Iain Hawkes’s Reviews > Infidel > Status Update
Iain Hawkes
is on page 281 of 353
Also noting this here for later (and it's an idea I don't think I've come across before), the idea that the end of the Cold War basically unfroze ethnic tensions across the Global South. There's no longer a great struggle between capitalism and communism? Okay, great, now we can go back to hating each other based on tribal/ethnic identity. Those aren't the words used of course, but it makes sense in the context.
— Mar 07, 2026 03:15AM
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Iain’s Previous Updates
Iain Hawkes
is on page 281 of 353
This is a harrowing read. It's not just Ayaan's personal experiences, it's striking just how suppressive Islam is of human potential. I know you could make the same argument for religion in general, but in this specific context, of the late 20th and early 21st centuries, let's just say there are certain trends. Also the ghettoization of Dutch society and what others have called the "tyranny of guilt."
— Mar 07, 2026 03:14AM
Iain Hawkes
is on page 119 of 353
It's good reading. It's arguably preaching to the choir (for me), but aside from Ayaan's own life, there's pertinent universal observations, that a retreat to a religion and tribalism happens when government structures break down.
— Feb 24, 2026 06:51PM
Iain Hawkes
is on page 65 of 353
"Kenyans may have come from apes, yes. But not Muslims."
Saving that quote for later, because in 60 pages of describing the casual racism, anti-semitism, and Christianphobia of the Islamic world (or at least East Africa and the Middle East), even that managed to catch me off-guard. I've always admired Ayaan Hirsi Ali, but the events of her childhood up to this point, well, thank God (hah)I live in a secular country.
— Feb 21, 2026 03:49AM
Saving that quote for later, because in 60 pages of describing the casual racism, anti-semitism, and Christianphobia of the Islamic world (or at least East Africa and the Middle East), even that managed to catch me off-guard. I've always admired Ayaan Hirsi Ali, but the events of her childhood up to this point, well, thank God (hah)I live in a secular country.
