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Every action of Al-Qaeda is part of Osama's cynical plan to become the Caliph of Islam. He is persuading young Muslim men to kill themselves in order to further his own climb to absolute power over all Muslims, and then (he hopes) over the whole world. These young Muslim men, Osama says, are 'martyrs, but every Muslim knows that martyrs are killed by the enemy, not self-murdered in order to kill innocents. Because they believe Osama's teachings, these young men cut themselves off from a lifetime of service to God, a lifetime of fathering children who would grow up to serve God. Instead they die in service of Osama's ambition. They are, in effect, suffering the same fate as the eunuchs who served as loyal slaves in the court of the Sultan in Istanbul. Cut off from the hope of having families of their own, their lives were spent in the service of Sultans who claimed to be religious leaders but were really nothing more than vicious exploiters and oppressors of the Muslim

Orson Scott Card#1069

PowerLeadershipReligionManipulation

About this quote

What does it mean?
The author argues that a religious leader manipulates followers into suicide attacks for personal power, framing them as martyrs incorrectly.
In plain terms
A leader uses religion to get young men to kill themselves for his power.
What can you take from it?
Be wary of leaders who demand self-sacrifice for power.

Where it applies

  • political analysis
  • religious critique
  • leadership study

Putting it to work

  • analyze motives
  • question leaders
  • protect communities

Questions to consider

  • How do you spot manipulation?
  • What is true sacrifice?

Another view

Motives of leaders are complex.

More from Orson Scott Card

  1. We care about moral issues, nobility, decency, happiness, goodness-the issues that matter in the real world, but which can only be addressed, in their purity, …

    Permalink to quote #1068
  2. I've lived too long with pain. I won't know who I am without it. -Ender's Game

    Permalink to quote #1070
  3. If I read it in the newspapers, it's probably wrong. If I read it in the major news magazines, it's hopelessly wrong.

    Permalink to quote #1067

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