A fairly comprehensive look at Islam and its economic impact on the United States.

Map source: CIA files. Click on map to enlarge.

Our map of the Middle East and Northern Africa presents Shia populations only (and Sunni by implication).

How to read the map including implicit population alternatives: Lybia, for example, is 10% Shia by [map] design with an implied Sunni population of near 90%.
Egypt, with 10% or less Shia population, also has a 15% Coptic Christian population with the remaining citizenry being Sunni. Saudi Arabia, with its 10% Shia population, has a huge Sunni majority with almost no Christian influence.

The three shades of green record the heaviest Shia populations. These populations tend to be more radical, believers in Shari Law. Iran is at the top of that list with Iraq a close second, followed by Yemen and then Afghanistan, Pakistan, Syria, [Bahrain, Lebanon, also, though not obvious on the map] and Turkey as a group. . . . . all with significantly large Shia populations.

Sunni/Shia defined and discussed

Sunni populations make up 85% of Muslims, world wide, but have a smaller majority in the region displayed above. Understand that most Muslims do not make a "big deal" of the Sunni/Shia divide. That is much more a non-Muslim issue. The two sects share a common faith and, generally, live in peace with each others. They are brethren without making claim to being "members" of one sect or the other.

But, since we are not Muslim, we non-Muslims see a significant difference between the two groupings. Sunni is "good." They are less prone to radicalization, are less militant with regards to the US and Israel and are more open to negotiations with those whom they consider the opposition. They also tend to be more secular, especially in terms of governance. Know that "secular" in this case does not have the same anti-God, filthy mouthed [often] implications of a "secular humanist" in the West. Sunni populations will, at times, elect their leadership although all leadership in the Muslim world is authoritarian in nature. The more secular of the Sunni populations, ones with a heavy youth influence, can be more open to Western influences - a function of "youth" much more than a function of "Sunni."

The big difference between the two groupings is the regard for Muslim leadership. Shia populations look to Imams for leadership, religious clerics who are seen as sinless in nature and infallible in theory. In Iran, for example, the Ayatollah has considerably more influence over the population than does that country's midget nutcase president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The Ayatollah Khomeini to the Westerner, is more popularly known as Imam Khomeini with the country. While both "sects" (Sunni and Shia) have their imams, the distinctive institution of Shia Islam is the Imamate - a much more exalted position than the Sunni imam, who, with the Sunnis, is primarily a prayer leader. In contrast to Sunni Muslims, who view the caliph only as a temporal leader and who lack a hereditary view of Muslim leadership, Shia Muslims believe the Prophet Muhammad designated Ali to be his successor as Imam. With the Shia, Ali is the first Imam. With the Sunnis, he is the 4th Imam.

Anyway, it all gets complicated at this point. Understand that the Shia traces its leadership back to the Prophet in a continuing line of succession. There are or have been 11 Imams - all religious leaders, none secular or government leaders. The "12th Imam" appears to be mystical designation rather than a particular person.

What is the impact of this brief historicity?

Oil
What does this all mean? First, the Sunni population within Islam is less radical, more inclined to be less militant. The distinction can be critical to our way of life. There is a reasonable chance that the Muslim nations in North Africa remain or become more open to Western influences and less critical of Israel -- provided we have competent leadership extending from or capitol. At this time of unrest and change in the region, the fact that we have Obama as a novice diplomat, one who could not have cared less for foreign affairs before being elected to the Top Job, is of great concern. We have a once in a life-time opportunity to influence the political dynamics of the region. Instead, our leadership sits on its collective hand, hoping that things work out in their political favor. Know this, when we hear the phrase "hope and change," hope, per se, is not the path to change. You can't just sit there, hoping, and expect a beneficial outcome. You actually have to do something and do it effectively.

On the map to the left, the vast majority of know oil fields are located in the Shia controlled nation of Iran. Not good for Westerners. Iran is the #3 exporter of oil, shipping out ,more than 2,000 barrels of oil per day.

But, Saudi Arabia with its Sunni population, is the number one exporter of oil in the world. Lose Saudi oil and the cost of gas at the pump, in this country, would go well over $7 per gallon, perhaps above $10 per gallon. Saudi Arabia ships 7,300 barrels of oil per day (Russia is second, btw, with 7,100 barrels per day exported).

The United States buys most of its oil from Canada (#14 exporter in the world) with 5% or so coming from the Middle East. That 5% is significant, however. We have enough oil reserves in our country, if developed, to forgo Mid Eastern oil altogether, but have historically done nothing to retrieve this oil. The fault for this idiocy? Radicalized Environmentalism. And now, with Obama, this monumental failure has become the order of the day.

Understand that oil prices are traded in American dollars. Our dollars. If world wide supplies take a hit from oil exporting Middle Eastern nations such as Saudi Arabia, Iran and the United Arab Emirates, the cost of gas at the pump will be sorely effected -- far beyond what one would expect.

We have had three years since the "wake up call" in the spring of 2008 and $4.50 per gallon cost. Our current leadership has done nothing but make matters worse, shutting down oil supplies in this country, pushing for expensive green transportation that is decades from offering viable and popular alternatives to Mid East oil.

Never forget, Obama once believed that if we aired up our tires and tuned the engines in our cars, we could completely escape the need for Mid East oil !! Wow. Beyond stupid wrong and indefensibly incompetent. And he is our representative to the world.

Politics and the Shia Influence

Outside Islam, the primary proselyting Muslim influence is Shia. The New York Mosque folks are Shia -- militant and racially pro-Islam in an exclusive sense. Shia Muslims residing in foreign countries, have no intention of melding into the larger, non-Muslim, population. They push for Shira Law and work for the nationalism of Islam in whatever country they reside.

If you know this, you understand why the NY Mosque is such a threat to this country -- and I am talking about the mosque located at 51 Park Avenue, only. Its original name was the Cordoba House. It is a victory mosque and will be seen as such in Muslim nations around the world.

Do our laws allow us to stop its construction? Simply stated, the answer is "no." But law is not the only influence we can use to defeat the location of this mosque. Attention needs to be given to financing , some of which comes from know terrorist groups and is illegal for that reason.

Understand that CAIR is a Shia organization. Obama accepts CAIR while the FBI has red-flagged the institution.

End notes:

Origins of the Sunni/Shia Split in Islam
Origins and Early Development of Shia Islam
Shia Muslims in Iraq
and
Ahlelbayt.com

Here is a list of Shia Muslim organizations in the United States: click on this link.

We Westerners tend to think in absolute, analytical terms. That does not benefit us in our current discussion. We have just talked of peace between the two sects. In Iraq, the Sunni Kurds of the north have often been targets of the more radical Shia population. The divide in Iraq between Sunni and Shia elements is the source of much of that country's discontent. Peace in that country is tentative and unpredictable, or, at least, it has been.


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