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		"Already we witness the political posturing         of India, the Serbs and the Israelis."
Additionally, Professor Hadar says the proponents of such myths are finding increasing support from a varied group of foreign governments including Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Turkey, Pa­kistan, India and the ok~ Communist re­gimes in Central Asia. The motivation by such governments to take such positions and serve as the proponents of Pipes and Miller is because most of these govern­ments are in need of a new enemy to preserve eroding public support, while others such as Israel and India are con­cerned about “their weakening strategic value to America, now that the superpow­ers have made their peace.”(2l) Already we witness the political posturing of India, the Serbs and the Israelis. India presents itself as a “bul­wark against Islamic Pakistan’s de­signs.”(22) The Serbs see their “ethnic cleansing” policies as “part of an effort to contain the spread of radical Islam to Europe’s center.”(23) Even the Israelis have changed their tune. Previous Pales­tinian nationalism sponsored by the Sovi­ets is now “Islamic fundamentalism.”(24) As a result, we have seen the con­stant theme of representing Islam as a threat to world peace in the media now that the former Soviet Union no longer fills that role, and we are now witnessing the latest evolution of Muslim stereotypes that started with the terms “camel jock­eys” in the 1960, “oil sheikhs” in the 1970s and the current terms of “terrorist” and “Islamic Fundamentalists” which are so frequently used interchangeably.(25) In order to counter such imagery in the Western media, it should not be forgotten that even while there has been violence supposedly in the name of Islam, the reality is that the more dogmatic elements in Muslim societies and the acts of the extremist tend to receive all the publicity while the majority of the Mus­lims have to live with the conse­quences.(26) Even if the World Trade Center bombing is proven to have been commit­ted by a “Muslim,” the act does not fall within the scope of Islam and it is an injustice to accuse Muslims and Islam for a crime committed by an individual or a group of individuals for whatever per­sonal or partisan reasons they may have had. In sum, as pointed out by Egyptian Islamist writer, Fahmi Hwaydi, the fol­lowing points must be taken into account: 1. Extremist ideology affects all societies and faiths. It exists among Christians, Jews, and Buddhists as well as among Muslims and in “developed” societies as well as “undeveloped” ones, yet the tendency has been to search for some unique Islamic cause for it. 2. Socio-economic factors play a far larger role in spawning religious fanaticism than ideological ones. Wher­ever political repression and economic deprivation prevent the hope for a better life, the seeds of rebellion and political violence take root. While Christianity provides a moral reference point for many enlightened democracies, it also served as the justifi­cation for the Inquisition. Similarly, Islam has nurtured a great and tolerant civilization and is now being used to justify terror and murder. The real threat, however, does not lie in simple labelling or misportrayal. Despite statements to the contrary by officials in various governments, the aforementioned mythologies of an “Is­lam International” that have grown out of “fanciful conjecture, outrageous simpli­fication of complex political and theo­logical issues and timeworn Western ste­reotypes,”(27) perpetuated by the media are now penetrating the most sensitive sectors of Western society. Already, television evangelists in the United States who had long predicted that Russia would trigger the end of time by starting a war in the Middle East are now turning to countries like Iraq to find a new Anti-Christ.(28) On the political front, experts warn that in the same way that the perception of danger from Soviet Communism helped to define U.S. foreign policy for more than four decades, the fear of Islam could embroil Islam (and its allies) in a second cold war.(29) Unless Muslims actively attempt to counteract this demonization, Muslims will be increasingly drawn into conflicts with the West for which there is no cause or reason.  Endnotes I.    Edward Said, Coverinc’ Islam, quoted from back cover. Dr. Said’s book is an excellent referenceforfurther research on the topic of this article. 2.    Editorial, “The West and Islam: conflict or Cooperation,” Dialogue, April 1993, p.2. 3.    “WABIL Condemns the Bombing of the World Trade Center in New York,USA,” Ahl ut-B avt, Issue No. 9 Shawwal 1413 H April 1993, CL, p.1.  4.    Rami G. Kouri, “Wife Beating Blacks, Drunken Indians, and One Billion Bombers,” Mideast Mirror, March 11, 1993, p.19.  5-6.   Ibid.  7.    Reprinted in The.Ltn1~, vol. 26, no. 1. February-March, 1993, p3.  8.    Quoted in Mideast Mirror, March 19, 1993, p.18.  9.    Shaw J. Dallal, “Islam and the U.S. National Interest,” The Link, Vol. 26, No. 1, February- March, 1993, p. 2.   10.  Dilnawaz A. Siddiqui. “Mass Media Analysis:               Formulating an Islamic Perspective,” The American Journal of Islamic Social Sciences, Vol. 8, No. 3, 1991, p. 474.  11.  Daniel Pipes, “Fundamentalist Muslims,” EQ.r1g~ff.~k,~. Vol. 64, No. 5. Summer 1986, p.    958.  12.  Judith Miller, “The Challenge of Radical Islam,” Foreign Affairs, Spring 1993, p. 51. 13-16. Ibid 17.  Id., Dallal, p.6. 18-19.    Id.  20.  Leon Hadar, “What Green Peril?,” Foreign Affairs, Spring 1993, p. 29.  21-24.    Ibid.  25.  David Briggs, “Mainstream Religions Loath to Accept Islam, Leaders Say,” ThhitzgIf7,~n Post, May 1, 1993, p. Gb.  26.  Id., Editorial, Dialogue, p.i.  27.  Greg Noakes, “After NYC Bombing, US. Muslims Feel Threatened, Not Threatening,” Th~ Washington Revort on Middle East Affairs, Aprill May 1993, p. 71. 28.  Id., D. Briggs, p. Gb.  29.   Id., L. Hadar, p. 27.