Open your eyes and wake up

[Tigermike 3,048]

Needing to wake up, West just closes its eyes

February 26, 2006

BY MARK STEYN SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST

In five years' time, how many Jews will be living in France? Two years ago, a 23-year-old Paris disc jockey called Sebastien Selam was heading off to work from his parents' apartment when he was jumped in the parking garage by his Muslim neighbor Adel. Selam's throat was slit twice, to the point of near-decapitation; his face was ripped off with a fork; and his eyes were gouged out. Adel climbed the stairs of the apartment house dripping blood and yelling, "I have killed my Jew. I will go to heaven."

Is that an gripping story? You'd think so. Particularly when, in the same city, on the same night, a Jewish woman was brutally murdered in the presence of her daughter by another Muslim. You've got the making of a mini-trend there, and the media love trends.

Yet no major French newspaper carried the story.

This month, there was another murder. Ilan Halimi, also 23, also Jewish, was found by a railway track outside Paris with burns and knife wounds all over his body. He died en route to the hospital, having been held prisoner, hooded and naked, and brutally tortured for almost three weeks by a gang that had demanded half a million dollars from his family. Can you take a wild guess at the particular identity of the gang? During the ransom phone calls, his uncle reported that they were made to listen to Ilan's screams as he was being burned while his torturers read out verses from the Quran.

This time around, the French media did carry the story, yet every public official insisted there was no anti-Jewish element. Just one of those things. Coulda happened to anyone. And, if the gang did seem inordinately fixated on, ah, Jews, it was just because, as one police detective put it, ''Jews equal money.'' In London, the Observer couldn't even bring itself to pursue that particular angle. Its report of the murder managed to avoid any mention of the unfortunate Halimi's, um, Jewishness. Another British paper, the Independent, did dwell on the particular, er, identity groups involved in the incident but only in the context of a protest march by Parisian Jews marred by ''radical young Jewish men'' who'd attacked an ''Arab-run grocery.''

At one level, those spokesmonsieurs are right: It could happen to anyone. Even in the most civilized societies, there are depraved monsters who do terrible things. When they do, they rip apart entire families, like the Halimis and Selams. But what inflicts the real lasting damage on society as a whole is the silence and evasions of the state and the media and the broader culture.

A lot of folks are, to put it at its mildest, indifferent to Jews. In 2003, a survey by the European Commission found that 59 percent of Europeans regard Israel as the "greatest menace to world peace." Only 59 percent? What the hell's wrong with the rest of 'em? Well, don't worry: In Germany, it was 65 percent; Austria, 69 percent; the Netherlands, 74 percent. Since then, Iran has sportingly offered to solve the problem of the Israeli threat to world peace by wiping the Zionist Entity off the face of the map. But what a tragedy that those peace-loving Iranians have been provoked into launching nuclear armageddon by those pushy Jews. As Paul Oestreicher, Anglican chaplain of the University of Sussex, wrote in the Guardian the other day, "I cannot listen calmly when an Iranian president talks of wiping out Israel. Jewish fears go deep. They are not irrational. But I cannot listen calmly either when a great many citizens of Israel think and speak of Palestinians in the way a great many Germans thought and spoke about Jews when I was one of them and had to flee."

It's not surprising when you're as heavily invested as the European establishment is in an absurd equivalence between a nuclear madman who thinks he's the warm-up act for the Twelfth Imam and the fellows building the Israeli security fence that you lose all sense of proportion when it comes to your own backyard, too. "Radical young Jewish men" are no threat to "Arab-run groceries." But radical young Muslim men are changing the realities of daily life for Jews and gays and women in Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, Copenhagen, Oslo and beyond. If you don't care for the Yids, big deal; look out for yourself. The Jews are playing their traditional role of the canaries in history's coal mine.

Something very remarkable is happening around the globe and, if you want the short version, a Muslim demonstrator in Toronto the other day put it very well:

''We won't stop the protests until the world obeys Islamic law.''

Stated that baldly it sounds ridiculous. But, simply as a matter of fact, every year more and more of the world lives under Islamic law: Pakistan adopted Islamic law in 1977, Iran in 1979, Sudan in 1984. Four decades ago, Nigeria lived under English common law; now, half of it's in the grip of sharia, and the other half's feeling the squeeze, as the death toll from the cartoon jihad indicates. But just as telling is how swiftly the developed world has internalized an essentially Islamic perspective. In their pitiful coverage of the low-level intifada that's been going on in France for five years, the European press has been barely any less loopy than the Middle Eastern media.

