After applying his signature to the Declaration of Independence, Benjamin Harrison is thought to have turned to fellow signer Elbridge Gerry and said, “I shall have a great advantage over you, Mr. Gerry, when we are all hung for what we are now doing. From the size and weight of my body I shall die in a few minutes, but from the lightness of your body you will dance in the air an hour or two before you are dead.”
The comment drew a brief smile from Gerry, but only brief. The signers of the Declaration knew very well that they were offering up their lives for independence. The courage of our Founding Fathers can only be matched, perhaps, by their wisdom.
Islam needs leaders like our Founding Fathers. Thursday, President Obama gave a speech in Cairo to the Muslim world. He traveled to the region and spoke despite massive criticism from home and abroad. During his speech he offered to expand exchange programs, and increase scholarships while encouraging more Americans to study in Muslim communities. He promised Muslim students internships in America and investments in on-line learning for teachers and children. He offered new funds for technological development, and science envoys to promote development.
My many searches of news sites throughout the world shows that the speech was generally well received. President Obama was a success (though no one should be surprised that the Iranians reacted by reinforcing their hatred for America). Several news sources including Bloomberg, Voice of America, The LA Times, and Al Jezeera, and other news sources that some, perhaps many, were positive yet hesitant. They felt a need to sort of wait and see. They want concrete next steps.
The concrete steps however, are for the Muslim world to make. Our president traveled to their region and made significant offers of friendship. Now it is up to Muslim leaders to come forward, accept our President’s offers and extend their own offers of peace to the people of the United States.
That step will take courage. Courage on the level of the U.S. Founders. The Muslim leader will have to stand up to the terrorists and the extremists the way our Founders stood up to the British (see Anwar Sadat). American culture is not for everyone and I don’t fault the Muslim states for not wanting to be like us, or any other western culture. But perhaps, if the right leaders emerge from Islam, they’ll find their own version of a government to establish Justice, ensure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty.
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