aside from giving muslim apostates a voice, warraq also conveyed his idea that ex-muslims should take the lead in criticising islam and islamism. as former muslims, they have experienced islam from within, and know it better than critics from outside, and perhaps can speak about it with more authority. to support this, warraq compared 1930s bolshevism and 1990s islamism, and modern-day ex-muslims to ex-communists from the 1930s, referencing arthur koestler's statement to his formerly fellow communists: "you hate our cassandra cries and resent us as allies, but when all is said, we ex-communists are the only people on your side who know what it's all about."