Not just communism and Islam, but fascism, too

Turkish-born Necla Kelek is a German sociologist and author of Journey to Heaven: My Fight with the Guardians of Islam. She explains the problem:

I see a parallel between socialism or communism and Islam. Both are collectivist ideologies. The individual has no rights of his own. The individual is part of a larger whole and is obliged to do everything to make the community flourish. The system supports the group, not the individual.

In the case of Islam, the relevant group is the Umma, and the group decides in very dictatorial ways — the need to do so proves that individuals do not follow the rules of the Umma voluntarily in all cases, as is often claimed. I very strongly fear that the dictatorship of the group might win. This type of ideology, based on seventh-century pre-modern traditions, is spreading rapidly in many Muslim countries. Some people claim that Islam is only a religious faith. But that's only part of the story. The other facet is Islam as an illiberal political ideology. When we talk about Islam these days, what is at stake is not freedom of faith, but individual rights. A collectivist ideology is about to take over, together with an oligopoly of power. I'm worried about this.

A similar theme is touched upon here:

(Thanks to reader Dean. No comments during break.)