Perhaps the secularists think that it will be as easy for them to destroy Islam as it was to destroy Christianity. For the time being, until Islam takes over, Europe’s dominant culture is that of liberal Europeans who look upon Muslim societies as medieval backwaters and assume as a matter of course that their own attitudes and lifestyles will, and should, be adopted by all other members of society. However, the events of the past three weeks have put those who regard themselves as icons of tolerance to the test and have shown that they are totally incapable of looking at the facts from another (in this case a non-white, non-liberal) perspective. Their obvious, though subconscious, chauvinism and their lofty, paternalising attitude during the three weeks of rioting served only to fuel the anger of the Muslim “youths.”

This anger was directed, not against unemployment or exclusion from French society (inclusion in the latter is the last thing they want if it means being forced to adopt the decadent culture of the West) but against the very policies which provide them with equal opportunites and equal status in French society. The “youths” burned down schools and sports centres because they perceived these for what they are: attempts to lure them into the culture of Western liberal society. From this point of view all the policies promoting integration and participation, equality, education and employment, especially when they are shrouded in liberal, “tolerant” rhetoric, can only be interpreted as insults to their dignity. They are Europe’s future because they are its youth, and they know it. The liberal media, by unqualifyingly describing them as “youths” confirmed this for all to see. What we witnessed in France in the first half of November 2005 was the writing on the wall: Europe’s Mene Tekel Upharsin – Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting. ~Alexandra Colen, The Brussels Journal