaplinesque mustachioed clown.
But the abortive Nazi putsch of 1923 was followed by 1933, when the Nazis took power, and 1939, when Hitler started World War II, and 1942, when the gas chambers were brought into operation.
It is the beginnings which are critical, when political opportunists realize that arousing fear and hatred is the easiest way to fortune and power, when social misfits become nationalist and religious fanatics, when attacking helpless minorities becomes acceptable as legitimate politics, when funny little men turn into monsters.
Is that Dr. Goebbels I hear laughing in hell?
Uri Avnery, an Israeli writer and peace activist, founded the Gush Shalom movement. He had served three terms as an MP at the Knesset. This article was published by Gush Shalom.
Syrian army kills at least 95 in Hama
Libya regime says it is in contact with rebels
Anti-Islam hatred poses serious terror threat to Europe
100,000 protest cost of living in Israel
Ramadan from Monday in Saudi, other Muslim nations
Syrian opposition against foreign intervention
Mass resignations may mark end of era for Turkey military
Norway 'Crusader' planned more attacks
Iraq slims unity cabinet
Alleged Israeli mafia boss murdered amid crime hike
Iraq less safe than a year ago
Yemeni tribes form coalition against Saleh
US-Iraq raid causes 'massacre' of civilians
Moroccan king calls for better Algeria ties, quick election
Syrian forces face demos with bullets
Jordan protesters insist on 'genuine' reforms
WFP: Mogadishu fighting not hampering food distribution
Hariri UN tribunal judge confirms Hezbollah suspects' names
Iraq PM due before MPs on downsizing cabinet
Norway to fly last Libya mission Saturday
Egypt Islamists lead Cairo 'unity' rally
Israel, South Sudan announce diplomatic ties
Bahrain king 'supports' proposed political reforms
Ben Ali sentenced to 16 years for corruption
Top Libyan rebel commander killed
Palestinian forces storm Dahlan’s home
Mubaraks to be tried in Cairo
Tribesmen attack army camp near Sanaa
Black Mauritanians fear census will deprive them of citizenship
Hezbollah denies aiding Syrian regime
South Sudan joins African Union
Twin bomb attacks rock Tikrit
Zawahiri calls Syria pro-democracy activists ‘mujahideen’
US mulls Libya rebel embassy
Baghdad hopeful some US troops can stay post 2011
Abbas: We'll ask Security Council for UN membership
Egypt’s Tantawi: foreign groups interfering
Iraq: Iran shelling of Kurdish rebels damages ties
Britain invites Libyan rebels to take over embassy
$12 mln ransom ‘sought’ for French kidnapped in Yemen
Syrian forces kill 11 in 'vengeance' raid on dissent
NATO warns Gathafi over use of civilian facilities
Women US senators press Saudi king on driving ban
Tunisia prolongs state of emergency indefinitely
US military chief nominee sends stern warning to Iran
The New Anti-Semitism
One thing almost all these European and American ultra-Rightist groups have in common is their admiration for Israel. The Oslo murderer proposed an alliance of the European extreme Right and Israel. For him, Israel is an outpost of Western Civilization in the mortal struggle with Islam, notes Uri Avnery.
Middle East Online
The Nazi Propaganda Minister, Dr. Joseph Goebbels, calls his boss, Adolf Hitler, by hell-phone.
“Mein Führer,” he exclaims excitedly. “News from the world. It seems we were on the right track, after all. Anti-Semitism is conquering Europe!”
“Good!” the Führer says, “That will be the end of the Jews!”
“Hmmm…well…not exactly, mein Führer. It looks as though we chose the wrong Semites. Our heirs, the new Nazis, are going to annihilate the Arabs and all the other Muslims in Europe.” Then, with a chuckle, “After all, there are many more Muslims than Jews to exterminate.”
“But what about the Jews?” Hitler insists.
“You won’t believe this: the new Nazis love Israel, the Jewish State – and Israel loves them!”
THE atrocity committed this week by the Norwegian neo-Nazi – is it an isolated incident? Right-wing extremists all over Europe and the US are already declaiming in unison: “He does not belong to us! He is just a lone individual with a deranged mind! There are crazy people everywhere! You cannot condemn a whole political camp for the deeds of one single person!”
Sounds familiar. Where did we hear this before?
Of course, after the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin.
There is no connection between the Oslo mass-murder and the assassination in Tel Aviv. Or is there?