What, in the end, are all these supposedly unconnected matters from Danish cartoons to the murder of a Dutch filmmaker to gender-segregated swimming sessions in French municipal pools about? Answer: sovereignty. Islam claims universal jurisdiction and always has. The only difference is that they're now acting upon it. The signature act of the new age was the seizure of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran: Even hostile states generally respect the convention that diplomatic missions are the sovereign territory of their respective countries. Tehran then advanced to claiming jurisdiction over the citizens of sovereign states and killing them -- as it did to Salman Rushdie's translators and publishers. Now in the cartoon jihad and other episodes, the restraints of Islamic law are being extended piecemeal to the advanced world, by intimidation and violence but also by the usual cooing promotion of a spurious multicultural "respect" by Bill Clinton, the United Church of Canada, European foreign ministers, etc.

The I'd-like-to-teach-the-world-to-sing-in-perfect-harmonee crowd have always spoken favorably of one-worldism. From the op-ed pages of Jutland newspapers to les banlieues of Paris, the Pan-Islamists are getting on with it.

http://www.suntimes.com/output/steyn/cst-edt-steyn26.html#

[AURaptor 1,126]

Perhaps the biggest conundrum for many is the resounding silence from the Left wing. Torn between respecting the Muslim culture/ religion and a desire to see everyone treated equally, the Libs seem stunned into submission. Who do the Libs think will tolerate an openly gay community more? The women's movement and abortion? Never will Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson seem so welcome in the eyes of N.O.W. ( And spare us any moral equivolency between the Christian religious right in the US and what the Islamofacist, we're talking two entirely different levels here )

Currently the only thing on the Liberal's mind is defeating Bush and Cheney. Never mind that neither will be running for office in '08. The Libs are so hell bent at winning political brownie points that all their attention is focused on impeaching Bush for , well, anything they can dream up, and trying to win back seats in Congress/the Senate. But what this country needs is leadership that looks well beyond our borders, well beyond petty 'gotchya' partisan politics and get-even-with-'emism.

As for Europe? They're so disjointed and self deluded that I don't think anything will shake them from their drowsy state. If 9/11 didn't do it, and bombings on the London tube didn't do it, I hate to think what will.

[Captain Liger 0]

I say drop a couple HUNDRED tons of napalm on Mecca, Medina, and Najaf. Then carpet bomb the outlying areas to make way for parking lots so American tourists can survey the progress made in such a short time. That ought to shut the muslims up for a while.

But that may be way too easy and not as much fun. Perhaps we could do it THE OLD FASHIONED WAY.

[Proud Tiger 4,261]

I say drop a couple HUNDRED tons of napalm on Mecca, Medina, and Najaf. Then carpet bomb the outlying areas to make way for parking lots so American tourists can survey the progress made in such a short time. That ought to shut the muslims up for a while.

But that may be way too easy and not as much fun. Perhaps we could do it THE OLD FASHIONED WAY.

222070[/snapback]

I like your thinking

[TexasTiger 12,998]

Perhaps the biggest coundrum for many is the resounding silence from the Left wing. Torn between respecting the Muslim culture/ religion and a desire to see everyone treated equally, the Libs seem stunned into submission.  Who do the Libs think will tolerate an openly gay community more? The women's movement and abortion?  Never will Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson seem so welcome in the eyes of N.O.W.  ( And spare us any moral equivolency between the  Christian religious  right in the US and what the Islamofacist, we're talking two entirely different levels here )

Currently the only thing on the Liberal's mind is defeating Bush and Cheney. Never mind that neither will be running for office in '08. The Libs are so hell bent at winning political brownie points that all their attention is focused on impeaching Bush for , well, anything they can dream up, and trying to win back seats in Congress/the Senate.  But what this country needs is leadership that looks well beyond our borders, well beyond petty 'gotchya' partisan politics and get-even-with-'emism.

As for Europe? They're so disjointed and self deluded that I don't think anything will shake them from their drowsy state. If 9/11 didn't do it, and bombings on the London tube didn't do it, I hate to think what will.

