Understanding Islam Page 4
Since its birth, however, Islam has displayed all the characteristics of totalitarianism, a fact that anyone can determine by checking the Koran (a book that everyone talks about without having actually read it):
1) A mandatory, unique religion imposed upon a given territory (in Communism, Nazism and Fascism, it is a single ideology that is taught everywhere, paired with a ban on all conflicting creeds or opinions);
2) The merger of Faith and Law within the Sharia (i.e. the Muslim religious law), making the latter the sole applicable legislation (which is equivalent to the politicisation of laws and the criminalisation of any behaviour and remarks that contradict the official ideology);
3) The criminalisation / undervaluation of infidels, meaning that of all those non-Muslims who resist conversion (the social classes, political groups, dissenting opinions and populations that are targeted as a result of their origin face the same adversity);
4) An intention to convert and/or dominate all of mankind through jihad, i.e. forced universalism (Communism, especially in its Trotskyist variation, aimed to impose its system upon the whole world, while National Socialism aspired to Germanic world domination);
5) A social life fully innervated by the official religion and its compulsory rites (akin to having many youth movements and associations affiliated with the Single Party, under a practically absolute obligation to adhere to it);
6) The prohibition of all remarks, written discourse and research at variance with the Koranic truth (Lysenkoism immediately springs to mind. Additionally, the three types of totalitarianism mentioned above abolished people’s freedom of speech and introduced various forms of punishment should anyone dare criticise the regime);
7) A will to homogenise all of society through authoritarian means, stemming from a State that remains fully obedient to unelected religious authorities (which mirrors the existence of a single, unelected party that holds sway over the State and homogenises society);
8) The presence of a Chief or a Caliph who monopolises both political and religious power following the example set by Muhammad (similarly, a Supreme Leader is the Head of State that holds all the reins of power);
10) The idealisation and sanctification of the official dogma contained in the Koran (which parallels the sanctification of the official ideology through an entire arsenal of rites and ceremonies in political totalitarian systems);
11) The presence of a holy Book, used as an absolute reference (likewise, Hitler’s Mein Kampf, Marx’s Capital — along with several works written by Lenin — , Mao’s Little Red Book, etc.);
12) An aggressive rhetoric calling for the extermination of both external and internal opponents or enemies, and never for debate. Physical conflict and warmongering are resorted to in the end if necessary.
However, the difference between Islamic totalitarianism and the other three systems is that the former, as I have explained elsewhere, embodies a rule of law, since it abides strictly by the Law of God, a Law enshrined in the Koran and the Hadiths. Conversely, Communism, whether Stalinist, Chinese or any other, does not respect its own constitution, since the ruling Party and its leader act in accordance with their own pragmatic judgment, violating various laws or interpreting them at will. In Fascism and Nazism, the dictator rules through decrees, without any constitutional or legislative concerns: constitutional law is not even abolished, but simply ignored.
Islamic totalitarianism is much stronger, much more sustainable and far more fanaticising than the political totalitarianisms that emerged during the 20th century, because it is based on a theocracy cemented by faith and not on a religion with secular ideals. If one considers the classification that stems from Georges Dumézil’s trifunctional hypothesis (the function of religion and sovereignty, the military function, and the economic function of productivity), the Communist and Nazi totalitarianisms were based respectively on the third (economic) function and on the second (the military one). Islam, by contrast, is rooted in the first (theocratic) function. This is why it is so long-lasting and durable historically speaking, having seen the light of day long before political totalitarianisms ever surfaced, yet outlasting them by far. Islam enjoys the strength of archaism, whereas Communism, Nazism and Fascism only bore the weakness of modernity. It thus becomes obvious why both Trotskyites (i.e. ‘Islamo-leftists’) and the nostalgic intellectuals who embrace National Socialism find Islamic totalitarianism so appealing. It suits their palates. Some of them, in fact, are hardly willing to restrain their admiration for the Iran of the mullahs and its official anti-Semitism. In recompense, the latter may well end up granting them its financial support.