During the months leading up to Rabin’s murder, a growing hate campaign was orchestrated against him. Almost all the Israeli right-wing groups were competing among themselves to see who could demonize him most effectively.
In one demonstration, a photo-montage of Rabin in the uniform of an SS officer was paraded around. On the balcony overlooking this demonstration, Binyamin Netanyahu could be seen applauding wildly, while a coffin marked “Rabin” was paraded below. Religious groups staged a medieval, kabbalistic ceremony, in which Rabin was condemned to death. Senior rabbis took part in the campaign. No right-wing or religious voices were raised in warning.
The actual murder was indeed carried out by a single individual, Yigal Amir, a former settler, the student of a religious university. It is generally assumed that before the deed he consulted with at least one senior rabbi. Like Anders Behring Breivik, the Oslo murderer, he planned his deed carefully, over a long time, and executed it cold-bloodedly. He had no accomplices.
OR HAD he? Were not all the inciters his accomplices? Does not the responsibility rest with all the shameless demagogues, like Netanyahu, who hoped to ride to power on the wave of hatred, fears and prejudice?
As it turned out, their calculations were confirmed. Less than a year after the assassination, Netanyahu indeed came to power. Now the right-wing is ruling Israel, becoming more radical from year to year, and, lately, it seems, from week to week. Outright Fascists now play leading roles in the Knesset.
All this – the result of three shots by a single fanatic, for whom the words of the cynical demagogues were deadly serious.
The latest proposal of our fascists, straight from the mouth of Avigdor Lieberman, is to abrogate Rabin’s crowning achievement: the Oslo agreements. So we come back to Oslo.
WHEN I first heard the news about the Oslo outrage, I was afraid that the perpetrators might be some crazy Muslims. The repercussions would have been terrible. Indeed, within minutes, one stupid Muslim group already boasted that they had carried out this glorious feat. Fortunately, the actual mass-murderer surrendered at the scene of the crime.
He is the prototype of a Nazi anti-Semite of the new wave. His creed consists of white supremacy, Christian fundamentalism, hatred of democracy and European chauvinism, mixed with a virulent hatred of Muslims.
This creed is now sprouting offshoots all over Europe. Small radical groups of the ultra-Right are turning into dynamic political parties, take their seats in Parliaments and even become kingmakers here and there. Countries which always seemed to be models of political sanity suddenly produce fascist rabble-rousers of the most disgusting kind, even worse than the US Tea Party, another offspring of this new Zeitgeist. Avigdor Lieberman is our contribution to this illustrious world-wide league.
One thing almost all these European and American ultra-Rightist groups have in common is their admiration for Israel. In his 1500 page political manifesto, on which he had been working for a long time, the Oslo murderer devoted an entire section to this. He proposed an alliance of the European extreme Right and Israel. For him, Israel is an outpost of Western Civilization in the mortal struggle with barbaric Islam. (Somewhat reminiscent of Theodor Herzl’s promise that the future Jewish State would be an “outpost of Western culture against Asiatic barbarism”?)
Part of the professed philo-Zionism of these Islamophobic groups is, of course, pure make-believe, designed to disguise their neo-Nazi character. If you love Jews, or the Jewish State, you can’t be a Fascist, right? You bet you can! However, I believe that the major part of this adoration of Israel is entirely sincere.
Right-wing Israelis, who are courted by these groups, argue that it is not their fault that all these hate-mongers are attracted to them. On the face of it, that is of course true. Yet one cannot but ask oneself: why are they so attracted? Wherein lies this attraction? Does this not warrant some serious soul-searching?
I FIRST BECAME aware of the gravity of the situation when a friend drew my attention to some German anti-Islamic blogs.
I was shocked to the core. These outpourings are almost verbatim copies of the diatribes of Joseph Goebbels. The same rabble-rousing slogans. The same base allegations. The same demonization. With one little difference: instead of Jews, this time it is Arabs who are undermining Western Civilization, seducing Christian maids, plotting to dominate the world. The Protocols of the Elders of Mecca.
A day after the Oslo events I happened to be watching Aljazeera’s English TV network, one of the best in the world, and saw an interesting program. For a whole hour, the reporter interviewed Italian people in the street about Muslims. The answers were shocking.
Mosques should be forbidden. They are places where Muslims plot to commit crimes. Actually, they don’t need mosques at all – they need only a rug to pray. Muslims come to Italy to destroy Italian culture. They are parasites, spreading drugs, crime and disease. They must be kicked out, to the last man, woman and child.
