Hi,
Kelly sez:
>
> I explained last fall that I'd had plopped in my lap a load
> of books and
> documents about AlQ and the Taliban, stuff that was written
> in the 80s.
> Remember, part of what we do has to do with research on
> terrorism. If you
> read this material--with a big ol' salt lick nearby--it's
> quite clear that
> the Taliban don't have visions of world domination. They are
> ultra-rightwing nationalists, but I don't see them as
> anywhere close to
> wanting to subsume any and all in their path.
On the other hand, a number of relatively cautious scholars of new religious movements who abhor phrases like "religious fanatics" have studied AlQ and the Taliban for many years and reached exactly the opposite conclusions that you articulate, mostly centered around the idea of the re-establishing of a regional pan-Islamic Caliphate.
They don't want world domination (artful overstatement) but they do seem to want to topple governments in the region they deem "un-Islamic."
I like the work of Jean Rosenfeld in this regard, as well as Karen Armstrong, Khaled Aabu El Fadl, and Catherine Wessinger. We do have a collection of these scholars making this point at:
http://www.publiceye.org/frontpage/911/wahhabism.html
But I agree that none of this justifies bombing Afghanistan.
-Chip "please don't flame me" Berlet