Muslims and Saddam

It was not very long ago when the US was criticised for responding too slowly to the genocide in Rwanda. Today they are criticised for responding to the threat Saddam Hussein posed to the West and his own people. This all leads me to suspect that the noise of protest stems not from concern for the suffering Iraqis, but from an institutionalised hatred for the US. Call it jealousy, call it what you will.

Had the critics amongst the Muslims actually cared for the plight of the Iraqis, it would have been Muslim countries that removed the dictator. It should have been Muslim countries that lead the end of his brutal regime. It should be the Muslims who bring about democracy and respect for human rights to the rest of the countries of the Middle East; and if Muslims fail to do so, I see no reason to complain when the West steps in. The modernisation of the Middle East is a job that simply has to be done -- the influence of fundamentalism has proven to be far too great a threat to the cultures and civilisations of the world. The US cannot be blamed for trying to guarantee her own security and that of her allies.

To be totally honest, it is nothing short of hypocritical that so many of us Muslims exaggerate the excesses of others while we turn a blind eye to the many atrocities of our own.