Since the beginning of time, humans have allowed themselves to get consumed by hatred and involved in bloody conflicts. Although the West, where descendants of faithful churchgoers have largely dispensed with God, imagines that it has put Wars of Religion behind it, there are others who think otherwise: The Islamists. (The dispute is not about “race,” to be sure, but religion and ideology as in Political Islam.)

History tells us that Muslims have been at war with us for centuries, originally invading our ancient lands in the Levant, Africa, and Anatolia. Later, they took the war to the Iberian Peninsula and the Balkans.

In the twentieth century, unable to raise an invading army like the Moors and Ottomans, Arabs have profoundly humiliated the West by raising the prices of crude oil. Watching their own wealth accumulate beyond belief, they have resorted to economic blackmail to obtain political concessions. Intermittently, both Arabs and Turks have sent hordes of illiterates to our shores, playing on our Christian mercy; given the present standoff, this compassion truly disagrees with cynical self-preservation. In addition, Islamists have massacred us in our own cities (e.g. New York and Washington on September 11, 2001, Madrid on March 11, 2004, and London on July 7, 2005).

Under blasphemy laws based on Sharia, Muslims persecute our fellow believers in Muslim-majority societies. Followers of religions other than Islam (e.g. Christians, Hindus, and Buddhists) are considered second-class citizens (dhimmis). When exposed to savage attacks from the Muslim mob (e.g. spurred on by zealous imams or — under false pretenses — people involved in private disputes), they are defenseless. Neither law enforcement nor the courts protect them.

However, it is as if we, who are at a safe distance from the daily harassment and massacres, have refused to accept the declaration of war. We, who enjoy the benefits of Western prosperity and a highly developed civil society, are being remarkably stubborn and persistently act as if we simply cannot believe it. Apparently, we put our own peace of mind above compassion........

© American Thinker