The Bitter Draught

Since the Norwegian bombing and shooting spree, many writers have commented on several aspects of this bombing. Some have remarked that we should use this incident as a reminder that domestic terrorism is just as a prevalent threat as “Islamic” terrorism. Others have pointed out how initially it was believed that Al-Qaeda perpetrated the attacks. Glenn Greenwald and others like him noted society's tendency to immediately think of “Islamic” terrorism when the word “terrorism” comes to mind. Still others have remarked the usage of the words “extremism” and “terrorism”, and how in this case it's extremism, not terrorism. Others have said vice versa: it is indeed still terrorism.

A lot has been said about this devastating tragedy, and the man behind it, but I haven't read much on the anti-Muslim sentiment and multiculturalism hate that drove this man to commit such a heinous deed. Indeed this NYT article describes how Anders Behring Breivik “was deeply influenced by a small group of American bloggers and writers who have warned for years about the threat from Islam, lacing his 1,500 page manifesto with quotations from them, as well as copying multiple passages from the tract of the Unabomber.” This passage highlights the most striking facet of this incident: the feeling the perpetrators of 9/11 had towards America is the same motivating force behind Breivik's actions. That feeling is hate. 9/11 and the Norwegian incident are by no means the same in origin, magnitude, or religious motivation. I'm not saying they are the same. I'm pointing out that both events do, however, share one thing in common: deep-rooted hate. Some might say that the Muslim world has a right to hate us because America has always treated them poorly with no respect. No matter how true or untrue, America did not deserve what it got on 9/11, and in the end hate is hate, no matter what justification someone comes up with. Sadness still feels like sadness, happiness like happiness, and anger like anger. The hate that drove the airplanes into the World Trade Center is the same shade as the hate that planted the bombs in the Norwegian government buildings and pulled the trigger that unleashed bullets on many innocent children. Hate comes with a cost, and we Americans have drank that bitter draught. We paid for that hate with lives, but we're blind to see that our own hate is also costing lives. Our hate is also killing. Our hate is ruining us, and the country. We hate just as much, if not more, than the terrorists hated us on 9/11, and probably still do. What good is this hate, especially when we target innocent Muslims who are being punished daily for their belief in a certain ideology? They didn't even do anything. What are we teaching other people? Well, it seems to me that we now know. We're teaching people like Breivik that it's okay to hate and feed our hatred to others through blogs, conversations, the shadows of our lives, and etc.

Some people have blamed these anti-Muslim bloggers for the tragedy in Norway, but I believe Breivik already had this hate instilled in him prior him reading these kind of blogs, he wanted an echo chamber. These anti-Muslim bloggers fanned the flame though, and showed Breivik there are others that hate just as much as he does, and that Muslims are indeed something to be hated, and worthy of their hatred. Another awful thing about hate is that it spawns more hate, more lives, and more pain. It's usually innocent people who must suffer the consequences of hate and intolerance. The bloggers might not have directly caused the bombings and shooting, but their hands are not entirely clean either. Then again, the hate that your grandmother, your barber, your dry cleaner, or your teacher has for their Muslim neighbor also makes their hands dirty. The hate that provoked Breivik was enflamed by these bloggers, and made it seem okay to hate Muslims, perhaps even making it seem that it was okay to bomb and shoot innocent civilians for this hate-- to get attention to his cause. In the end, I'm not blaming the bloggers for Breivik's actions, he alone must be responsible for his own actions. What I am sure of though is that hate and intolerance against Muslims (which has been normalized in American society), or anyone else for that matter is dangerous and costly, and if we want to avoid events like the one in Norway and 9/11, we must teach and show our peers that it's not okay to hate. We must try to love, and treat others like we would want to be treated ourselves.