The great political scientist, Samuel Huntington, died on Christmas eve. I actually found out about this just yesterday while reading this. I've been an admirer of his works, filling up my bookshelves with as much of his books as I can get my hands on (latest tally: 2).
I remember when I was in one of my PolSci tutorials at the ANU and we were discussing his infamous article. Being the only Muslim, it was quite an effort convincing the class that I was not out to render them and their kind extinct. I noted how in Islam, just like in every other religion, different people interpret their teachings differently. In the case of Islam, different Muslims interpret the Quran and the Sunnah differently. Thus, there are those who find in the holy sources words of hate and terror, words that demand the blood of non-believers and the conquering of foreign lands. Yet at the same time, there are also people who find words of peace and acceptance, and words of love and charity. At the end of the day (or at the end of days, of course), the Almighty will be the ultimate judge of our rights and wrongs.
Back to Mr. Huntington. This man leaves a great legacy behind, not just in the magnanimity of his idea and discourse, but also inadvertently the arguments, counterarguments and more discourses that came about as a result. It is saddening to think that no more of his works are to be published and debated. Hopefully this generation and generations to come will look for wisdom in his works and find ways to avoid anymore "clashes".
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