David Bukay
Encyclopedia
David Bukay is a Professor of Middle East Studies at the University of Haifa
. He is the author of Islamic Fundamentalism and the Arab Political Culture. He specializes in the Arab-Israeli conflict; inter-Arab relations and the Palestinian question; international terrorism
and fundamental Islam
; theoretical issues and political applications in the Middle-East; Asad's foreign policy towards Israel
and Lebanon
; the culture approach to understanding the Middle-East.
thesis of the Clash of Civilisations. He argues that there is a wide gap between what he categorises as "Western political culture" and "the Arab-Islamic political culture". Bukay also holds controversial opinions in his own right. In a speech to a conference in Jerusalem in 2003, he argued that "the aggressiveness and fanaticism of Islamic fundamentalism is an existentially lethal phenomenon". He went on to claim that "Islam and democracy are totally incompatible, and are mutually inconclusive. The same applies to Modernity, which is perceived as a threat to Islamic civilization", and that "Leaders and policy-makers in the West refuse to grasp that the Islamic and Palestinian terrorism embodies the SARS decease: Suicide and Ruin Syndrome of democratic society. Until it is understood that this struggle is the war between the Son of Light against the Sons of Darkness, that they represent the invasion of the Huns, in order to destroy modern culture - the world will continue to face an existential more growing threat".
In his book Arab-Islamic Political Culture, Bukay writes: "This is a culture where rumors are an integral part of social activity, and they quickly become absolute truth that cannot be challenged. It has to do with exaggerations, flights of fancy, and especially, in a society that believes in conspiracies, a society wherein every date is important, that remembers everything and forgives nothing. This is a society wherein the lie is an essential component of behavior patterns, and lying is endorsed by religious sages".
According to an article in Haaretz
, Bukay also wrote in the same book: “There is no condemnation, no regret, no problem of conscience among Arabs and Muslims, anywhere, in any social stratum, of any social position”. The article further alleges that he distributed a document to his students stating that “when an Arab or a Muslim opens his remarks with the expression wallahi, he is apparently intending to lie”.
University of Haifa
The University of Haifa is a university in Haifa, Israel.The University of Haifa was founded in 1963 by Haifa mayor Abba Hushi, to operate under the academic auspices of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem....
. He is the author of Islamic Fundamentalism and the Arab Political Culture. He specializes in the Arab-Israeli conflict; inter-Arab relations and the Palestinian question; international terrorism
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
and fundamental Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
; theoretical issues and political applications in the Middle-East; Asad's foreign policy towards Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
and Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
; the culture approach to understanding the Middle-East.
Views
Bukay is a supporter of the controversial HuntingtonSamuel P. Huntington
Samuel Phillips Huntington was an influential American political scientist who wrote highly-regarded books in a half-dozen sub-fields of political science, starting in 1957...
thesis of the Clash of Civilisations. He argues that there is a wide gap between what he categorises as "Western political culture" and "the Arab-Islamic political culture". Bukay also holds controversial opinions in his own right. In a speech to a conference in Jerusalem in 2003, he argued that "the aggressiveness and fanaticism of Islamic fundamentalism is an existentially lethal phenomenon". He went on to claim that "Islam and democracy are totally incompatible, and are mutually inconclusive. The same applies to Modernity, which is perceived as a threat to Islamic civilization", and that "Leaders and policy-makers in the West refuse to grasp that the Islamic and Palestinian terrorism embodies the SARS decease: Suicide and Ruin Syndrome of democratic society. Until it is understood that this struggle is the war between the Son of Light against the Sons of Darkness, that they represent the invasion of the Huns, in order to destroy modern culture - the world will continue to face an existential more growing threat".
In his book Arab-Islamic Political Culture, Bukay writes: "This is a culture where rumors are an integral part of social activity, and they quickly become absolute truth that cannot be challenged. It has to do with exaggerations, flights of fancy, and especially, in a society that believes in conspiracies, a society wherein every date is important, that remembers everything and forgives nothing. This is a society wherein the lie is an essential component of behavior patterns, and lying is endorsed by religious sages".
According to an article in Haaretz
Haaretz
Haaretz is Israel's oldest daily newspaper. It was founded in 1918 and is now published in both Hebrew and English in Berliner format. The English edition is published and sold together with the International Herald Tribune. Both Hebrew and English editions can be read on the Internet...
, Bukay also wrote in the same book: “There is no condemnation, no regret, no problem of conscience among Arabs and Muslims, anywhere, in any social stratum, of any social position”. The article further alleges that he distributed a document to his students stating that “when an Arab or a Muslim opens his remarks with the expression wallahi, he is apparently intending to lie”.
Books
- Total Terrorism in the Name of Allah: The Emergence of the New Islamic Fundamentalists. Shaarei-Tikva: Ariel Center for Policy Research, 2002.
- Arab-Islamic Political Culture. Shaarei-Tikva: Center for Policy Research, 2003.
- Ed.: Muhammad's Monsters: A Comprehensive Guide to Radical Islam for Western Audiences. Green Forest, Ar.: Balfour Books, 2004.
- Arafat, the Palestinian National Movement and Israel: The Politics of Masks and Paradox. New York: Mellen Press, 2005.
- "From Muhammed to Bin Laden: Religious and ideological sources of the homicide bombers phenomenon". New Burnswick, New Jersey: Transaction Publishers, 2008.
Articles
- Zionists, Post-Zionists and Pseudo-Zionists: The Media Leftist Complex and the al-Aqsa Intifadah, in: S. Sharan (ed.). Israel and the Post-Zionists. Brighton: Sussex Academic Press, 2003.
- The New Islamic Anarchistic Groups, in: D. Bukay. Muhammad’s Monsters.