In this brilliant look at the rise of political Islam, the
distinguished political scientist and anthropologist Mahmood
Mamdani brings his expertise and insight to bear on a question many
Americans have been asking since 9/11: how did this happen?
Mamdani dispels the idea of "good" (secular, westernized) and "bad"
(premodern, fanatical) Muslims, pointing out that these judgments
refer to political rather than cultural or religious identities.
The presumption that there are "good" Muslims readily available to
be split off from "bad" Muslims masks a failure to make a political
analysis of our times. This book argues that political Islam
emerged as the result of a modern encounter with Western power, and
that the terrorist movement at the center of Islamist politics is
an even more recent phenomenon, one that followed America's embrace
of proxy war after its defeat in Vietnam. Mamdani writes with great
insight about the Reagan years, showing America's embrace of the
highly ideological politics of "good" against "evil." Identifying
militant nationalist governments as Soviet proxies in countries
such as Nicaragua and Afghanistan, the Reagan administration
readily backed terrorist movements, hailing them as the "moral
equivalents" of America's Founding Fathers. The era of proxy wars
has come to an end with the invasion of Iraq. And there, as in
Vietnam, America will need to recognize that it is not fighting
terrorism but nationalism, a battle that cannot be won by
occupation.
Good Muslim, Bad Muslim is a provocative and important book that
will profoundly change our understanding both of Islamist politics
and the way America is perceived in the world today.
"From the Hardcoveredition.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
