# If there is a civil war within Islam, why is only one side actually fighting?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-there-is-a-civil-war-within-islam-why-is-only-one-side-actually-fighting/313752>\
**Category:** Great Debates\
**Created:** [July 23, 2005, 2:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-there-is-a-civil-war-within-islam-why-is-only-one-side-actually-fighting/313752 "2005-07-23T02:23:25Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![jimmmy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/73ab20/32.png) [@jimmmy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jimmmy)\
**Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-there-is-a-civil-war-within-islam-why-is-only-one-side-actually-fighting/313752/21 "2005-07-25T21:18:58Z")

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> [@Unregistered Bull](#):
>
> Haven’t modern/civilized folks (nations) killed lots of civillians, even intentionally, in wars past? Such as in WWII?

I understand your larger point and the larger view of “terrorism” you seem to be taking.

Really though my point is modern/civilized Muslim folk by definition wouldn’t roll a car bomb up on a crowded mosque where the Imam was preaching jihad or throw a knapsack full of explosives on a commuter train because, say, they didn’t like the in power Islamic government’s refusal to lift Shira Law or accept re-approachmanet with the West.

The point being the nature of the “fight” doesn’t lend itself to moderns taking up arms against jihadis

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**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\
**Post date:** [July 25, 2005, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-there-is-a-civil-war-within-islam-why-is-only-one-side-actually-fighting/313752/22 "2005-07-25T21:31:39Z")

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> [@Camus](#):
>
> Presumably, this civil war is only barely being constrained by the kings and otherwise near-tyrannical heads of state in the Middle Eastern countries (and Pakistan) who keep any dissent or non-orthodox thought as tightly controlled as they can.

I found this fairly amusing. [Wahhabism](http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/saudi/analyses/wahhabism.html) is being largely funded by the House of Saud, in a somewhat perverse deal where they kowtow to the fundamentalists and help support the mosques and schools where many of the terrorists are “made” in an effort to keep from being condemned for their own corruption. This is a bit paradoxical as it is, to some extent, controlling dissent within the Kingdom but in effect exporting it.

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**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\
**Post date:** [July 26, 2005, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-there-is-a-civil-war-within-islam-why-is-only-one-side-actually-fighting/313752/23 "2005-07-26T21:41:38Z")

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[http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20050726/ts\_csm/oattitudes;\_ylt=Alh2YlFwZpWQFsfJHDQtltWs0NUE;\_ylu=X3oDMTA3b2NibDltBHNlYwM3MTY-](http://news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20050726/ts_csm/oattitudes;_ylt=Alh2YlFwZpWQFsfJHDQtltWs0NUE;_ylu=X3oDMTA3b2NibDltBHNlYwM3MTY-)

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