While I am loathe to recognize any of Islam’s misogynistic customs, practices, and laws I realize that in a place like Afghanistan, for the sake of denying the Taliban toeholds we should respect the local mores. That’s a no-brainer. For the long-run, I am pessimistic that education alone will drive a stake into the heart of Islamic attitudes about women. In Muslim countries that did have a period of secularization women made some progress, but the people as a whole are reverting back to Islamic law and customs, and the role of women is sliding backwards.

Islam IS the problem. As long as it remains it will most certainly subvert even Muslim societies where people – even women – have access to more education. Education itself is not the magic bullet. I hate to break the bad news to y’all, but it really is the case. You know, we keep going ’round and ’round this without end, namely, the endless ways we try to avoid the harsh reality of Islamic scriptures and law and how these are the foundation for the confrontation with the world of us kafirs. That’s just the way it is. All of you policy wonks on this forum might think I’m just playing the role of the blunt instrument that lacks subtlety, but I’m only just refusing to bury my head in the sand.

For God’s sakes there are educated Muslim women who revert back to the burqa and who submit to Islamic law. There are even Western women who convert to Islam and agree to submit to the savagery, when they should know better. There is a definite allure to this thing that the narcissistic criminal from Mecca set in motion 1,400 years ago. Sir Lawrence was not the only Westerner who fell for it. As long as it exists and is out there, it has this annoying ability to renew itself and reignite the violence. I think the only American leader who honestly came to grips with it, because he read the Qur’an, was Thomas Jefferson. I guess they just don’t produce men like him anymore.