AS I SEE IT
By Henri Loridans
Let’s Get Graphic, Gory and Ghoulish
On Christmas Day 2009 a terrorist aboard an airplane landing in the USA attempted to set off explosives he had stuffed in his crotch. He succeeded in burning himself, but did no damage to the plane or to the other passengers. If the headlines on one of the tabloids had been translated and circulated among other potential suicide bombers, I believe that some of the glamour of Jihad would have eroded. The headlines were GREAT BALLS OF FIRE. A young recruit might even have considered that if the plot had succeeded, the he may not have been able to service all those virgins after all.
Civilized people all over the world see images of the Twin Towers billowing smoke as a great tragedy. Islamic extremists see a victory over the infidel; the glorification of Allah. There is rejoicing when news clips are shown with bodies being carried away from a bombing site in a secular country.
What reaction would there be among those who would sacrifice their own lives to kill and maim innocent people if, instead of concentrating on the damage to the victims, we focused on what happened to the perpetrators. Their remains squeegeed off the floor, scraped from the walls and piled in a gory mess. Pictures could be taken and put side by side with photos of the young men taken in the prime of their lives. These juxtapositions would then be circulated in ethnic neighborhoods where the families of the bombers live and where more are likely to be recruited.
Such depictions would surely detract from the glowing memories of the departed basking in the presence of Allah in lush surroundings catered to by virgins. Is this heartless treatment of mothers and fathers of deceased young men and women? Perhaps, but if it serves to suppress the glamour of martyrdom, it’s worth it.
Further comparisons could be made and spread in those regions that spawn misguided zealots willing to die in the cause of slaughtering innocent men, women and children. Circulate pictures of young Muslim achievers, who chose to live rather than to die. Describe their accomplishments in business, in the arts and in sports. Depict them in happy times with their families and associates. When put side by side with an oozy muck of human remains, some potential volunteers will have second thoughts. A good dose of ridicule and realism may be what is needed.