I always considered Italians easygoing, loveable people. Even during the Holocaust, they behaved better than most other European peoples. Benito Mussolini became a rabid anti-Semite only during the last stages, when he had become totally dependent on Hitler.
Yet here we are, barely 66 years after Italian partisans hanged Mussolini’s body by his feet in a public place in Milan – and a much worse form of anti-Semitism is rampant in the streets of Italy, as in most [or “many”?] other European countries.
OF COURSE, there is a real problem. Muslims are not free of blame for the situation. Their own behavior makes them easy targets. Like the Jews in their time.
Europe is in a quandary. They need the “foreigners” – Muslims and all – to work for them, keep their economy going, pay for the pensions of the old people. If all Muslims were to leave Europe tomorrow morning, the fabric of society in Germany, France, Italy and many other countries would break down.
Yet many Europeans are dismayed when they see these “foreigners”, with their strange languages, mannerisms and clothes crowding their streets, changing the character of many neighborhoods, opening shops, marrying their daughters, competing with them in many ways. It hurts. As a German minister once said: “We brought here workers, and found out that we had brought human beings!”
One can understand these Europeans, up to a point. Immigration causes real problems. The migration from the poor South to the rich North is a phenomenon of the 21st century, a result of the crying inequality among nations. It needs an all-European immigration policy, a dialogue with the minorities about integration or multiculturalism. It won’t be easy.
But this tidal wave of Islamophobia goes far beyond that. Like a Tsunami, it can result in devastation.
MANY OF the Islamophobic parties and groups remind one of the atmosphere of Germany in the early 1920s, when “völkisch” groups and militias were spreading their hateful poison, and an army spy called Adolf Hitler was earning his first laurels as an anti-Semitic orator. They looked unimportant, marginal, even crazy. Many laughed at this man Hitler
My oh my your post is full of hatred and propaganda!
I apologize for not editing my comments better. I did not realize that the entire article that I red would be reproduced several times with extraneous material.
However, the article smacks of what's happened and what's happening now. My people went through this throughout history especially in the 20's 30's and 40's. I have no love for Muslims but I do for Humanity. I can't believe that I am actually defending the millions of people who want to destroy Israel. I think I'm defending Humanity.
GOP is Knights Templar.
You would like to think more people on CNN would have reading comprehension skills. It's a pretty basic message that many people have seemed to misinterpret by complaining about the article. He didn't call the original Templars drug dealers, he didn't attack pot smokers. He was just giving some basic background on the Knights Templars so people could realize what this terrorist was talking about when he said he was one of them.
Fareed, I am a huge fan of you and think you are one of the brightest guys in the Media industry. However I disagree with your philosophy that only 1% of the attacks are conducted by the islamic terrorists. This percentage maybe true but what is a fact that these people are known to hate the west and they should be monitored regularly and tightly, even though I happen to be a muslim. The low percentage is because they have not succeeded on to be more than 1% otherwise it would have been 50%. The fact that the one crazy guy killed innocent people is something that no one can foresee and it can happen anywhere. that is mental and I don't think it has anything to do with ideas.
Midgick, u don't really need to be a muslim b4 u can side withthe the truth. It's irresistible. Tell the whole world the truthand shame allwho live in delusion of western imperialists .
I need not emphasize the fact that Islam does not advocate terrorism but terrorism is a brainwork of western conspiracy. Ask them, who cloned osama and his likeincluding faceless terrorist groups?
This author keeps stating was said they did this did that. So is he unsure. Because there are numerous Christian, Jewish and Muslim scholars accounts of what the Templars did, some actions vile some noble.
I was skeptical at first when I heard about men of God selling drugs. They do so because its a job and it is a war against people who are innocently using drugs or who were raised in poverty and can find no other work. Yes there are many preditors in the drug world and some of them work for the police and the government themselves. To have men of God enter the drug world and be down and dirty for God and sell the drugs until the violence dies down and until a cleaner safer drug that could be sold legally that would end the curiosity of our youth could be produced.
The prohabition of alchol was also very violent and the alchol was very dangerous, sometime poison.
The drug wars open the doors to preditors that only want to undermine the miniority population or to know that they caused the violence.
Perhaps no one needs God more than someone who has become an addict or someone who has chosen to sell drugs.
So our government has probably already taken on God during the war on drugs and the war on poverty. I don't think any of us thought that they intended to arrest the poor and arrest the addicts. drug treatment and homeless shelters and jobs were what I would have thought they meant.
