To the Shores of Tripoli...
If you ask any Muslim, or even a Democrat, why Islam is at war with the United States, he will say it’s because of our support of Israel or our presence in the Middle East or our exploitation of Muslim resources. However, this is not true. Islam has followers at war all over the world and not all of Islam’s enemies support Israel, have a presence in the Middle East or even have the ability to “exploit” (i.e. purchase) Muslim resources.
It would be more accurate to state the reason Islam is at war with the United States like this:
… it was founded on the Laws of their Prophet, that it was written in their Koran, that all nations who should not have acknowledged their authority were sinners, that it was their right and duty to make war upon them wherever they could be found, and to make slaves of all they could take as Prisoners, and that every Muslim who should be slain in Battle was sure to go to Paradise.
This should sound familiar to those who listen to or read reports coming out of Iran or from al-Qaeda. However, this particular quote was stated over 200 years ago. By Thomas Jefferson.
The Barbary States of Morocco, Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli were part of the Ottoman Empire and were ruled by Muslims. Their primary source of income was piracy. After the Revolutionary War, American merchant ships were no longer protected by the Royal Navy and were subject to raids by the Barbary pirates. As the ambassador to France, Jefferson was well aware of the problems in the Mediterranean.
Jefferson strongly objected to the practice of paying tribute for protection. He knew that appeasement would only encourage more attacks. When he became President of the United States in 1801, he ended the practice of appeasement and sent the young US Navy into the Mediterranean for the 1st Barbary War.
The war ended in 1805 with a treaty that called for the return to the United States of all property and prisoners taken by the pirates. The peace lasted as long as the US was able to maintain a credible military threat. When the Brits attacked in the War of 1812, the Navy no longer had the resources to patrol the Mediterranean and the piracy resumed. In 1815, the US had to go back and fight the 2nd Barbary War. It too ended with a treaty that restored stolen property and returned prisoners.
The French and Italians finally solved the piracy issue by colonizing all of North Africa. This more or less settled the Muslim problem for Europe and the United States, until they were given their freedom back in the mid 1900’s. When Muslim states regained their sovereignty after World War II, the cycle began the repeat phase.
The problem today is no longer piracy. However, the arrogance of Islam and disdain for others that Jefferson noted in 1790 are still true today. Islam has been at war with the United States since the United States has been a country. Appeasement has always led to more war. Military force has always led to peace. Will we ever learn?
It would be more accurate to state the reason Islam is at war with the United States like this:
… it was founded on the Laws of their Prophet, that it was written in their Koran, that all nations who should not have acknowledged their authority were sinners, that it was their right and duty to make war upon them wherever they could be found, and to make slaves of all they could take as Prisoners, and that every Muslim who should be slain in Battle was sure to go to Paradise.
This should sound familiar to those who listen to or read reports coming out of Iran or from al-Qaeda. However, this particular quote was stated over 200 years ago. By Thomas Jefferson.
The Barbary States of Morocco, Algiers, Tunis and Tripoli were part of the Ottoman Empire and were ruled by Muslims. Their primary source of income was piracy. After the Revolutionary War, American merchant ships were no longer protected by the Royal Navy and were subject to raids by the Barbary pirates. As the ambassador to France, Jefferson was well aware of the problems in the Mediterranean.
Jefferson strongly objected to the practice of paying tribute for protection. He knew that appeasement would only encourage more attacks. When he became President of the United States in 1801, he ended the practice of appeasement and sent the young US Navy into the Mediterranean for the 1st Barbary War.
The war ended in 1805 with a treaty that called for the return to the United States of all property and prisoners taken by the pirates. The peace lasted as long as the US was able to maintain a credible military threat. When the Brits attacked in the War of 1812, the Navy no longer had the resources to patrol the Mediterranean and the piracy resumed. In 1815, the US had to go back and fight the 2nd Barbary War. It too ended with a treaty that restored stolen property and returned prisoners.
The French and Italians finally solved the piracy issue by colonizing all of North Africa. This more or less settled the Muslim problem for Europe and the United States, until they were given their freedom back in the mid 1900’s. When Muslim states regained their sovereignty after World War II, the cycle began the repeat phase.
The problem today is no longer piracy. However, the arrogance of Islam and disdain for others that Jefferson noted in 1790 are still true today. Islam has been at war with the United States since the United States has been a country. Appeasement has always led to more war. Military force has always led to peace. Will we ever learn?
posted by BoiseJag at 7:14 AM
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