A Human Tidal Wave
The twin engine plane banked to the left, as we skirted the beach and lined up for the island runway. Something bright and orange caught my eye. It was a life jacket on the beach, not just one but thousands upon thousands, littering the beaches of the Greek island of Lesbos. [A little New Testament … Continue reading
ISIS Part IV
Has ISIS peaked? Will it soon fall into ruins, as all madly driven and ferocious movements seem to do? Its sudden rise as global terrorist #1 seemed to catch all by surprise. As small as it was in its beginning, its capacity to sustain a crescendo of unspeakable violence along with its ability to capture … Continue reading
ISIS Part III
How did a group of religiously fanatical warriors grab hold of world media, shock us with blood-spattered video, shame us with growing fear, and sweep across north central Iraq and the heartland of Syria, grabbing control, imposing their version of Sharia law and bamboozling tens of thousands of Iraqi troops? Unprecedented in my experience, ISIS … Continue reading
ISIS Part II
ISIS is a descendant of an Islamic revival which took place in the 17th century. Over time this contributed to the establishment of today’s Saudi Arabian Islamic fundamentalism through which its rulers promote primitive and barbaric laws. That revival and the current religious foundation for Saudi Arabia and other countries is Wahhabism, sometimes called Salafism. … Continue reading