Readers of the National Review Corner offer sad, but astute, comments on Europe (9/23/06):
On the West's battle with militant Islam:
The Islamic world is operating under an ideology in which it fervently, passionately believes, while the West has rejected its traditional morality and cultural foundations in favor of a secularist nonjudgmentalism that inspires no one. How can we win the battle of ideas when our foe is completely committed and we have nothing for which we are willing to fight?
On Europe's lack of children:
Europe is reproducing far below replacement rate and will soon have to accelerate immigration just to change the bedpans. Unfortunately they cannot assimilate immigrants very well, lack the cultural self confidence to challenge Islamists and have overly generous welfare states. This combination of factors leads to 'Londonstans' all over the continent.
Europe's refusal to defend the West:
As others have written, it seems to me that the Europeans are largely playing for one generation of stability so that their baby boomers can die in peace. They do not seem interested in a generational struggle in defense of the West. Perhaps this is because they consider their Western heritage to blame for the ideological bloodshed of the 20th century. They seem morally exhausted. Few European countries could look at themselves in the mirror after the sins of omission and commission they commited during decades of fascism, Nazism and communism. I have never understood why the European desire not to repeat the excesses of 20th century atheistic ideologies did not lead to a revitalization of Christianity in Europe. Perhaps it is because these ideologies were never fully abandoned and are still taught in schools. If so, then the West has already been defeated by other 'isms' and Islamism is just the end state.