When Worlds Collide: Exploring the Ideological and Political Foundations of the Clash of Civilizations

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Rowman & Littlefield, 2007 - 261 pages
In When Worlds Collide, Gene Heck challenges conventional wisdom that the introspective Wahhabi movement or classic Islamic doctrines are the root causes of modern Middle East terrorism. Instead, he persuasively argues that current regional unrest stems directly from internal perceptions of relative political and economic deprivation as well as from ad hoc abortive efforts by tunnel-visioned Western intelligence agencies to co-opt radical regional political-religious elements as opposing forces against other emerging global ideologies deemed more politically dangerous at the time. The greatest opportunity to neutralize these militant fringe element in turn, lies not in the imposition of Anglo-American democracy, but rather through reaching out to moderate allies who are the vast majority within the Islamic world, promoting self-determined governing systems, and creating constructive development programs that ensure a more equitable distribution of wealth to the economically disenfranchised to whom the extremist groups now appeal. Foreign policy analysts and decision makers, as well as scholars of both religion and Middle Eastern politics, will value Heck's detailed analysis.

From inside the book

Contents

Introduction
1
The Concept of Jihad in Historic Context
17
On the Islamic Doctrine of War
33
Getting From There to Here
45
Jihad Do Wahhabis Get a Bad Rap?
65
Eastern Designs and Holy War
83
How Western Jihad Created AlQaeda
95
Is Western Democracy the Answer?
109
Islams Code of Conduct for Engaging Foreign Policy
161
Islams Code of Conduct for Waging Just War
175
Islams Code of Conduct for Pursuing Just Peace
191
The Use of Quranic Verses as Militant Propaganda
205
Notes
213
Bibliography
239
Index
249
About the Author

Is Eastern Capitalism the Answer?
125
Epilogue Reaping the Whirlwind
141

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About the author (2007)

Gene W. Heck is a senior business development economist operating in Saudi Arabia and throughout the Mideast. Prior to joining the private sector, he was a member of the United States Diplomatic Corps, with postings to the U.S. embassies in Saudi Arabia and Jordan. He also serves as adjunct professor of government and history with the University of Maryland.

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