Hopefully God continues to take over not only our government but the Mexican government and the drug cartels with men of God until peace once again raigns within Mexico and Americas Ghettos.
Now if you could just end racial profiling, discrimination and police abuse of power and entrapment methods.
Thank you God for giving me a chance to explain an American Jihad.
Peace be to all of you, may you overcome the hell that an has created on Earth.
Sounds like Christian Talibans with modern day twist....ties with hindu extremist groups (Shiv Sina/RSS) and zionists.
I serve him
Whose name should be spoke
He sent his son to die for our everlasting sins
And thee who believe in him
Shall live forever
God The Father The son and The Holy Spirit
Please take me
I love you
Amen
I am the lord your God, though shall worship non other before me.
What a bite to most of Christianity. There is only one God regardless of aledged relationships. When you pray to a dead man there is no telling who really answers.
Well, its a good view of what is realy true about the attacks in Europe, no reason to be scared of Islam, be scared of your neigbour he is much more of a security risk... Come on people be positieve, I know it hurts to see what has happend, and I feel bad about it to "I even cried when seeing the news" but the only way we can get ride of the hate is by praying the love... This is the message that all religins carry, but we don't listen to that message we listen to our ego.
Just my opinion, I feel for every victim of any attakc be it terrorist or domestic. Love Light and a beautiful peaceful world to all. Nico (Belgium – Europe)
"What is the Knights Templar?"
I dunno what they is.
Standard English, please.
294 terror attacks in 2010 and only 1 done by Islamic terrorists? I wonder where these 294 terror attacks are. Never heard. Have you? Ah maybe they were the local murders commited by some criminals and not the religious-fundamentalists of Islam. Whatta!!! Stop misrepresenting the facts Mr. Zakaria.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are those who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the earth.
Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness,
for they will be filled.
Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the pure in heart,
for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness,
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."
Matthew 5:3-11
I appreciate what you are trying to do and say, but you have to remember you are talking to doubters and non-believers. A little advice....be more humanistic. In my opinion Jesus was truly the first humanist. Nobody cared more for their fellow man than He, Himself. That point will carry across all faiths (or lack therof).
There have been nine crusades throughout history to stop the muslim animals, we are way overdue for a tenth!
If out of 294 terror attacks committed in Europe in 2009, only one was by Islamist; and in 2010, it was three out of 249. Then why the media kept us blindfolded only to show muslims in every act of terror?
You cannot deny that Islamic fundamentalists are the #1 threat to the world today. First of all, I highly doubt those statistics are accurate, but even if the terrorism statistics are true, worldwide, the majority of attacks, etc. is done by Muslims. I am not attacking the religion but let's face facts: there is an EXTREMELY violent faction in Islam that needs to be dealt with. Only a fundamental change in the Islamic world will do that so please stop defending these people.
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The group has come to everyone's attention because of Anders Behring Breivik's killing spree in Norway, now just over a week ago. He claimed in his rambling manifesto to represent a modern-day "Knights Templar". But who are they? The name might ring a bell, especially if you've seen The DaVinci Code or National Treasure or one of any number of recent films. But these are, of course, all fictional. What are the facts? The Knights Templar were a Christian military order founded in the early 12th century. Its members were said to be elite warriors who wore distinctive white mantles with a red cross. They made their reputation by winning a series of battles in the Crusades. Ironically, the Knights' first headquarters were in a mosque – the Al Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem – because they believed it was built on top of the ruins of Solomon's Temple. Their name, templar, comes from that legendary temple. The Knights' main job was said to be protecting Christian pilgrims from Muslims (amongst others). To this day, the site of the mosque and the temple mount remains one of the most heavily disputed place on earth. The order of the Knights Templar was dissolved in 1312, but its legacy lives on. Rumors still swirl that the group exists in total secrecy and guards the Holy Grail. From what sounds like fiction, back to fact: We know that Brevik saw himself as a Knight Templar. But get this: Halfway across the world from Norway, a new drug gang has recently arisen in Mexico. They call themselves quite simply "The Knights Templar". And they claim to live by a religious code, a copy of which the Associated Press recently obtained. It says the drug-dealing knights will "defend the values of society...against materialism, injustice and tyranny" and that its members will be "honorable", "noble", "courteous" and "honest". So they are "honest" drug dealers, selling marijuana, cocaine and whatever else in the name of God? Anders Breivik's fascination with the