SALMAN RUSHDIE

The attemped murder of Salman Rusdie proves again the enduring strength of mass frustration. His book resulted in the Fatwa of Ayatollah Khomeiny. It is a rather  boring read. It is ironic to observe that all the criticism came from a creed that is mostly uninterested in any literature other than the obliged Koran. Furthermore, the now infamous Satanic Verses make for painful reading and do not ad or substract much regarding the prophet's general perception. The small additions are low in calories. Christ, Jefferson or Louis XVI  received their shares of Hineinintpretierung without creating bonfires.

Sometimes the generally controled mind of the ordinary Muslim appears to be deconnected from reality, unable to accept some enlightement. It hoards resentment. Even in the more advanced Muslim societies, made for CNN or soccer, there remains always a form of religious totalitarism. Any form of tolerance is linked to an ulterior motive. 

The Talibans are the extreme version of this mindset but their adherence to a mothballed set of rules is also shared by many, from Indonesia to Morocco. The disguise of a political/econnomic leadership, that wants to pass for "modern", should not hide perverse shortcomings regarding governance, human rights or distribution of wealth. Islam can be manupulated into a refuge for the overwhelming mass of alienated individuals. Their Friday prayers are spontaneous and not just a parenthesis for the "influencers" who follow the ritual and pocket the wordly goods.

Rushdie and a few others laid bare the inconveniences of this religious canon which was never able to adjust, correct or reinvent itself. Islam stands because it refuses any form of interpretation. It might disguise itself but it remains basically monolythic.

Believers are mostly genuine. The generosity shown during Ramadan is exemplary. The tabous remain, unfortunately. Sunnis and Shia stand in opposition like Catholics and Protestants before. It is time to realize that outdated theological arguments are out of place in the algoritm handbook of today. This does not come easy. Ulster shows how hard it is to battle prejudice.

Rushdie paid the price for defending, in other words, the pertinence of Foucault's pendulum. The Muslims should grieve less and remember more. They might read Amin Maalouf. After all Amazon still supplies where the bookshops close.

Rushdie will be back, with his irony intact...