The U.S. should pay attention to Southeast Asia-and particularlyIndonesia-as the second front in the war on terrorism. Thesecountries represent the best hope for fostering a "moderate" or"civilized" Islam that recognizes the true peaceful nature of thatreligion, in opposition to the radical, terrorist-inspiring Islampreached by Saudi financed Wahhabism.
The Indonesia that President Barack Obama knew as a child, with its culture of pluralism and constitutional protections for religious freedom, provides an important model of religious diversity. TheObama Administration should act quickly to support that tradition,and it can begin by sharply curtailing the use of rhetoric thatcarelessly describes diverse regions based on the faith of dominantgroups.