With respect to Islam, I think it’s true that there are many radicalized Muslims who take the ‘long’ view in terms of their long-term strategy toward infiltrating the West, and also societies like India and Russia. My sense, though, is that these strategies proceed on the basis of redundant, plodding effort rather than shrewd strategizing. Immigration, for example, cannot make up for the winning of native hearts and minds – and that just isn’t happening enough (except in parts of southeast Asia) for either the United States, Europe, India, South/Central America or China to be converting to Islam any time soon.

I do not mean to suggest that radical Islam is in any way toothless right now, it’s just that they’re in the position of really needing to bring firepower to bear on all this (e.g., Iranian nukes), because nobody is taking them seriously on an ideological level.

Thanks for your comments, Vince. They’re great.

Also … this is an interesting quote: “One of the big problems radical Islam is facing here in the West is that is just isn’t sexy the way communism still is to some people. You still see kids with Che T-shirts … but you sure as hell don’t see anybody with a bin Laden T-shirt.”

That may be true to a certain extent. However, I’m reminded of a book I read a couple years ago called “Islam’s Black Slaves” by Ronald Segal, who was a big anti-apartheid activist. It chronicles Islam’s long, and still ongoing, history of enslaving black people in Africa. In the book, Segal talks about how disturbed he is when he sees black people in world take Islamic names like Muhammad or Ayesha — especially when the practice is still going on in Nigeria and Rwanda.

Anyway, my point is … people may not be wearing bin Laden shirts, but Islamists have found their niche through political correctness, progressive sensibilities, and disturbingly in some parts of the African-American society. Communist documents have also shown concerted efforts to portray Muslims as villains in Western society to create an environment conducive to terrorist attacks.

In the days leading up to the release of that film, I feared a giant sucker punch where the Russians were just trying to get to the Skull alone because the Americans wouldn’t help them because they were too wrapped up in their communist paranoia … or something dumb like that.

I was surprised to see the Soviets were not only portrayed as ruthless, but wanted to use the skull for one purpose: complete collective mind control … perfect.

Lucas also deserves credit for the awesome Young Indy episode “Adventures in the Secret Service”, where Indy falls in with a group of Bolsheviks who pester him with their glorious communist rhetoric. Indy smacks them down by telling them of the importance of the individual and capitalism. Great episode.

As for whether jihadism is becoming sexy, here’s someone who’s afraid it is:
http://www.skatingonstilts.com/skating-on-stilts/2010/07/will-jihad-jump-the-shark.html

The Russians on the other hand, have never stopped using “swallows” as recent events illustrate.

In addition, state sponsored bad guys like the Russians or Chinese… are more interesting given the many layers and depth of a nation state or society. Islamic terrorism is almost one dimensional by comparison. Islamic terrorists are more likely now to be unsophisticated Madrassa educated suicide bombers…and perhaps a bored housewife… rather than complex good guys/bad guys that were depicted in a movie like “The Little Drummer Girl.”

Actually, the producer of this film is dealing with radical Islamic terrorism in one of his next productions.

I’m glad you and Anton mention CRYSTAL SKULL, because I don’t think Lucas and Spielberg got enough credit for that. That film proved, I think beyond any doubt, that those guys are open-minded, and not completely off the deep end in James Cameron-land. I thought Cate Blanchett’s turn as a Soviet agent was really fun in that film, and actually the actor who played her chief henchman had been genuine Spetsnaz in real life.

Here’s what I think is going on: slowly, the commies are replacing the Nazis as the go-to villains in prestige espionage productions. We’re simply so far removed from World War II that it’s expensive and irrelevant to continue telling stories involving the Nazis. Let’s face it, the Nazis were around for only 12 years … and went kaputt 75 years ago! I’m not even sure the younger generation today even knows who the Nazis were. The Soviet commies have only been gone since ‘91 … but we still have the communist Chinese, the North Koreans – and a lingering sense that here in the West communism is still fashionable. So I think things are gradually changing in Hollywood on this front.

One of the big problems radical Islam is facing here in the West is that is just isn’t sexy the way communism still is to some people. You still see kids with Che T-shirts … but you sure as hell don’t see anybody with a bin Laden T-shirt.