Peace Like A River: Mr. Gorbachev, build up this wall

In 1987, President Reagan stood at the Brandenburger Tor in Berlin, and said, referring to the Berlin Wall, "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!"

That Wall, a symbol of oppression, of captivity, came down in 1989.

Recently, however, other walls and barriers are going up, or are being contemplated, for different reasons. Not to keep captive people in, but to keep dangerous people out.

The security fence Israel is building, and has nearly completed, is between Israel and the West Bank, and is intended to drastically reduce the number of terrorists entering Israel.

There are other barriers on the drawing board as well.

As mentioned in the Briefing last Monday, India has decided to speed up work on a barrier between India and Bangladesh. According to this report:

India is accelerating the construction of a 2,500-mile fence to seal its border with Bangladesh amid growing fears that its Muslim neighbour could become "a new Afghanistan".

Indian officials and western diplomats have been alarmed by an increase in terrorist attacks by militant groups linked to Al-Qaeda and by the Dhaka government’s failure to crack down on them.
....
India’s cabinet has decided to speed up work on the 8ft security fence, which is intended to keep out terrorists and arms smugglers. The fence, which cuts a swathe through some of India’s densest rainforests, will be finished by the end of next year and patrolled by a border security force. Key stretches are being electrified.

The initiative follows attacks by two groups related to Al-Qaeda — Jamaatul Mujahideen Bangladesh and Harakat-ul- Jihad-ul-Islami (Bangladesh), which was among 15 organisations that were banned in Britain last month.

Also mentioned in the same Briefing, Russia is contemplating a barrier along the border with Chechnya. As The Jamestown Foundation reports:

The Jerusalem Post reported on November 8 that the Russian government "is mulling the construction of a security barrier along the border with Chechnya similar to Israel's West Bank security fence as part of its efforts to combat Muslim terror." According to the newspaper, President Vladimir Putin's envoy to the Southern Federal District, Dmitry Kozak, met in Israel with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Internal Security Minister Gideon Ezra "for talks on the effectiveness of the security fence and Israel's overall success in fighting Palestinian terror." Citing unnamed Israeli officials, the newspaper reported that the talks "focused primarily on the construction of a security fence" and that Kozak "told the participants he would bring the issue up back in Russia and recommend it as a viable means to fight terror." Former Israel police chief Shlomo Aharonishky, who, according to the newspaper, is "serving as a consultant for the Russians," told it that Kozak had "been assigned to prepare a plan on how to fight terror and it will include the construction of a security fence," and that the goal of Kozak's visit to Israel was "to learn from us how to build the fence." Aharonishky added: "He will recommend back in Russia the construction of a fence in certain places. There will also be other ideas including how to deal with the [Chechen] leadership and the people who are sent to carry out the attacks."

In a column last Sunday, Dennis Prager listed five questions that Muslims must answer.

* Why are you so quiet?
* Why are none of the Palestinian terrorists Christian?
* Why is only one of the 47 Muslim-majority countries a free country?
* Why are so many atrocities committed and threatened by Muslims in the name of Islam?
* Why do countries governed by religious Muslims persecute other religions?

Perhaps another question could be added to this list. Why do countries feel the need to build barriers to keep murderous Muslims out?

2 Comments:

At Fri Nov 18, 12:15:00 PM, StandingOutInTheCold said…

I don't think that you were being unfair to Muslims by asking the questions you did. In fact, you give them the chance to answer and defend themselves, if they want to. However there are many people in the US today who have adopted the idea that all Muslims are evil. I heard callers on Hugh Hewitt's radio show say that all Muslims should be deported (I have no idea where to, if they're American citizens) or at least barred from serving in the government and military. And although I don't see evidence in your post that you feel this way, its important that any time we discuss the fact that in our world today a lot of atrocities are being committed by Muslims we don't allow ourselves to just start hating Muslims in general. Just as with every religion, there are all kinds of Muslims, some are radical zealots who want to impose their religion on the world and kill all who oppose them. Others are great people working to build a better world for everyone. We have to make sure that we don't lump both groups together. We have to be better than our enemies. We cannot be controlled by fear and hatred. I know for a fact that not all Muslims are quiet about terrorism, we just don't get a chace to hear those speaking out against it because the media doesn't give them air time. There is a Mosque near where I live in Denver that has banners up that supporting peace, religious tolerance, and an end to terrorism. They are doing the best they can to let the world know that not all Muslims are like these evil people we hear so much about, but few people care enough to listen. Anyway, I just wanted to point out that not all Muslims are evil, and that many are openly and vocally opposed to oppression and violence. Furthermore, they are not responsible for the actions of Muslims in the Middle East any more than New Jersey Catholics are responsible for the IRA's terrorism. We just have to be careful that we don't blindly group good, inncoent people in with the most reprehensible villains just because they both claim to act on behalf of the same religion.
At Fri Nov 18, 05:18:00 PM, Jeff said…

Thanks for your thoughts. No, I certainly don't think all Muslims are evil. I do tend to fall into the category of those wondering why we don't hear more mainstream Muslims, whether leaders or average people, speaking out vociferously against the atrocities committed by other Muslims, often in the name of Islam.

It may be as you say, that there are voices speaking out, but we aren't hearing them.

But, aside from private citizens, I do think Muslim governments could be more vocal in their opposition to acts of terrorism committed by Muslims. I think we would hear those voices if they were speaking out.

You give a good reminder, that not all Muslims are evil, and not all are responsible for the actions of others.