Tolerance’s Fatal Flaw: Unmasking the Myth of Moderate Islamism and the West’s Self-Destruction"

AUGUST 4, 2025

By sarah Belzer, Editor / The American Rant

The narrative peddled by Western elites—that Islamism is a fringe threat confined to a “tiny minority” of extremists—has become a dangerous delusion. We are told, endlessly, that “not all Muslims are extremists.” That only a tiny fraction of Muslims believe in imposing Sharia law. That the overwhelming majority are peaceful and simply wish to coexist. That America’s commitment to religious freedom protects them—as it should. Politicians, media elites, and frightened citizens repeat this mantra, but it misses the point entirely: Islamism, even in its moderate form, fuels a peril that doesn’t need a majority. The West, blinded by moral relativism, cowardice, and guilt, is complicit in its own undoing.

Unmasking Islamism: Religion or Totalitarian Ideology?

At its heart, the peril of Islamism stems from its clever disguise: It presents itself as a sacred religion deserving tolerance, yet operates as a ruthless political movement hungry for power. Islam, the faith, is a spiritual path followed by billions, emphasizing devotion, charity, and community—akin to non-political Christianity or Judaism. But Islamism twists this into a blueprint for domination, demanding Sharia govern all life, from criminal justice to economics, under an Islamic state that brooks no dissent. Even moderate Islamism legitimizes this by softening jihadist rhetoric, paving the way for radical enforcement. Born in the 20th century amid colonial backlash, it was shaped by Hassan al-Banna’s Muslim Brotherhood (founded 1928), Ruhollah Khomeini’s 1979 theocratic revolution, and Sayyid Qutb’s Milestones (1964), which calls for a “vanguard” to overthrow “jahiliyyah” (ignorant, non-Sharia) societies. Abul A’la Maududi, founder of Jamaat-e-Islami, framed Islam as a “revolutionary ideology” for state control, borrowing from Leninism to rally with divine mandate. On X, users like @Nervana_1 clarify, “Islam is a religion, while Islamism is a political ideology,” urging a ban on the latter without targeting the former. It is a doctrine of conquest, one that calls explicitly for the subjugation or extermination of all non-believers—Jews, Christians, secular Westerners, even “insufficient” Muslims. It divides the world into two camps: Dar al-Islam (the house of Islam) and Dar al-Harb (the house of war). Guess which one you’re in. By cloaking itself in faith, Islamism evades scrutiny, demanding “religious freedom” while plotting to dismantle the constitutions that protect it. It’s not piety; it’s power in prayer robes.

The Minority Myth: Why Numbers Don’t Matter

It’s a common refrain: “Not all Muslims are extremists.” True, but irrelevant. History shows transformative ideologies thrive on committed cadres, not majorities. The Bolsheviks, a sliver of Russia’s population, birthed the Soviet Union; Nazis, never a majority, unleashed European terror. Islamism follows suit with a dedicated vanguard exploiting democratic freedoms. The Iranian Revolution of 1979 turned a monarchy into a theocracy under Khomeini, executing thousands and exporting revolution via Hezbollah. Today, Taliban-controlled Afghanistan and Hamas-governed Gaza enforce Sharia as state policy, suppressing women, minorities, and free thought. This ideological drive manifests in actions where numbers pale before intent. A Dangerous Minority Is Still a Danger. It only takes a few to destroy many. Nineteen men leveled the Twin Towers on 9/11. A handful of radicalized brothers massacred journalists at Charlie Hebdo. A small terror cell slaughtered concertgoers at the Bataclan. A few thousand Hamas terrorists breached a border on October 7 and raped, tortured, and burned their way across southern Israel. History doesn’t require a majority. It requires an idea, an enemy, and a will to act. The rest is inertia. And Islamism—a political ideology masquerading as religious devotion—has all three. X commentators warn, “Islamism is a political ideology masquerading as religion, with millions sympathizing with its terrorist sects,” per @theworldofmomus, amplifying the danger beyond extremists.