Knights is less bizarre – in fact, he's part of a larger movement. People like Breivik are trying to resurrect the idea of a modern-day Crusade, a real clash of civilizations against what they see as an Islamic invasion of Europe. In fact, Muslims make up only about 3 % of Europe's population and are likely to rise to between 5% and 8% by 2025 and level out at that point. But that doesn't change the reality of the anger, hatred and violence. Ironically, in Breivik's nostalgic view of the medieval world, the Knights Templar resembles nothing so much as al Qaeda, a terrorist organization that is fundamentally opposed to the modern world. We still don't know if Breivik's boast that there are more lone knights like him waiting to act is true. But if his depiction of the knight as a self-sacrificing assassin on a larger holy mission sounds familiar, it's because it too is mirrored in Islamist terror. That's exactly what a suicide bomber is: A lone fighter, often acting in the so-called interests of a larger movement and willing to kill innocents to draw attention to the cause. While we have all focused on the dangers of radical Islam and of Muslim terror, the attack in Norway should remind us that there is actually a pretty large problem of other sources of terrorism in the West. The European Union's 2010 Terrorism Situation and Trend Report has some fascinating findings. It showed that of the 294 terror attacks committed in Europe in 2009, only one was conducted by Islamists. That's a third of one percent. The most recent statistics show there were 249 terror attacks in Europe in 2010. Only three of those attacks were carried out by Islamist terrorists. Again, that's about one percent. Most of the attacks were by separatist groups or anarchists. So perhaps that's the lesson we can learn from the events in Norway. Islamic radicalism is a real problem and Islamic terrorism a real threat. But if we ignore other kinds of threats we're likely to be blindsided by another Gabby Giffords shooting or another Virginia Tech massacre.
There are people who write crap because they have never lived in France! For example: "if all the Arabs leave France, the plants could no longer produirent, France will lose money ah ah ah I laugh: for france currently is poor because the government gives money to those who will not work. Apartments free (this is called public housing and OPAL). Or house for large families. money for the education of kids. they are lazy. we have not waited until they invade us to prosper France! At the time of Napoleon of France was rich and he had not a single Arab! Strange! Like in America before invade spanish...
The best for understand the french history and the knight templar is this :http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Knights_Templar
God bless America I hope America don't follow the France...We must to be more smart for the future of America and that our grand grand fathers must to be proud of us,
There are people who write crap because they have never lived in France! For example: "if all the Arabs leave France, the plants could no longer BUILD, France will lose money ah ah ah I laugh: for france currently is poor because the government gives money to those who will not work. Apartments free (this is called public housing and OPAL). Or house for large families. money for the education of kids. they are lazy. we have not waited until they invade us to prosper France! At the time of Napoleon of France was rich and he had not a single Arab! Strange! Like in America before invade spanish...
Enough, Mr. Zakaria.
I've noted for the record the fabricated time and dates attached to many news articles.
For the record.
You leave my ancestry to me and my family and we'll leave yours to yours.
Thanks.
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I like the article, but wonder just how stupid some people can get, is it really sanity to suggest what took place in
Norwy has anything to do with knights templars, I fail to see why the ramblings and atctivities of a mad man, should
be used to damage the name of order from the 11th century because he decided to go on a mass murder spree, it is
of course accepted the BNP and groups like them are using the symbolisim of the Knights Templar, however they
use anything in order to gain a few votes, I might say that those of you who condem the templars now would certainly
not have done so, during the time of the crusades, cowardly to attack history in that way, especially after what the
templars did for europe at that time. May I suggest if you intend to attack the templars do so in a logical way backed
up by evidence, don't use the crimes of some sick poor individual and the sorrow of their relatives to do so, stop being
such a pathectic stupid lot, you make yourselves look if you have the I.Q's of chimps.
I disagree, but I will say I am sorry this nut killed those poor children using the TEMPLER name . If you do your research the templers even though fought the Muslims they both grew to understand and respect each other.
I pray for the died this evel demon of Satan killed. As far as the Mex drug dealers I think they use to much of what they sell and watch to many movies. And think they are something they are not. To put it Blountly I think his article is BS!
Thank You
May who ever you pray to bless you
Go In Peace
Michael
Solomon Post
This is final connection
I Send you all my love and blessings
Namoh brahmin devay
Om shanti om
I see some of you get your History lessons from video games or print. believing if it's printed it must be true.