The death of the Jordanian pilot Lt. Moath al-Kasasbeh, held by ISIL and executed by being torched while still alive is brutality of the worst imaginable kind. In my wildest dreams I cannot possibly imagine that this execution could possibly be justified under orthodox Islamic teachings. ISIL or ISIS if you prefer is, in my opinion, so far away from orthodox teaching as to be an abomination of Muslim beliefs. I do not forget the beheading of several journalists recently including two citizens of Japan. I don’t really know how to grieve for these victims except to say forthrightly that their deaths must not be allowed to bring down the essential ideas that open and free journalism is required for an open and free society.
Jordan has reacted to the death of its airman by executing two Islamic terrorists it had in custody, one of them a failed female suicide bomber. My sense of that reaction is to question if that act is a reasonable solution. I simply don’t know if I can understand it. I certainly believe that ISIS/ISIL must somehow be stopped and eradicated. That word, eradicate, by the way, means torn up by the roots. I have to think that that organization is fundamentally evil, so eradication does seem like the desirable solution. I think that there are many Muslims who would agree given the hate ISIL/ISIS perpetuates.
Of course it is not just ISIL/ISIS that creates the effluence of hate. In the Islamic world we cannot forget the activities of the Taliban, Al-Qaeda, Al-Qaeda in the Arab Peninsula, Boko Haram and surely many more organizations that bend the teachings of Mohammed to their own interpretation. Lest we forget and seem to tar this Eastern religion with a brush of our choosing, we ought to remember that in our own history in the name of Christ, many innocents have been terrorized and murdered. All of this needs to STOP. Mankind is in danger.
Closer to home and partly because of the influence of Al-Qaeda especially as well as that of ISIS/ISIL more recently, there is an abiding concern, indeed perhaps a fear of our own citizens who have been persuaded to adopt terrorist ways and means. Youthful citizens are known to have traveled from Britain, France, Canada, and the United States to undergo training with these terrorist mongers. It is believed, with good reason, that many of these, if they haven’t already died in battle under the influence of this evil are planning to return home to carry out attacks on innocents at home. Witness the recent events involving the attack on Charlie Hebdo and at the Jewish deli in Paris. This is the advent of home-grown terror at the behest of radical terrorist organizations who have at best a twisted view of what their avowed religion requires of them.
We see therefore, on the home-front, efforts to combat terrorist activities in all possible ways. It is not always successful because as recently seen and experienced with the death of two soldiers in Canada, the intentions of individuals are not very easily learned or tracked. Still, many of those who have left for terrorist training and then have returned tracking is occurring. That is a good thing because there is thus an increased opportunity to prevent an independent terrorist action. Knowing where they are is important. Putting a stop to them before they can act is even more important.
My novel, The Chechen’s Revenge, involves a story whereby a Chechen Muslim brings his terrorist sentiments to Canada to hatch a plot intended to bring death, destruction and harm to the economy of Toronto. Like the real terrorists of ISIL/ISIS, Marek Kafirov, has a warped sense of what Islam is all about. He is motivated only by hate as instructed by his mentors who completely misinterpret the teachings. The plot is to blow up trains and train stations of the Go Train system. The Chechen terrorist anticipates massive quantities of death. You’ll need to read the book to find out what happens, but you should know he is tracked by specialists in anti-terrorism. Chief Investigator Sean-Guy O’Dwyer-Lariviere and his team at the Canadian Anti-terrorism Service are dedicated to prevention of such plots.
I continue to work on a second novel, which I have titled A Prairie Vendetta. This will be a story of home-grown terrorists set in the Canadian prairie province of Saskatchewan. A band of discouraged and disconnected Metis are further marginalized by a charismatic but evil biker gang enforcer who believes he has received the legacy left by Metis rebellion leader Louis Riel to right perceived wrongs committed by the Canadian federal government. At this point it is still a work in progress, yet quite a way from being finished. When it will be done I cannot yet say. I’ll keep you in touch with my progress as time goes by.
In the meantime, thanks for your support. Good reading friends.
Regards, Ron Stotyn, PhD 
I am a retired college professor and former broadcast journalist. I live in Vermont with my wife. I write near the shores of Lake Champlain. As an author I cast characters in the task of anti-terrorism efforts. The setting for my stories is Canada. My first novel is The Chechen's Revenge, a story of Sean-Guy O'Dwyer-Lariviere and his team of Canadian Anti-terrorism Service agents on the trail of a rebel Chechen, determined to create havoc and death on Toronto's Go Train system. The Chechen's Revenge is now in print and can be ordered online at https://mkt.com/northof49publishing.
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