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Indeed, the Iranian regime, created by Imam Khomeini, is a good showcase of what comprehensive Islam has to offer (albeit in its less radical, Shiite version) when applied to politics: totalitarianism, of course. This regime, strengthened after the June 2009 coup that followed Ahmadinejad’s rigged election and the subsequent bloody repression, is a good example of what a political system governed entirely by Koranic prescriptions embodies. The Afghan and Pakistani Taliban movements set an even more fanatical and radical example, similarly to their Da’esh counterpart. Meanwhile, those who stand behind the naive official discourse of the West, which asserts that it is all just a disfigured version of Islam, i.e. a pseudo-Islam, are making a fatal mistake because, if this were the case, there would be no links, no crossing points nor switchovers between moderate and totalitarian Islam.
Islam bears a striking resemblance to communist totalitarianism. Every communist regime referred to itself as a ‘People’s Democracy’, whereas Islamic Iran is an ‘Islamic Republic’. However, the terms ‘democracy’, ‘people’ and ‘republic’ are completely at odds with the reality of these regimes, which represent a dictatorial oligarchy that relies on an atheistic or transcendent ideology / religion in order to enforce its absolute power, betraying the very principle of ‘serving the people’ which it so heartily proclaims. This is the technique of semantic, Orwellian lies, a directional reversal.
Such a regime places great emphasis on ‘virtue’, but its ruling caste practices corruption, bribery and wide scale monopolisation. Its characteristics are repressive violence, arbitrary detention, the forced rule of an armed minority over an unarmed majority, oppression against women, the suppression of any and all freedom of expression, widespread obscurantism, economic mismanagement (Iran’s Western ‘friends’, whose own countries are funded by the totalitarian regime of the Islamic republic, blame the poverty that afflicts the Iranian people on the weak ‘sanctions’ and blockades decided by the UN, an assertion that has yet to be proven true.), etc, all of which is carried out in the name of the greater metaphysical and sacral legitimacy that Islam represents.
It is of course the case that fanatics, who sincerely believe in this higher and transcendent Islamic truth that legitimises the vilest actions, and cynics, who pretend to believe so as to take advantage of the totalitarian regime, do coexist in Islam. The same principle can be applied to communist regimes, where one distinguished the sincere (and less intelligent) supporters of ‘dialectical materialism’ from the apparatchiki, i.e. the sceptical ones actively involved in the system. In Iran, a country bruised by the totalitarianism of radical Islam, the mechanisms of social and mental oppression are very similar to those of Communism and Nazism. The logic of history is relentless in this respect: it will all lead to war, mater populorum fati.
Islam and Communism
The resemblance between Islamism and Marxism / Communism is remarkable, as they originate from the same mentality, which explains the sympathies between leftists / collectivists and Islamists. Islam and Marxist Communism share the absolute certainty of holding the Truth, being right on all levels, possessing the only correct solutions in every field and following the path of Good and Righteousness (for even when they are guilty of every possible abuse, they view their owns deeds as being just). They never tolerate any opposition or dissidence (except
on a temporary basis, when they are still a minority), nor do they ever practice persuasion the moment the scales of power tilt in their favour, for their understanding of power is restricted to its undivided form, without any separations or counter-balance. In Communism, the Single Party and the State are indistinguishable, similarly to any Islamic state, where the prescriptive religious authority of the Sharia is consubstantial with the State. Hence the very meaning of the word ‘caliphate’.
Let’s take things further, shall we? Within Marxist Communism, ‘dialectical materialism’ (Diamat) was a kind of pseudo-scientific catechism cobbled together from the writings of Marx, Engels and Lenin. It played the role of central dogma and was taught everywhere. The parallel with the Koran is dumbfounding. The only (admittedly huge) difference that explains the collapse of Communism (even in China, where it is no more than the banal nationalistic, capitalist and imperial dictatorship of the State) and that also accounts for the age-old sustainability of Islam is that dialectical materialism was a mere joke whose ‘absolute’ scientific nature has not withstood any reality checks. On the other hand, the Koran is presented as the direct, divine word, whose refutability is as impossible as it is unthinkable. In accordance with the categories of Karl Popper, the ‘Diamat’ is refutable and has been discredited by the facts (evidence and events), since it had the imprudence of making socio-economic predictions that never came true. In contrast to this, the Koran is indisputable (just like any other religious dogma), because it is exempt from the necessity to provide evidence that supports its claims and does not belong to the domain of reason, but that of faith.
