Opinion: We must prepare for Islamists’ capabilities

Well, they’ve gone and done it again. The ISIS jihadists in Syria have beheaded yet another Westerner, this time a British aid worker who was helping out in Syria. That makes three, with three Western prisoners still in captivity. The question is who are these people, and why are they causing so much grief and pain?

They are Islamists, Islamic jihadists, terrorists, IS, ISIS, pick a name. They are part of the umbrella group known as al Qaeda. Their ideologies claim that Islam should guide social life, political life, as well as personal life. They seek to expand Islam to a point that Sharia (Islamic law) rules the entire world. They are not about taking over a single country, they aspire to follow the example set forth by their prophet Mohammed and his early believers, and take over the entire world. They plan on beginning with Iraq and Syria, creating a caliphate – then branching out to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Syria, and Jordon – then using this base to attack Israel, all the while targeting the rest of the world.

The jihadist militant network is getting stronger with each passing day, and their areas of operation are continuing to expand. We need to remember that Islamic terrorism is not associated with just one group of people. There is no single creed, ethnicity, political group or nationality with a monopoly of terrorism. Jihadists employ terrorism as they do insurgency – as just one of the many tools they can use to achieve their objectives.

The Islamic State is stronger than ever and is heavily committed to world domination. They are not simply a group of crazy people who employ violence for the sake of violence. Granted, there are a few psychotic and sociopathic people involved, but taken as a whole, jihadists’ use of violence and terror is the result of rational set of goals and objectives.

Some naïve folks think that if we only educate them, give them a nice job, help them to feed themselves and their families then they will give up their violent and terrorists ways. Nothing could be farther from the truth. This is about religious fundamentalism and strong internal belief. This is not about the lack of educational or temporal needs being met. This is about a bunch of twisted religious zealots killing everyone who disagrees with their sick and inhuman beliefs.

It is of vital importance to understand that jihadists are theologically motivated. Actually, in their ideology there is no real distinction between religion, politics, and culture. They believe that it is their religious duty to propagate their own twisted strain of Islam along with the government, legal system, and cultural norms that go with it. Additionally, they believe that in order to properly spread their perverted strain of Islam they must strictly follow the example of the evil Prophet Mohammed and his Stone Age followers. They conquered Mecca, then most of the rest of the Arabian Peninsula before the prophet’s death. Within a hundred years they forged a massive empire that stretched across North Africa and most of Spain, even reaching the borders of China and India in the east. Just as Mohammed and his followers had conquered much of the known world, the Islamists seek to reconquer this empire and then expand it to include all the earth, including the United States.

In a recent interview with a prison minister, a Muslim imam stated that according to the teachings of the Koran, Islamists are commanded to kill all infidels (unbelievers) as part of the holy jihad. This is a commandment, not a suggestion. If they do so, they are assured a place in heaven. Granted, not all Muslims are jihadists, but all jihadists are Muslims.

People say that it’s a good thing that they aren’t over here, that it’s much better to fight them across the sea. We should not get too secure in this apparent situation. There is growing evidence that Islamic jihadists are making their way into the US through our porous southern border, including the Gulf of Mexico. Even though the liberal media disparages those (including law enforcement officers) who claim to have found Korans and other religious artifacts belonging to Muslims, along our southern border we must ask ourselves if it is possible that Islamic jihadists could sneak across the porous border.

The great Prussian general Carl von Clausewitz advised in his book, On War, that we need to prepare for what our enemy can do, not necessarily what he may do. I’ve no doubt that Islamists can sneak across our southern border. It matters not that they may or may not do it; it only matters that they can do it. Right now, we are not prepared for that certainty.

Of course, when the Midland County Sheriff, along with Governor Rick, mentioned that is it probable that Islamic jihadists may have already crossed the border, which is entirely possible, the Mexicans whined, wailed, and gnashed their teeth, calling such suppositions “absurd.” Over the years I’ve not put a lot of stock in what the Mexicans had to say. Going back to 1824, it seems to me that they’ve often spoke with a forked tongue.

Recently declassified documents from the FBI show Brazoria County is home to an alleged Islamist training compound. Other sources indicate that another training camp is located near Sweeny, known as “Mahmoudberg” – one of 22 owned by the group Muslims of the Americans. I don’t know how much of this is true, but I agree with the sheriff and Governor Rick that it is entirely possible that Islamic jihadists could sneak across our border and kill us. It may have already happened, or it may happen sooner rather than later. In either case, we need to be prepared to meet this threat.