James Harkin: Ariana Grande Is A Symbol Of Everything Islamic Terrorists Hate

I’m really sick of Westerners partially taking blame for Islamic terrorist attacks. I’m not talking about policy. I’m talking about culture. James Harkin wrote a piece for the Daily Mail and mentioned the fact that terrorists didn’t “randomly” choose Ariana Grande’s venue as a target. They knew there’d be a lot of young people there. And on top of that, Ariana Grande encompasses what Islamic terrorists hate. I mean, they hate all of us, but she’s not exactly wearing a hijab on stage. She’s confident, successful and talented. She, in some ways, symbolizes Western lifestyle. We do what we want. We wear what we want. Women don’t have to cover their ankles or wait for male family members to accompany them before walking in public.

According to the purist, medieval interpretation of the Koran favoured by Islamic State, almost everything about Western music, and the Western lifestyle that goes with it, is haram, or forbidden — and so merits a death sentence.

Indeed, one claim of responsibility for Monday’s attack stated: ‘The explosive devices were detonated in the shameless concert arena.’

Those unfortunate enough to live in Islamic State’s caliphate have experience of this doctrine.

That’s right. The Islamic State doesn’t believe in music. Anyone remember how they targeted innocent concertgoers in the Bataclan concert hall in Paris in 2015? And how other Islamic terrorists have targeted nightclubs? This isn’t anything new.

One young Syrian I met when I was reporting in the region, who lived in the group’s de facto capital of Raqqa, told me dolefully his best friend was thrown in jail for wearing a Metallica T-shirt celebrating the U.S. rock band.

 

At the many checkpoints through which Syrians had to pass on their way out of Islamic State territory (back when they were allowed to leave), the militants paid as much attention to the length of men’s beards and contents of their mobile phones as to their politics.

 

Guards, many of them no more than boys, diligently searched mobile phones for any minor infractions of their religious laws: and that included music that ‘insulted’ Allah.

In their sliding scale of punishments, I was told, a single pop song was rewarded by between 30 and 40 lashes with a whip or stick. In another incident in 2015, a group of musicians was reportedly sentenced to 90 lashes each for the ‘crime’ of playing an electronic keyboard.

About three years ago, ISIS released a statement which said, “Songs and music are forbidden in Islam, as they prevent one from the remembrance of God and the Koran, and are a temptation and corruption of the heart.” So what? Are we supposed to take blame for enjoying music now? That’s why I can’t stand those who suggest a little introspection is in order. NO. This isn’t our fault. It’s not our fault they believe music is SINFUL. Want to know what I think is sinful? MURDERING INNOCENT CHILDREN.

I love how Harkin concluded his article.

These Islamist puritans believe our Western way of life is on the verge of collapse and see their job as sending it to hell as quickly as possible.

 

Their war is not so much with our governments as with the values we all live by, which is why they are prepared to slaughter innocent little girls clutching pink balloons on a night out with their mothers at a pop concert.

Exactly. These animals want to take down Western culture. They hate everything about our way of life. There’s absolutely no use in thinking about what we could or could not have said to prevent this. They hate everything about us. It doesn’t matter what we do. They want to end our way life.

Stop with the self-blame. THEY’RE the murderous, religious freaks. There’s no middle ground. Appeasing them is not an option.