However, both in the case of the ephemeral dialectical materialism and that of the age-old Koran, the overhanging dogma prevents any expression of individuality and subjectivity. Both systems smother every possible creative impulse, initiative, debate, controversy and critical thought. Their collective imperative supersedes personal reflection. Furthermore, their prohibitions, norms and crushing constraints incapacitate the societies that submit to Islam or Communism. This is what encourages transgressions and causes endemic social unrest, through continuous repression and corruption. When one compares Marxist Communism with Islam, a parallel between the concepts of masses and umma comes to light. The ‘masses’ comprise undifferentiated proletarians, an aggregation of various peoples that disregards any notion of nationality and identity. Similarly, the community of believers or umma manifests internationalism.
In Marxist Communism and Islam alike, the same twofold abolition of individual identity and national identity reigns supreme. In comparison to this, all traditions of European origin since the birth of Greek thought have been based on a philosophy of subjectivity, whether that of individuals, nations, peoples or cities, in the face of a global, homogenising System. All specific traditions are doomed to vanish in Islam and Communism, much more so than in westernised market societies, simply because it is clearly stated in their foundational texts and written in the form of commandments.
You must not be yourselves nor belong to your nation, family and class, or embrace your identity and traditions. Instead, you are to join the rites and accommodate the ‘values’ of our ideology / religion. As subjects, you are no longer entitled to your freedom. You are, in fact, objects that serve the interests of our dogma. Islam and Communist / Marxist totalitarianism are related to each other through kinship. The only difference is that the former has outlived the latter because its speech invokes sacred principles and not profane ones.
Although Undemocratic, Islam is in Favour of the Rule of Law
Due to their ignorance or cynicism, European leaders and intellectuals imagine that Islam is perfectly compatible with our republics and democracy (even if the latter is hardly exemplary in Europe and North America), both of which drift towards oligocracy, plutocracy and technocracy. It is however necessary to admit that, in its fundamental principles, Islam is absolutely irreconcilable with all European philosophical and democratic traditions.
No elected parliament nor human assembly can therefore contest, modify, alter, amend, adapt or contradict the Sharia, the divine law of the Koran. In the eyes of Islam, the concept of democracy is an absurdity. Political authority can only rest in the hands of a caliph, a leader who applies the religious law passed down by Muhammad, word for word. No human assembly has the right to bring in, on a whim, new laws that would replace Allah’s divine omniscience.
This is the reason why all the ‘democracies’ introduced into Muslim countries as a mockery of Western institutions are predestined to malfunction and drift towards dictatorship, a fact that naive Western leaders have failed to comprehend. Alternatively, if they are truly intent on playing the game of democracy in harmony with the European tradition, they will be targeted by Islamists as enemies to slaughter, just like in Tunisia. One does not easily change the cultural substratum of a people. The tragic and ridiculous example of the so-called ‘Arab Spring’ events, which have all gone wrong, demonstrates this. The natural tendency of the Muslim mentality is drawn towards a single and essentially totalitarian power that applies the law (i.e. the ideology) of Allah. Saudi Arabia and the monarchies of the Persian Gulf exemplify this perfectly. Meanwhile, displaying ironclad hypocrisy, our leaders get on amazingly well with these regimes (it is a question of oil and money and of obedience to the USA), while loathing Putin’s Russia, which has an authoritarian but nonetheless democratic (populistic) power approved by the majority of the electorate.
Of course, there are some Muslim regimes that have formally adopted a representative and elective form of democracy, but they are rare and constantly threatened from within, such as Tunisia. Such governments fall between two stools, torn between the terrible rigidity of their simplistic religious ideology and their fascination for the West.
