Posted by
Kenneth G. Davenport on Tuesday, September 26, 2006 3:46:21 PM
It’s been over 70 years since Franklin Roosevelt, in his first inaugural address, famously said to the nation “the only thing we have to fear is fear itself”. While it is certain that FDR could not have forseen the brand of senseless terror we live with today, he knew well the danger of a free society living in self-doubt, distrusting of the present and afraid of the future. In many ways the “war on terror” is a war against fear: make us afraid to live free and prosper, and we lose the very elements that make our democracy worth fighting for.
By this measurement alone, I fear we are losing this war. Collectively, the Western democracies that make up the heart of the “infidel” world are in a state of defensive retreat in the face of Islam’s thin skin. Whether it is cartoons in a Danish newspaper or comments made by the Pope, anything perceived to be a slight against the Prophet Muhammed and the Islamic faith is met with wide-eyed protests, violence and even death. In Islam there is no room for criticism and no room for self-examination. And, apparently, no room for irony: In reaction to the Pope’s comment that Islam accomplishes its ends “by the sword”, the reaction on the Arab street is to fire bomb churches and attack Christians. One has to be amazed at a religion that proves the validity of critiques against it by its very reaction to those criticisms.
Even more amazing to me is the West’s reaction to this violence. Rather than stand tall and resist the temptation to appease, the consistent response has been to cave to the demands of the lowest common denominator. Instead of insisting that the violence that followed these events proves the point – and requires an honest appraisal by Islam’s leadership – the reaction has been to back down and apologize. It is sad to see Pope Benedict – an obviously brilliant man whose words were meant to incite dialogue, not violence – contort himself in an effort to appease Muslims upset by his remarks. His apologies – like so many others made by those afraid of the consequences of plain and honest talk about the state of Islam today – are a clear and present sign of fear.
And, of course, the ultimate casualty of this fear is truth and honesty. We seem unable to withstand what has now become obvious, coordinated intimidation by Islam to shut down any discussion of what is wrong in the Islamic world. We cannot have an honest discussion with Islam about Islam – in the same way we are no longer able to speak honestly about race in this country. We’ve now entered a new era of political correctness, where we not only can’t speak of issues of black and white without being labeled “racist”, but we can’t call Islam for what it truly is without fear of retribution.
We have much to fear in this world – but nothing is so scary as fear itself.