By Thom Paine – the Independent Realist
Ron Paul seems to think that 9/11 was caused by America. He says the motivation for the attacks came from America being in the Middle East, specifically in those countries like Saudi Arabia, Afghanistan, Pakistan and others which support terrorists and terrorism. I say the motivation for the attacks came from the koran, and from nowhere else. To support this, I offer this little history lesson on just what the koran has caused over the centuries. The first article in this little history lesson is called “The Muslim PR Game Called ‘The Crusades’.”
The muslim PR game called "The Crusades"
(Note: In order to give credit where credit is due, this article was written by Armin Vamberian and Robert Sibley. It is reprinted here by permission of Mr. Vamberian.)
The Muslim Game:
Muslims love talking about the Crusades, and Christians love apologizing for them. To hear both parties tell the story, one would believe that Muslims were just peacefully minding their own business in lands that were legitimately Muslim, when Christian armies decided to wage holy war and "kill millions."
The Truth:
Every part of this myth is a lie. By the rules that Muslims claim for themselves, the Crusades were perfectly justified, and the excesses (though beneath Christian standards) pale in comparison with the historical treatment of conquered populations at the hands of Muslims.
The crusades are quite possibly the most misunderstood event n European history.
The Crusades were in every way a defensive war. They were a direct response to Muslim aggression -- an attempt to turn back or defend against Muslim conquests of Christian lands.
The West may now dominate the Islamic world, but that has only been the case since the late 18th century, when a young general, Napoleon Bonaparte, conquered Egypt and temporarily imposed French rule. This initial European penetration into one of the heartlands of Islam was "a terrible shock" to Muslims, says historian Bernard Lewis. Until then, they had thought of themselves as the victors in the Crusades.
That assumption is understandable. Muslim rulers held the preponderance of power as far as Europe was concerned until the 17th century and had done so, more or less, since the Prophet Muhammad issued Islam's initial declaration of war against other religious faiths in the seventh century. The Prophet wrote the Christian Byzantine emperor and the Sassanid emperor of Persia to suggest they surrender to his rule because, well, their day was done.
"I have now brought God's final message," the Prophet declared. "Your time has passed. Your beliefs are superseded. Accept my mission and my faith or resign or submit ... you are finished."
This claim propelled the armies of Islam to take on the rest of the world.
Muslim armies charged out of the Arabian Peninsula to conquer Syria, Lebanon, Palestine and Egypt -- all of which, as part of the late Roman Empire, were officially Christian. By the eighth century, Christian North Africa was under Muslim control.
Islam soon swept into Europe, grabbing Spain, Portugal and southern Italy. In the 11th century, the Seljuk Turks conquered much of Asia Minor, or Turkey.
Here are some quick facts about the Crusades:
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