Draft of a letter to the editor for the widely-circulated Star-Ledger

How will the United States fight the “War on Terrorism?”  Pretty much the

same way we fought the war on Soviet Communism; cozying up to a

tyrannical theocracy here, embracing a military dictatorship there,

making sure the few ruling third world “haves” have a little more.

When President Bush warns the American people that this war could last a

decade or more, he is also telling his corporate buddies, “Times might

seem lean now, partners, but there’s a bonanza right over them there

hills!” And so there is, as the military-industrial complex gears up once

again for the purpose of rescuing a failing economy.

Terrorism is a menace to our way of life.  But we cannot speak the truth

to the two-thirds of the globe who do not share it even marginally:

Sorry, there’s simply not enough SUVs, food, medicine, malls, and barrels

of oil to go around. However, there are always plenty of guns and bombs

for all who join us. 

But no matter. “God is on our side,” even  if  just to help load new DVD

players into our cars and  new cruise missiles on to our warships.

Only Islam itself will ultimately defeat Islamic terrorists and radical

fundamentalists, who have first and foremost terrorized and oppressed

other Muslims. By isolating and driving these apostates and their

perverse beliefs from the  Islamic world, Muslims might also discover the

strength and unity to overcome the bin Ladens and the Sadaams, and

America’s exploitative, immoral economic and cultural domination,  and to

do so with enlightened, democratic  governments of their own creation.

Islam, Christianity  and Judaism share one fundamental goal: To live

peacefully according to the will of the God Who is One.  Perhaps the

better angels of three faiths are the real “sleeping giants.”