I was just reading this article on how Ayman al-Zawahiri, Al-Qaeda’s second in command, was criticizing Obama for trying to advocate for a Palestinian state that does Israel’s bidding. It is funny that Al Qaeda is trying to slam Obama’s efforts far not going far enough in helping the Palestinian cause. It shows us that appeasement does not work and that extremists will blame us for anything and everything that is wrong in the world, even if we are doing something that they agree with. While some may consider this to be a sign that Obama is succeeding in capturing some Muslim goodwill, the reality is that terrorists are still capitalizing on anti-American sentiment in the region, with groups such as the Taliban, Hezbollah, and Hamas showing no signs of subsiding. They hate us for being a free and democratic superpower, only abandoning our ideals, our allies, and our interests will be enough to appease them.

He also said that Obama’s new nice-guy policy towards the Islamic world was the direct result of the “heavy losses” we have suffered because of them (and other terrorists/insurgents). This was my point from the beginning, Obama is perceived as one who cannot stomach a fight and will surrender and withdraw at the sight of terrorist attacks. Repeated communications from Al Qaeda only further prove this point. It is this very sentiment with regard to the mujihadeens’ fight against the USSR in Afghanistan that made the Taliban and Al Qaeda so appealing to terrorists and would-be terrorists. Beating Goliath is as much a motivator as being beaten by Goliath.

Another interesting thing is that Al Qaeda took the time to criticize Iran for not fighting directly against Israel when they invaded Gaza. Zawahiri called the Iranians sell-outs… which makes it official: even terrorists, our sworn enemies, will stand up to Iran but our president won’t. When Iranian protesters were on the street getting beaten, arrested, and killed as they demanded democracy, Obama said nothing and did nothing. When the abuses became more and more apparent and the international community condemned Iran’s regime nearly unanimously, only then did the president come out and condemn them for their oppressiveness. When Iran publicly expressed their support for international terrorism, the administration again did and said nothing. This is the pattern for the administration and it only enables Iran’s destabilization of the region.

Since Obama will probably do little to defend America from these two threats, Al Qaeda and Iran, I certainly do not mind if Al Qaeda and the Iranian regime go at it… and destroy themselves both in the process.

-AG