inspiredbyactualevents.com

Sect #1 has for centuries been everybody’s whipping boy.  The Egyptians, the Babylonians, the Romans, the Christians, and the Nazis (but I repeat myself a bit), among others, have spent centuries trying to break up the the cult of Abraham to little avail. No wonder they carry a grudge. In its endless war with sect #2, sect #1 uses emotional blackmail of the most expensive kind to secure the support of the West.  Since they cannot bomb the Germans, their last big-league tormentors, they use this support to bomb their neighbors, mostly from sect #2.

Sect #2 has prospered over the centuries, conquering an empire that dwarfed Alexander’s. The Shia and Sunni varieties of the sect squabbled early over which descendents of Muhammad should be in charge.  This tussle - now, boys, settle down...your caliph will be home soon - disrupted the sect for a long time and undermined the good work of their own scholars who could not understand such stupidity. They even permitted infidels to run roughshod over their lands several times rather than heal the schism.  At some relatively recent time...and I must look this up...adherents began to support the maniacal Shia side of the house, who seem to have cornered a brilliant strategy.  This strategy (clearly discovered in a fit of Shia-like enthusiasm and partially borrowed from sect #1) is simple--since we can’t win an argument, let us scare everyone to death.  And use bombs.  And airliners.

The importance of the current conflict will be lost to history; most of its sad reruns echo centuries of conflict.  Decent people are ready to give up on these troublesome sects.  Of course, Shakespeare said it best: A pox on both your houses.

Let us beseech them to let a few of their children live.  Some may grow up to be open-minded, civilized atheists.

R3W