222056[/snapback]

I saw this thread and assumed it was about Bushco's UAE port deal. Not the "libbies" this time.

[AURaptor 1,126]

Perhaps the biggest conundrum for many is the resounding silence from the Left wing. Torn between respecting the Muslim culture/ religion and a desire to see everyone treated equally, the Libs seem stunned into submission.  Who do the Libs think will tolerate an openly gay community more? The women's movement and abortion?  Never will Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson seem so welcome in the eyes of N.O.W.  ( And spare us any moral equivolency between the  Christian religious  right in the US and what the Islamofacist, we're talking two entirely different levels here )

Currently the only thing on the Liberal's mind is defeating Bush and Cheney. Never mind that neither will be running for office in '08. The Libs are so hell bent at winning political brownie points that all their attention is focused on impeaching Bush for , well, anything they can dream up, and trying to win back seats in Congress/the Senate.  But what this country needs is leadership that looks well beyond our borders, well beyond petty 'gotchya' partisan politics and get-even-with-'emism.

As for Europe? They're so disjointed and self deluded that I don't think anything will shake them from their drowsy state. If 9/11 didn't do it, and bombings on the London tube didn't do it, I hate to think what will.

222056[/snapback]

I saw this thread and assumed it was about Bushco's UAE port deal. Not the "libbies" this time.

222097[/snapback]

You see, TT, that's what you get when you ASSume, instead of actualy taking the time to READ the article. You'd be amazed at what facts lie securely in the words on the pages right before your very eyes!

Reading Is Fundamental!

Oh, and also? Your post is a perfect example of why the Libbies just don't get it. Just blatent, mindless Bush hatred by the Left. And so you verify my point! Thanks!

[Captain Liger 0]

I say drop a couple HUNDRED tons of napalm on Mecca, Medina, and Najaf. Then carpet bomb the outlying areas to make way for parking lots so American tourists can survey the progress made in such a short time. That ought to shut the muslims up for a while.

But that may be way too easy and not as much fun. Perhaps we could do it THE OLD FASHIONED WAY.

222070[/snapback]

I like your thinking

222090[/snapback]

Why thank you, thank you very much.

And for the next forty-two years, there was not a single Muslim extremist attack anywhere in the world. Maybe it is time for this segment of history to repeat itself? The question is, where do we find another Blackjack Pershing?

Look no further. I'm all about the old school Army way of doing things. This "kindler, gentler Army" stuff is crap. Put me in charge and the Iraq war will be over in 6 months flat.

[TexasTiger 12,998]

Perhaps the biggest conundrum for many is the resounding silence from the Left wing. Torn between respecting the Muslim culture/ religion and a desire to see everyone treated equally, the Libs seem stunned into submission.  Who do the Libs think will tolerate an openly gay community more? The women's movement and abortion?  Never will Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson seem so welcome in the eyes of N.O.W.  ( And spare us any moral equivolency between the  Christian religious  right in the US and what the Islamofacist, we're talking two entirely different levels here )

Currently the only thing on the Liberal's mind is defeating Bush and Cheney. Never mind that neither will be running for office in '08. The Libs are so hell bent at winning political brownie points that all their attention is focused on impeaching Bush for , well, anything they can dream up, and trying to win back seats in Congress/the Senate.  But what this country needs is leadership that looks well beyond our borders, well beyond petty 'gotchya' partisan politics and get-even-with-'emism.

As for Europe? They're so disjointed and self deluded that I don't think anything will shake them from their drowsy state. If 9/11 didn't do it, and bombings on the London tube didn't do it, I hate to think what will.

222056[/snapback]

I saw this thread and assumed it was about Bushco's UAE port deal. Not the "libbies" this time.

222097[/snapback]

You see, TT, that's what you get when you ASSume, instead of actualy taking the time to READ the article. You'd be amazed at what facts lie securely in the words on the pages right before your very eyes!

Reading Is Fundamental!

Oh, and also? Your post is a perfect example of why the Libbies just don't get it. Just blatent, mindless Bush hatred by the Left. And so you verify my point! Thanks!

222156[/snapback]

How ironic. And moronic. You didn't READ my post. I didn't reference the article. I referenced the thread. The thread is denoted by a title. Facts fail you, logic fails you, humor fails you.

