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October 19, 2001/Cheshvan 2, 5762, Vol. 54, No. 6
An ideological war rages
MARTY LATZ
Special to Jewish News
"We have discovered that we are all vulnerable," Rebbetzin Esther Jungreis told a gathering at Arizona State University on Sept. 23. "Never in the history of the world have so many people been killed in so short a time," said the internationally acclaimed speaker, author and Holocaust survivor.
She was, of course, referring to Sept. 11 and our newly recognized physical vulnerability. But there's a greater danger out there, one that cannot be targeted with bombs. Nor will it disappear if we destroy Osama bin Laden's Al Qaida network.
It's the ideological and religious attack by Islamic extremists on a bedrock American principle: freedom. Freedom of speech. Freedom of religion. Freedom of association. Freedom of the press. The Sept. 11 attack was the physical corollary to this ideological war raging throughout the world.
We have been winning this war based on the power of ideas and free markets. We have witnessed in the last 20 years a remarkable proliferation of democracies, including the peaceful transformation of the former Soviet Union. But the war of ideas continues.
Here's the conflict: As we seek support from any and all other countries in our effort to fight terrorism, we are aggressively soliciting the support of countries with large Islamic populations, to prevent bin Laden and his allies from successfully promoting the notion of a religious war between Islam and the rest of the world.
As we continue this effort to build a broad-based coalition, we shouldn't go too far and engender too great a cost. For example, some believe Syria and Iran are potential allies in this war against terrorism. Their apparent lack of involvement in the Sept. 11 attacks does not make them a potential ally. They have supported terrorist organizations for years and show no sign of letting up.
Here, the enemy of our enemy is not our friend. Their "support" should be rejected until they take concrete steps to dismantle the terrorist organizations in their midst.
"Anti-terrorism" is not a phrase to be thrown around by those attempting to extract economic, trade-related or political concessions from the United States. If we don't create a standard underlying this alliance, our moral and intellectual high ground will crumble. This matters - long-term - in the war for freedom and against terrorism.
New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani recently rejected a $10 million donation to the Twin Towers Fund charity from a Saudi Arabian prince. The donor then issued a statement asking the U.S. to "reexamine its policies in the Middle East and adopt a more balanced stance toward the Palestinian cause. ... Our Palestinian brethren continue to be slaughtered at the hands of Israelis while the world turns the other cheek."
As Giuliani noted, "there is no moral equivalent for this act, and to suggest that there's a justification for it only invites this happening in the future." He did the right thing.
All of us must consistently stand against terrorism and for freedom. Otherwise, the cost - and our vulnerability - will be too much to bear.
Marty Latz can be reached at 602-870-9301 or at Latz@NegotiationInstitute.com.
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