A lot of people seem to make the comparisons between ISIS, or ISIL, and the Nazis in Germany or, to a lesser extent, the Stalin era of the Soviet Union. Those two chapters are generally considered, at least by westerners, as the most tragic chapters in history, when the world witnessed what extremism in action can do.
Yes, the Islamic State is an extremist group, and right now, they are in control of much of Syria and Iraq. In fact, they are looking even like even bigger extremists than the Taliban in Afghanistan, because these guys seem to make a point of making videos of their cruelty in order to document it better. I do not know how much killing the Taliban was outright responsible for, although they surely did their share. But it seems to pale in comparison to the Islamic State. And while the Taliban reminded people of the Third Reich when they forced non-Muslims in the country to wear yellow identifying markers, the Islamic State seems intent on drawing even more comparisons to Nazism, as they just had a major book burning over the weekend in Mosul.
I am not advocating a war by any stretch, and I think comparisons to Nazis are more than a little trumped up. But damn! Do these guys have to make a point of displaying their idiocy and intolerance to the extent that they do? How many hundreds, if not thousands, have they killed? Now, they are burning books, destroying libraries? It's like they are making a point of trying to draw comparisons to the Nazis, even though they are nowhere near as powerful as Germany was, and never will be. This is just a tragedy!
Further comparisons to Nazis are not entirely out of the question, either! These guys sure seem to be trying hard.
However, once again, it is important to keep in mind that the Nazis never had the restrictions on their power placed upon them to the extent that the Islamic State has on them right now. Germany was one of the major powers of the world at the time, as was Stalin's Soviet Union. The area controlled by the Islamic State is mostly desert, and they would hardly qualify as a real state, let alone one of the most powerful nations in the world. They are rich and powerful enough to control those regions of Syria and Iraq now under their control, but that does not mean that they actually constitute a serious threat to the entire world, or even to the entire region of the Mideast.
Indeed, it is a tragedy, what is going on in Iraq. They certainly deserve to be removed from power. Let us see what the proposed Arab military alliance that Egypt is pining for may become, and what they may do. Let us see if the Islamic State does not unravel on it's own, for that matter. These are desperate moves, after all.
Yet, despite their brutality and essentially fascist nature, I do not believe that this is a situation that calls for yet more of a war effort on the part of the United States. Things have consistently grown worse in Iraq since we got involved there, one way or the other. Getting even more involved now would likely have dire consequences attached.
ISIS Burns 8000 Rare Books and Manuscripts in Mosul. By Riyadh Mohammed, February 24, 2015:
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