Trex, I am afraid it is not that simple, another thought just occurred to me. A logical extension of my previous thought, really. That is the problem with possessing capacity for logical, rational thought, sometimes one sees the demons that may not be there.
I wonder if we are not being subject to a gigantic hoax, a very clever con game. Suppose a Muslim businessman, Mr. Ahmed (a fictitious name) pays the ransom of 375, 000 US $, or 450,000 Canadian dollars.
What will be the general reaction? It may be neutral, some people may even compliment Mr. Ahmed, may praise him for saving a human life. But surely nobody will condemn him for rescuing that woman.
However, forget about the fake kidnapping and look at what just happened here. A Muslim business man donated (not paid the ransom, but donated) 450,000 $ to Taliban, with the whole world watching, right out in the open.
Nobody condemned him for giving money to Taliban, some people even praised him for doing so.
Now, suppose there was no smoke and mirror kidnapping, and Mr. Ahmed had donated 450,000 $ to Taliban. What would have happened? All hell would have broken lose. He would have been condemned universally, government would have investigated him for possible connection with Taliban, or with Osama bin Laden. It is quite possible he may have been charged under some law for donating the money to Taliban.
Instead of that, nobody condemns him here, on the contrary, Mr. Ahmed is a hero to many people, for saving the life of a woman.
So in effect Mr. Ahmed has donated money to Taliban right in the open and had people praise him for doing so.
So I really wonder if we are the victims of a gigantic con game, a brilliant swindle, a very clever hoax.
Anyway, it would be interesting to see if a Muslim steps forward to pay the ransom (or perhaps more accurately, donate the money to Taliban).
