Perhaps the slumbering bear is starting to awaken?
We have seen the uproar of the Muslims over the Mohammed Cartoons in Europe. We've see the resulting parades / riots with Muslims carrying signs threatening violence to those that "insult Islam". We've see the reports of the extremists imams on their Friday sermons exhorting their members to jihad and that infidels are to be killed. We've seen the honor killings of Muslim family members whose only crime was to "shame" the honor of the family. We've seen the murder of Theo Van Gogh. We've seen Muslims attacking those ideals of the West that they believe to be wrong, as they conflict with Koranic teachings.
Finally, a tipping point may have been reached in the land where tolerance, pacifism, and multiculturalism are all kings - From the International Herald Tribune:
BRUSSELS Europe appears to be crossing an invisible line regarding its Muslim minorities: More people in the political mainstream are arguing that Islam cannot be reconciled with European values.
"You saw what happened with the pope," said Patrick Goeman, 43, the owner of Raga, a funky wine bar in central Antwerp, half an hour outside Brussels. "He said Islam is an aggressive religion. And the next day they kill a nun somewhere and make his point.
From across the pond, it seems that event after event after event is slowly starting to add up - that there are conflict points and that if not careful, those values that Europeans hold dear may be lost. Often times, these values of free speech, of tolerace, of religious freedom can hardly be discussed intelligently as they are so ingrained in the West, we can hardly think of not having them. Hey, we want to be nice, right?
But it is starting to look like the Europeans are no longer as willing as they were before in turning the other cheek.
Goeman is hardly an extremist. In fact, he organized a protest last week in which 20 bars and restaurants closed on the night when a far-right party with an anti-Muslim message held a rally nearby.
His worry is shared by centrists across Europe disturbed that any criticism of Islam or Muslim immigration provokes threats of violence.
And who can blame them? Dead words from a dead Western king quoted by the current pope sends the Muslim world into a tizzy? Even the Australians, God love 'em all, are starting to say " Be here - Be Australian. Want your culture to be Muslim - go where the Muslim culture is dominant".
For years, those who raised their voices were mostly on the far right. Now those normally seen as moderates - ordinary people as well as politicians - are asking whether once unquestioned values of tolerance and multiculturalism should have limits.
And who can blame them? Ideals and people can only be bent so far before a pushback occurs. In this case, society can only accept so much that is diametrically opposed to its fundamental core ideals before it either has to defend those ideals, or give up and snap.
Continue reading "The bill has come due....the free ride is over" »
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