What is the Russian Islamic terrorists' beef?

There’s a micro picture and a macro picture.

The micro picture is that the Dagestan and Chechnyan muslims see themselves as a cohesive and identifiable group within their part of Russia. They don’t want to be part of the huge country, but want to have their own independent nation – separate from Russia – where they can live their pseudo-Islamic lifestyle and not be subject to Putin and the rest of Russian society.

In this way they are no different from many of the SSRs that split off from Russia in the 1990s—think of Tadjikistan, Georgia, Ukraine, or several more, that essentially went their own way after the breakup of the Soviet Union. The problem for Chechnya or Dagestan, however, is that those area have ALWAYS been part of Russia, and are not severable as easily as Ukraine was.

The macro picture is that this is another set of Islam-motivated people who, at the end, are trying to expand moslem hegemony over the lands where they live. In this way, they are no different from the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt, the Taliban in Afghanistan, and Al Qaeda all over the place. The “big picture” is that a major moslem goal around the world is to reestablish the Calpihate and make the entire world be under Moslem religion power.

Seen in that context, this is just another area of the world where nihilistic Moslems are taking small steps to reach a religio-imperialistic goal.

Look at both levels to really understand their motivations.

While I don’t disagree with @elbanditoroso‘s analysis, there is the added dimension that the Kremlin has taken oppressive measures in Chechnya for many years. And the Chechen response has been unusually violent, including the Beslan school massacre.

It has been brutal on both sides.

@elbanditoroso
They are also no different from the colonies that wanted their independence from the British Empire, or the southern colonies that wanted to secede from the “union”.

@zenvelo – I agree, but I would observe that much (not all) of the Kremlin’s oppression has been in direct response to Chechnyan violence. Reactive, not initiatory.

I don’t know all the ins and outs, but I know my mom thinks Russia should cut them lose. Let go of Chechnya. I have a hard time thinking about these terrorist acts in Russia as a part of a disagreement between Chechnya and Russia. In my mind it is Muslim fanatic terrorists wanting to control the world like Hitler wanted to. Is Russia not letting people freely practice their religion? I haven’t heard anything like that. Not in many many years, not since communism. The bombs in Russia are the same as the Bostom Marathon in my mind. Doesn’t matter that it happened outside of my country.

I often wonder why we held onto the south in the days of the civil war, if this is similar maybe my mom is right. I am glad we still have FL, it is my state I most prefer to live in. Is Chesnya tropical? Have oil? Have some sort of fantastic mineral reserve? Very fertile soil? Is there a good reason to hold onto it? I wonder how the majority of Chechnyans feel? What do they want?

What is their beef? @zenvelo says they don’t want to be subject to Putin and Russia in general. What exactly? Are they going to break away and become a horrific country where women are practically slaves? I think the world needs to stand up to that once and for all. I’m tired of it.

@elbanditoroso Thanks for an excellent opening to the discussion. Great answer.

@zenvelo I think @elbanditoroso is right, though. Those measures have been in response to violence, not unprovoked.

@ragingloli I think we could trace a lot of ways that the Caucasus rebellion is different from the American Revolution and Southern secessionist movement. In fact, there are worlds of difference between those two American revolutions, as well. So it could hardly be that they are both just like the Caucasus rebellion.

@JLeslie Amazing coincidence. Both you and I agree with Putin on that.

@ETpro What did Putin say? I barely watch the news in the last couple of years. It was bringing me down.

@JLeslie Putin said, “We will remain confident, tough and consistent in our fight to destroy the terrorists completely.”

Islamism is not a religion. It’s a fascist political ideology. Islamist want to remove all other political systems in order to install a caliphate-type theocracy. Every non-Islamist is their enemy by definition.

@mattbrowne Obviously true, since the past few months have seen Islamists kill far more Muslims than people of any other faith.

@ETpro – In their view, Muslims who don’t agree with them are Infidels. Kill them wherever you find them. Yes, Muslims suffer most by the spread of Islamism.