The Tennessean
July 18 2009
‘Secular Islam’ is a contradiction in terms
By Vijay Kumar ¢ July 18, 2009
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I have read with interest the Rev. Kenneth Locke’s article, "Trip to
Turkey illuminates Islam,” The Tennessean, July 13. The good reverend
chose to tell one feel-good side of the story while ignoring enough to
fill an encyclopedia. Here is just a glimpse of "the rest of the
story."
Turkey is secular in spite of Islam, not because of it. Turkey’s
powerful military is what keeps it secular.
"Secular Islam” is an irreconcilable contradiction in terms.
The modern secular Turkish Republic was founded by the great Mustafa
Kemal Ataturk (Great Turk), who despised everything Arabic and
Islamic. He wanted Turkey to be Western, secular, European and
democratic. It was Ataturk who conceived of gender equality and
secularism for Turkey, in direct contravention to its Islamic leaders.
It was Ataturk who issued the order to change the Turkish language
alphabet from Arabic to Latin, in order to distance his people from
Arabic culture as much as possible. He banned traditional
Turkish/Arabic attire and encouraged his fellow countrymen and women
to wear Western clothing.
¢ Locke’s article studiously avoids Islamic Turkish atrocities in
Cyprus and Greece, and the destruction of Orthodox Christian states in
Eastern Europe.
¢ Why doesn’t Locke ask Christian Armenians, Serbs, Greeks and
Hungarians, or Muslim Kurds, about Islamic Turkish "tolerance?"
¢ If Islam is so tolerant of other religions, why is it that 99
percent of Turkey’s population is still Muslim, even long after
sweeping political and social secularization?
¢ Why does Turkey fail to acknowledge the Armenian holocaust?
¢ What happened to Greek, Armenian and Russian minorities in
Turkey?
¢ Does Locke know how Constantinople became Istanbul? Has he done
even a minimal amount of homework concerning how Islamic Turks
destroyed the entire Orthodox Christian church in the Near East?
Turkey wants to be secular now because it benefits its people. It
wants full membership in the European Union so that it can export
surplus Turkish population to Europe and the Americas.
If the Rev. Locke wants to know about true Islam in action, I strongly
recommend that he visit Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Somalia or Saudi
Arabia, then come back and write a balanced and comprehensive report.
The hard fact that Locke attempts to waltz around is that Islam cannot
assimilate into American society for the very simple reason that the
Quran is the antithesis of the U.S. Constitution.
The U.S. Constitution is of the people, by the people and for the
people. Americans delegate power to the government to manage their
affairs. In stark contrast, the Quran is considered by its adherents
to be the literal world of Allah, the Arabic God, and the final
arbiter of the law and the affairs of man. Muslims are slaves of
Allah, whereas America was founded as a haven and harbor for free and
independent people.
The Quran is simply incompatible with the Constitution; therefore, the
assimilation of Islam into American society, in the long run, is
highly unlikely if not categorically impossible.
I don’t know why Locke wanted to spend his vacation time in his hotel
room watching American sports or daytime shows while visiting a
foreign land, but if he is going to assay to write about Islam, I
suggest he get out more.
Vijay Kumar, a native of India, is a longtime resident of
Nashville. He is in telecommunications sales.
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