Re: [Marxism] Louis's time to take a step back and apologise for cop-baiting

[Louis Proyect <lnp3@xxxxxxxxx>]

>Please cease this kind of talk, take this back, and apologise.
>
>Lets leave the cop-baiting to the cops.
>
>Sincerely,
>Sukant

I apologize for not remembering that it was Dennis Brasky who posted 
your article to the list rather than you yourself, but the 
characterization of "talking up al Qaeda" remains. Here were your words:

The Afghan jihad allowed militants to overcome the rivalry among 
militants that existed along national and ethnic lines.  Overcoming 
these divisions and forging Pan-Arab and Pan-Islamist unity were some 
of the main strategies of Bin Laden and Zawahiri in the construction 
of their organization that was to become the violent "World Islamic 
Front for Jihad against Crusaders and Jews" or commonly known as 
Al-Qaeda, meaning "The Base," formed in 1998.  Initially for Bin 
Laden, Zawahiri, and others, Afghanistan was the base for 
international jihad, today it is mainly Iraq...

These political shifts culminated in the establishment of Al-Qaeda 
and many other organizations that share their military vanguardist 
outlook, and many more yet that share their political aims of an Arab 
world free from Western domination....

Islamists have always been at the forefront of the struggle against 
colonialism and neo-colonialism in the Middle East since the times of 
the Crusades.  Most academics, policy makers, and those who support 
the independence and development of the Arab world have some 
knowledge of the post-Second World War period when Islamist movements 
were supported by those who saw them as a counterweight to the 
secular anti-imperialist movements of various Arab Nationalists and 
Marxist trends.  Further study and reflection on the contemporary 
history of the Arab world may on the other hand lead to a more 
nuanced understanding of this relationship, rather then labelling one 
side "reactionaries" and the other "progressives."  Perhaps it is 
time to move away from this outdated and problematic terminology.

full: http://mrzine.monthlyreview.org/chandan111007.html



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