Jihadism is not nihilism

In the partisan battle over describing the Islamic State, Democrats have fastened on a philosophical term from 19th century European intellectual history.

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Marty Kaplan

November 20, 2015

In the partisan battle over describing the Islamic State, Democrats have fastened on a philosophical term from 19^th century European intellectual history. They’re being too clever by half.

“Extremist nihilism” is what Barack Obama has “>labeled it a “kind of barbarism and nihilism.” John Kerry “>rooted in the Koran – the most apocalyptic, ultra-conservative, literalist reading imaginable, yet the Koran nevertheless. But it’s disingenuous of Democrats to root it in Nietzsche.

Marty Kaplan is the Norman Lear professor of entertainment, media and society at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. Reach him at martyk@jewishjournal.com.