Gathering storm

We’re at a pivotal point in human history.

Our forces for change, knowledge and progress have run head-on into the unyielding anchor which would keep us trapped, stagnantly, in our dark beginnings. Western civilization and Islam are beginning an inevitable clash as the West finally draws its line in the sand.

This far and no farther.

Up to this point, the West has played the part of the rational adult, making allowances for the primitive tendencies and actions of Islamic culture. We thought their tribal allegiances quaint, their subjugation of women a private matter, their acceptance of terrorism an aberration and their utter lack of contribution to human evolution a matter that would be remedied as the culture matured. We watched as the Middle East grew tick-fat through the oil beneath its feet rather than through its contribution to global society.

We shrugged off honor killings, beheadings and suicide bombings worldwide, all the while being cautioned by our leaders and media that Islam is a “religion of peace.” We gave full weight to a religious culture mired in the dark ages, and in so doing devalued our own achievements. We have given much more than an inch and seen Islam demand the world be remade to its liking.

The West has seen an explosion of immigration from Islamic countries over the last 25 years. Most European countries have a sizeable Islamic population which, instead of blending in the melting pot of their new home, have more accurately been biding their time and marshalling their forces. It turns out the influx was less an immigration and more an invasion. Now Islam demands that the West, as a culture, adhere to its religious tenets. Islam demands a separate judicial process (sharia) for its members, so their enclave doesn’t have to become part of Western Culture, and freedom from criticism in the public eye.

Muslims this week have been belatedly marching in the streets in protest of some Danish cartoons, which were published in September. The 12 cartoons, featuring various bland depictions of Islamic religious figures Allah and Mohammed, have subsequently been picked up and published by non-mainstream newspapers throughout Europe and are plentiful on the internet. Some sites have even taken the depiction of Allah and Mohammed a step (or three) farther. The West appears to be waking to the realization that indulgence, as in children, more often creates a monster than a well-adjusted child.

The Muslims say depicting their religious figures is against Islam. They characterize it as hate speech that newspapers are printing these things which violate Islam.

Apparently in their haste to escape the melting pot, Muslims missed the bit about the West not being Islamic in nature. We publish pictures of whoever we wish, without regard to race, creed or color. We allow public commentary on every subject. That’s the baseline definition of a free society. Using threats and intimidation to try to force silence on a subject is not only antithetical to a free society, it’s bound to be counterproductive for the would-be censor.

Freedom of expression is key to our sharing of information in our continual quest for improvement and advancement. There is no room for growth or improvement in a society willingly mired in the dark ages. To slow the clash of cultures, Islam MUST modernize and realize the world does not run according to its whims.

If it does not, I fear a catastrophic backlash by the West.