On the basis of a completely erroneous conception of political science, one often assumes that the ‘rule of law’ is synonymous with freedom and democracy. Islam sets an example that proves otherwise. The rule of law is not necessarily defined by the prevalence of freedom, equality and democracy, but by an absence of the arbitrary, where the legalised rules of the game are known to all and one is punished for breaking them. And these rules can indeed be completely oppressive. Islamic law, the Sharia, advocates the practice of jihad against all infidels (whether those located on the same soil or abroad), the implementation of legal inequalities between the sexes as well as between good Muslims and others (apostates, schismatics, moderate Muslims or non-Muslims), the application of harsh repressive rules upon all deviants and absolute obedience to the authority of an unelected Caliph who conveys the divine word. In this respect, the Islamic State — Daesh — does embody a certain Rule of Law, one that implements Islamic law in accordance with the initial foundations of Islam and not the arbitrary decisions or the whim of a monarch. Even the acts of looting committed during jihad are legal.
So there may be constitutional states that advocate peace, freedom and equality in their laws, and others that preach submission, war, inequality and ruthless theocracy instead. Carl Schmitt demonstrated that the very concept of Rule of Law is strictly legal and normative, and therefore neutral and not moral in the sense of a universal ethic.
The antithesis of the Rule of Law is anarchy, the arbitrariness of a monarch or a plutocracy ruled by extralegal implicit conventions. However, as proven by the regimes led by all those Arab autocrats who were eventually overthrown (or restored, like in Egypt), autocratic, authoritarian regimes are infinitely more positive and peaceful from the people’s perspective than the fanatical Islamic State of Law. The latter ends up missing its mark, since it leads to anarchy. Compared to the conditions established by the Islamic fanatics of Daesh, Libya, Syria and Iraq seem infinitely preferable when ruled by whimsical and corrupt tyrants.
One would be entitled to say that Islam pushes its demand for a rigid State of Law (which centres around the uncompromising requirements of the Sharia) so far that it results in the destruction o
f that very same Rule of Law wherever applied (or almost), especially since it causes permanent war and breeds revolt as a result of its intolerance and intrinsic extremism. Furthermore, this is where the greatest weakness of Islam and its Sharia lies, hidden under a varnish of uncompromising strength: the Rule of Law that they advocate, destined to extend to all corners of the globe in application of Allah’s commandments, is so blunt and oppressive that it leads to widespread civil war, tribal anarchy, disorder and chaos, persecution, exactions and therefore revolts. The Islamic, Marxist and Nazi systems, which all claim to be the expressions of an absolute rule legitimated by a higher principle, are undermined (and illegitimated) by the chaotic virus that they spawn, a fact that Carl Schmitt understood when highlighting the recurrent conflict between legality and legitimacy: an oppressive legality (like the Sharia) can be perceived as illegitimate, especially since the very legality of Islam, which intertwines faith and law, relies heavily on the concept of divine ‘revelation’. It is both very strong through its spiritual dimension and tainted with fragility as a consequence of its lack of popular approval and its indomitable need to resort to permanent repression so as to generate obedience. Civil war is an intrinsic part of Islam because it is inherent to its doctrine and history.
Islam, Marxist Communism and Nazism: Differences and Kinship
Whereas Islam’s purpose is the Rule of Law, Nazism and Communism washed their hands of it because they found it more convenient to follow arbitrary procedures, which they considered to be more flexible and adaptable to the circumstances, thus freeing themselves from the entrapping restrictions of a legal system. The Soviet constitution has never been respected and the Third Reich never bothered to adopt a binding constitutional or criminal legislation apart from the Nuremberg race laws. Not only were the deportations and exterminations decreed without any legal framework, but also without falling into the spectrum of illegality, as they were neither legal nor illegal. They were simply lawless. However, all acts of persecution, dispossession and exclusion committed upon infidels are perfectly legal in the Islamic State because they comply with Koranic law.