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February 12, 2009
Exclusive: You Cannot Kill an Ideology
Deepak Chopra – the most prolific of New Age self-help spiritual gurus – appears to have expanded his mandate to offer guidance in the angst-ridden realm of international affairs.
His résumé speaks for itself – no political, economic, or military training, experience or prior erudition. He has, however, written a series of guaranteed self-help solutions for all our modern-day spiritual needs that compete with American tax laws in awards for repetition and transparent agendas.
Nonetheless, Chopra recently stated on CNN, with accustomed certainty, that “you can kill a terrorist but cannot kill an ideology.” Never mind the past 60 years of American foreign policy – Chopra was born in Delhi, so he understands the Third World. Along with all things at all times.
Of course, history is replete with examples of conclusive wars defeating blatant evil, of ideologies waning and disappearing when the price of fanaticism becomes too high.
Most recently, the fundamentalist ideology of al Qaeda has been resoundingly defeated in Iraq by the principles of self-government, freedom and secularism. Certainly Hitler's Nazism and Mussolini's Fascism got whacked during the Second World War. And what of Pol Pot's fanatical collectivism in Cambodia, or the terror-communism of the Baader Meinhof Gang in Germany and the Red Brigades in Italy? None of these once-powerful ideologies are around today in any sort of viable form. And now the Arab world is giving short-thrift to bin-Ladenism, condemned as it is to ignonimity in Waziristan's endless caves.
Deepak Chopra's pronouncements ring further hollow given that his "peace at all costs" mantra is most widely consumed in the United States, where freedom has been wrought at enormous cost (military, human and financial). His ideas would not be so welcome (or profitable) in Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iran or Pakistan, countries and societies that he professes to know so well, ideologies he professes such tolerance towards.
Thus, Chopra joins the ranks of American successes who show boundless deference towards societies that reject them, yet castigate their own country and protector that provides unrivaled freedom of expression.
Indeed, Chopra is a committed member of the "war is never a solution" gang, who see America's heavy military fist behind every confrontation, at the seat of every radical cause, the wellspring of every extremist's grievance. To him, there are no irredeemable terrorists, no non-negotiable evils – only freedom fighters and disrespected refugees. Fighting these forces just makes things worse. After all, you cannot kill an ideology.
Deepak's philosophy has its appeal: decide that war is bad and ideology (or anything, for that matter) is never evil, and adapt easily to what everyone wants to hear. Especially, make us all feel good. He's like the legal Marijuana Man, wafting mellifluously in on CNN's transmissions and dismissing history's harsh lessons with his modern-day opiates.
Hollywood – here we come.
FamilySecurityMatters.org Contributing Editor Leslie Sacks is an art dealer and gallerist in Los Angeles. Feedback: editorialdirector@familysecuritymatters.org.
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