Religious Freedom as a Trojan Horse

The First Amendment and European human rights charters enshrine religious liberty, but they were never intended to protect imported ideologies that reject the Constitution, demand special legal treatment, or seek to impose a parallel legal system on U.S. soil. Yet that is precisely what’s happening in enclaves across Europe—and increasingly, here in the United States. In the UK, 38 Sharia councils operate parallel to civil courts, handling divorces and inheritance, often harming women. In the US, over a dozen states ban Sharia arbitration, recognizing the threat to secular justice. France and Austria close Muslim Brotherhood-linked mosques, targeting “political Islam.” In Dearborn, Michigan, mosques now broadcast the call to prayer over loudspeakers five times a day. This isn’t quaint multiculturalism. It’s a deliberate public assertion of religious dominance. Church bells chime; they do not proclaim theology. The Adhan declares, in Arabic, that there is no god but Allah and Muhammad is his messenger. That is doctrinal supremacy. And if you object? You’re labeled a bigot. Meanwhile, women inside Islamist households—even in America—are often not free at all. They are pressured or forced to cover, to obey, to submit. Try to leave, and you’re disowned. Try to speak, and you’re silenced. Try to convert, and you’re dead. This isn’t religious freedom. It’s domestic tyranny disguised as piety.

The Enablers: Relativism, Cowardice, and Guilt

Why is this tolerated? Because the West is lost in a fog of moral relativism, cowardice, and guilt. Relativism says no culture is better than another, even when one treats women like property and stones rape victims. Cowardice fears being called Islamophobic more than it fears real threats to life, liberty, and law. Guilt over colonial history has paralyzed Europe into accepting its own cultural suicide. And so our laws, customs, and principles are eroded—not by an invading army, but by small, organized, radical minorities who understand our weakness better than we do. They know we will tolerate the intolerant. They know we will protect those who openly vow to destroy us. They know we will die by our own unwillingness to say no.

The Misguided Defense

Counterarguments claim “Islamophobia” inflates threats, portraying Muslims as bigotry victims—hate crimes are real and wrong, but this conflates critique with racism, shielding extremism. In Rotherham, fear of racism allowed grooming gangs to abuse 1,400 girls from 1997-2013. On X, @DanBurmawy warns of cultural erosion, while ex-Muslims like @theworldofmomus decry, “Islamism is a curse.” Apologists deny scriptural roots, but reformist Muslims call for character over imposition. This guilt-driven silence lets the ideology spread.

Recent Realities: The Encroachment Accelerates

This inaction fuels a growing encroachment, seen today in… As of 2025, trends worsen. In Europe, Islamist parties gain footholds, advocating Sharia elements. In the US, campus protests blend anti-Semitism with jihad rhetoric, echoing global calls—e.g., Columbia University’s 2025 encampments. Immigration without assimilation swells communities where radical views fester; higher birth rates and chain migration amplify this. In the Sahel, violent extremism displaces millions, previewing unchecked Islamism’s chaos. EU terrorism reports (2024) show Islamist attacks remain primary, while FBI watchlists prioritize Islamist plots.

Drawing the Line: A Call to Action

This is about defending Western civilization from an ideology that does not believe in peaceful coexistence. Islamic supremacism must be named, exposed, and expelled from our civic institutions. That means: prosecuting incitement, threats, and material support for jihad; banning foreign funding of mosques and Islamic institutions; rejecting all forms of Sharia arbitration within U.S. legal jurisdiction; ending the double standard that excuses Islamist hate while punishing all other forms of bigotry; reasserting Western values—freedom, equality, sovereignty—as non-negotiable. Treat Islamist groups like the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign agents, deny tax exemptions to Sharia-promoting entities, and prosecute “religious” incitement as sedition. The truth is, tolerance must have boundaries, or it becomes complicity.

Final Warning

We do not need to wait until it is too late. We do not need to become Europe. We do not need to appease, accommodate, or pretend. We need to wake up. Because the threat is not theoretical. It is here. It is speaking loudly. It is organized. And it is counting on our silence. The illusion of moderation lulls us into complacency. We need to wake up before enclaves become caliphates, freedoms relics, and the West fades. Freedom will not survive if we remain unwilling to defend it.