Having praised Steyn in the immediately preceding post, came across this article, which seems germane: the Islamisation of Europe is not some far-in-the-future possibility; it's happening right now....
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Darkness Falls [Mark Steyn]
Those of us who think something's afoot in Europe have been much mocked by the complaceniks, including a few who should know better (such as Max Boot). Tony Blankley has a response to that in today's Washington Times. I like this aside:
My contribution to the oeuvre of radical Islamist alarmism was my 2005 book, "The West's Last Chance," which, by the way, predicted the terrorist attack in London, Muslim riots in Paris, worldwide violent Muslim reaction to blasphemous Western artistic representations and the emergence of growing acquiescence to Shariah law in the West.Yes, it did — and quite remarkably accurately. He should have made a zillion bucks and retired off the film rights, but it never pays to be right too early. Five years on, after the pre-emptive surrender of Yale University and the Metropolitan Museum of Art, even the American Association of University Professors is beginning to sound oddly Blankley-esque in its contempt:
“We do not negotiate with terrorists. We just accede to their anticipated demands.”Christopher Caldwell also weighs in, apropos the attempt to kill Kurt Westergaard . . . and, in a very explicit sense, intellectual freedom. Few industries congratulate themselves on their "courage" and "bravery" more incessantly than artists and journalists — at least when it comes to plays about a gay Jesus, or joining the all-star singalong for Rock Against Bush. But it's easy to be provocative with people who can't be provoked. Faced with an opportunity to demonstrate real courage, the arts and the media shrivel up like a bunch of dying pansies. As I wrote in my book:
If it were just terrorists bombing buildings and public transit, it would be easier; even the feeblest Eurowimp jurisdiction is obliged to act when the street is piled with corpses. But there's an old technique well understood by the smarter bullies. If you want to break a man, don't attack him head on, don't brutalize him; pain and torture can awaken a stubborn resistance in all but the weakest. But just make him slightly uncomfortable, disrupt his life at the margin, and he'll look for the easiest path to re-normalization. There are fellows rampaging through the streets because of some cartoons? Why, surely the most painless solution would be if we all agreed not to publish such cartoons.We Eurabia types aren't predicting a Muslim conquest on a set date in 2025 but a remorseless, incremental surrender. And, actually, we're not predicting it, because it's already well under way.
