The Myth of Lone Wolf Attacks
When we give a name to a dynamic which we generally do not understand; if our apperception is wrong; our hypothesis becomes flawed. It is a misnomer, really - "Lone Wolf Attacks". There really is no supporting documentation when examining the history and jurisprudence of Islam. Sure, the individual combatant could sally forth on his horse in front of fellow combatants in a show of bravado. But at the end of the day, there is nothing "lone" regarding these attacks.
The famous primatologist Robert Yerkes once famously stated, "One chimpanzee is no chimpanzee" - which is to say that the primates identities and social well-being are deeply tied into and integrated into the greater community. Alone - that chimpanzee was adrift. But with the other chimps? Life had meaning.
Islam is not a lot different regarding social configuration. The locus of control always resides and is maintained within the strength of the Ummah. Qur'anic text bears this out. There are amir... Grand Ayatollah... etc. Within the timeline of Islam where past is always present and past is always future, these small details are inconsequential. The whole is always greater than the one.
I find no inspiration from the words of the Lawmaker who forbade more than he allowed.
Amr: commands. Nahy: prohibitions.
I tire of such things. Islam - at the heated core - is that which Muslims find themselves dealing with every day of their lives. Rational logic does not exist with the Taboo-Maker, Muhammad. But it does exist within the words and example of the Way Maker, Jesus Christ.
And there is with certainty, a lack of inspiration regarding Jihad. The doctrine was developed and morphed based on situational awareness and the abrogations and modifications made along the way for a nascent growing, and threatening power. Bottom line? What kills is not divine. Only that which offers life is worthy of any merit.
Jihad's conditioned responses should logically be subservient to the higher order of human liberty. And every time we suffer an attack in the West, it is an attack on freedom. Jihad brings out the animal which devours the human. Nor is there a fair fight, in the manner in which the famous boxer Jack Dempsey took down his opponents. He had respect for the opponent and not disdain. Jihad is the animal that ambushes with intense levels of blood lust.
Regarding Jihad - it is an obligation for the whole Ummah. But the one individual who commits an act of Jihad releases the greater community from the obligation. There are ample texts in support of the aforementioned.
Do you remember 9/11? Swofford never forgets. You think of the Twin Towers. But I think of the tens of millions of Muslims across the globe who rejoiced, danced in the streets, and passed out sweets when the Towers fell. Each 9/11 combatant acted on the behalf of the many. They knew it; and they felt the rush in their own blood. Bastards.
Today - the narrative is that of the Lone Wolf. It is convenient, really. And it is a political whitewash. We are told: Forget about that prick! What a loser! He was a petty thief... going through a divorce... lost his job! But then again - there is the meddlesome tale of the chimpanzees.
The physical manifestation of the "one" is just that. It is a puzzle piece taken from a bigger puzzle. The puzzle also contains the paranormal. There are things which I cannot discuss. And that intricate puzzle involves how Jihad is not for just the one, but for the many. The jihadi who plowed down Bourbon Street with bomb-making goodies in his truck is just the one chimpanzee who also traveled to Beaumont and stopped off in Vidor, Texas to purchase an ice chest before his attack. But when he attacked, it was not for himself. It was for the greater community. In his mind, he did it for everyone.
Over the years I have developed strong shunting mechanisms with regard to viewing images related to Jihad attacks. This mechanism failed me on 7 October. What I saw was absolutely unbelievable. In the past, the things I viewed were so that the quill could dip in the ink of empathy and human compassion for the victims. But the ink on the quill is now that of an understanding which I wish to bring to the readership regarding what drives Jihad... what drives the punishing nature of the slave against the free man. Until our policies on U.S. soil begin to target the very behaviors and conduct which would seek to harm our own unique social compact - we have not done enough.
I do this... for Madad.
swoffordwrites@gmail.com
@tammyswofford1
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