[Tigermike 3,048]

How ironic and completely normal for the left to miss the mark, dismiss anything other than their ideas and opinions then to start the name calling. If you had bothered to read the post, you would know the title of the thread was within the article.

[TexasTiger 12,998]

How ironic and completely normal for the left to miss the mark, dismiss anything other than their ideas and opinions then to start the name calling.  If you had bothered to read the post, you would know the title of the thread was within the article.

222186[/snapback]

Same reply applies to you.

[AURaptor 1,126]

How ironic. And moronic. You didn't READ my post. I didn't reference the article. I referenced the thread. The thread is denoted by a title. Facts fail you, logic fails you, humor fails you.

Of course I read your post. How else would I have replied to it in the 1st place? You ASSUMED , by the thread title, that this was about Bush and the UAE. In clearly typical Liberal form, you were WRONG. You simply looked at the surface, and then glossed over the rest w/ your preconcieved notions and prejudices. Facts fail you, logic is a stranger you've never met, and funny you ain't. That's the ponit. Your ATTEMPT at humor was lame, at best. Word of advice, stop trying to be Al Frankin. He stopped being funny when his partner Davis left him, back when he was doing coke.

But thanks again for proving my post to be 100% accurate !

[TexasTiger 12,998]

How ironic. And moronic. You didn't READ my post. I didn't reference the article. I referenced the thread. The thread is denoted by a title. Facts fail you, logic fails you, humor fails you.

Of course I read your post. How else would I have replied to it in the 1st place? You ASSUMED , by the thread title, that this was about Bush and the UAE. In clearly typical Liberal form, you were WRONG. You simply looked at the surface, and then glossed over the rest w/ your preconcieved notions and prejudices. Facts fail you, logic is a stranger you've never met, and funny you ain't. That's the ponit. Your ATTEMPT at humor was lame, at best. Word of advice, stop trying to be Al Frankin. He stopped being funny when his partner Davis left him, back when he was doing coke.

But thanks again for proving my post to be 100% accurate !

222190[/snapback]

What's a ponit?

[Proud Tiger 4,261]

Look no further. I'm all about the old school Army way of doing things. This "kindler, gentler Army" stuff is crap. Put me in charge and the Iraq war will be over in 6 months flat.

222164[/snapback]

Let's give the AF a piece of the action. My idea of "Picture of the Year" is a mushroom cloud over Tehran. Only something like that will get the Muslim's attention.

[Tiger in Spain 0]

Look no further. I'm all about the old school Army way of doing things. This "kindler, gentler Army" stuff is crap. Put me in charge and the Iraq war will be over in 6 months flat.

222164[/snapback]

Let's give the AF a piece of the action. My idea of "Picture of the Year" is a mushroom cloud over Tehran. Only something like that will get the Muslim's attention.

222220[/snapback]

Nah, we (the Navy) can make that happen easy enough from a multitude of different platforms over there. The AF would wind up screwing it all up.

[Guest Tigrinum Major]

What's a ponit?

222206[/snapback]

Spelling and grammar errors are only funny when I point them out.

Or when Jenny pulls the pin on the Holy Handgrenade of Antioch and unleashes her fury.

[Proud Tiger 4,261]

Nah, we (the Navy) can make that happen easy enough from a multitude of different platforms over there. The AF would wind up screwing it all up. 

That sounds even better

[WarTim 3,457]

Look no further. I'm all about the old school Army way of doing things. This "kindler, gentler Army" stuff is crap. Put me in charge and the Iraq war will be over in 6 months flat.

222164[/snapback]

Let's give the AF a piece of the action. My idea of "Picture of the Year" is a mushroom cloud over Tehran. Only something like that will get the Muslim's attention.

222220[/snapback]

Nah, we (the Navy) can make that happen easy enough from a multitude of different platforms over there. The AF would wind up screwing it all up.

222241[/snapback]

Gotta' LOVE the US NAVY ! ! !

[AURaptor 1,126]

What's a ponit?

A ponit is merely a typo for the word p-o-i-n-t, made early in the a.m hours before I'm off to work. A point is that which most often is lacking in anything you post on this board. As seen in the above example. You are incapable of carrying on a coherent, reasonable discussion, so you look for escape hatches by which you can crawfish away and not have to deal w/ anything of substance. And you've done it again. Congrats.