Synopsis Many have sought to explain why the situation changed so dramatically. The Pipes-Lewis School, which is so popular in America today, regards Islam's current hostile relationship with the west as a consequence of Islam being fundamentally negative towards secular, democratic and pluralistic values. But even if Islam rejects such values, surely the relationship between the United States and conservative Arab countries, as well as Islamic dictators in many countries, have traditionally been much warmer than with most Muslim secular states. Tying terrorism with Islam's particular belief system is a tenuous proposition.