Fjordman

Goodbye and Merry Christmas from Fjordman

2005-12-21T14:58:00.000+01:00

Fjordman will now close this blog. It will still be possible to post comments at this blog for another couple of weeks, but from early January 2006, there will be no more activity here. The old posts will still be here for reference, of course. For the most part, Fjordman will be quiet. However, I will still occasionally post comments at LittleGreenFotballs or Jihad Watch. Every now and then, when I have the time and want to write about some topic, this will be posted at other blogs such as the Gates of Vienna, and offered to Faith Freedom International and the Brussels Journal.

A list of most of my published essays can be found here.

In addition to these blogs and websites, which should all be known to most of my readers, you can follow my blog roll to find more blogs and news. Western Resistance should be read every day, as should the Internet Haganah. I also like The Adventuress and Brucebawer.com. EU Referendum is an excellent blog about the Eurabian Union, as well as EU Serfs and Free Europe. You can also get news directly from the EU Observer, EurActiv and EU Business. Good European blogs include Zacht Ei, Davids Medienkritik, Klein Verzet and No Pasaran!

From Scandinavia, Aftenposten has English news from Norway, The Local from Sweden, the Copenhagen Post from Denmark (but after a couple of days, news at the CP will enter the pay section of the archives, so do copy anything interesting). Watch is excellent at covering news about the War on Terror, also outside Scandinavia. Stockholm Spectator, Munkhammar.org and Simulev are interesting from Sweden as is Enough! from Denmark and Tundra Tabloids from Finland. Sappho, Agora and Viking Observer from Denmark and Human Rights Service from Norway are excellent.

Of blogs in Scandinavian languages, I like Uriasposten, Angantyrs hjørne, Polemiken and Filtrat in particular from Denmark. Danske øjne på svenske forhold is invaluable about Swedish affairs, and Jihad i Malmø, and Dick Erixon should be mentioned.

In Norway, Document.no is the best of them all, and Hablog one of my personal favorites. Shabana Rehman, Replikk, VamPus, Typisk Tor Andre and Morbus Norvegicus should be mentioned. AntiPsykopatisk Senter is a hard hitting, but relevant forum in Norwegian about Islam. FOMI.nu and Sharia.dk are interesting, too.

I wish all my readers a merry Christmas and a happy New Year. Thanks for reading my blog, and all the best for your future.

What Are Islam's Weak Points?

2005-12-20T15:40:00.000+01:00

How do we defeat Islam? What are Islam's weak points, and what are ours? Ali Sina from Faith Freedom International wants to confront Islam by education. I support and applaud his efforts, but I don't think they will solve all the problems. Quite a few hardcore Islamists have more than average education, for instance. Educating non-Muslims about Islam the way FFI and Jihad Watch are doing is thus probably more important than educating Muslims. Islam has rational components. It is an excellent warrior creed (or at least used to be) and is great as an excuse for plundering the wealth of others. But first and foremost, it is an irrational cult based on fear.

Muhammed was a brilliant intuitive leader/general, and he and his companions devised a near perfect closed system of war aginst the rest of humanity. Only by showing that Allah is not infallible can we be victorious in keeping our freedom, our life, our liberty and pursuit of our happiness. Muslims are extremely childish in their view of themselves and the world - they are superstitious and thus afraid of dogs, of the Koran getting dirty etc. They continually tell us the truth about their paranoia, and their intentions. Therefore, one of the best tactics for us to take in the War on Terror is to mock them and exploit their childishness, so that they will expose themselves to everyone.

The Judeo-Christian, Western culture is based on guilt, and Muslims exploit this by playing on our guilt complex. The Arab-Islamic culture is based on shame. It's time we learn to play on their shame, just as they do on our guilt. They feel humiliated and paranoid about everything. In defense of their egos and by extention their religion they do stupid things, such as the London bombings and sharing the beheading videos with the rest of the world. While these tactics are successful in terrorizing people, they also alert Western people and other infidels that Islam may not be the "religion of peace and tolerance" that it claims to be.

There are a few issues central and vital to Islam and on which it is really vulnerable on, such as women's emancipation. If Islam really does go for it, Islam is dead. If it doesnt then its dead in the long run. The most important and valuable soldiers of Islam are not male Jihadis, but women. Muslim women are the frontline soldiers of Islam in the West, as they were in Bosnia. However, women are also the Achilles heel of Islam. Give young Muslim girls in the West, the legal power that they do not have to follow the dictats of the imams or the mullahs, or give them the notion that they can report mullahs for religious harassment, then one starts a chain reaction that continues into the home and community. The French ban on hijabs in schools is the right first step.

The Jihadis have a clear moral purpose, and we have to need to define an even more powerful moral argument as to why our cause is more just, more moral and better - not just to our public, whose unwavering support we need, but to many Muslims around the world. Once we have such a clear moral purpose, then indeed we can go to full scale war, if that is needed. What is the magic formula that will mobilise us, give us a clear moral superiority that will sustain us through thick and thin?

It should be done by giving Islam its proper name: Slavery and apartheid. Women are the slaves in the cult of Islam (submission = slavery). One peculiar thing about male supremacy or any form of slavery, is that it enslaves both parties. Muslim men should realise, that the emancipation of women also emancipates and frees men. This has been the lesson in the West. And so it has continued. Thus Muslim men should not be frightened in letting go - they will also be freeing themselves from the chains of islam. This inevitably leads us to ask, can we somehow re-define Islam, in particular for a Western audience, not as a religion but as a political ideology, and one whose tenets are sufficiently evil, so that it merits destruction, much as Nazism. This construct has to take place so that the Western populace sees it as justifiable to actually give the physical and moral support that is required for such a large undertaking. In passing it is worth noting the political difficulty that Bush and Blair are having in Iraq in sustaining political support for the war, once they had proclaimed that Islam is a RoP - they had conceded the moral ground.

Islam is institutionalised slavery, and the Jihad's main purpose is to garner slaves, both men and women, from the lands of the Free. Muslims, both men and women, then become the first slaves of Islam. Two points come to mind immediately. 1. The institution of slavery crushes the spirit of slaves. They were unable to think for themselves as a consequence. A striking feature of Islamic societies. 2. Runaway slaves used to be beaten, and oft executed, as a lesson to other would be runaway slaves. The same punishment is Islamically sanctioned for the Muslim apostate.

Many practices of the rituals of Islam are completely out of variance with what is tolerable in the West. I hope that in Europe, we adopt fairly stringent rules on where one can wear the hijab. Certainly in these days of video surveillance, the wearing of the hijab or burqa, can be seen as trying to circumvent a public safety requirement. Schools, universities, airports and government offices must be declared places where one is not allowed to smoke (on grounds of personal safety) or wear the burqa (on grounds of public safety). All these make the West an inhospitable environment for Islam, which is all to the good.

Islam is a way of life for a tribal and nomadic culture. Each tribe guarded its patch and at the same time engaged in raids against other tribes for booty and women (same thing). Mohammed's significant contribution was to codify a disparate code extending over several tribes into a single one. A similar thing was achieved by Genghis Khan, and in much the same way, was eminently successful in expanding the domain of his empire of booty. Through history there has been conflict between settled or agricultural communities who invented agriculture, and the nomadic one. Settled communities eventually had surplus and were able to devote more time to other pursuits that led to civilisation. The nomadic culture OTH depended on raids and the ensuing booty. Islam would have died away had it not been so succesful in mixing the divine and the nomadic culture, which led to conquest of settled and prosperous communities, and then living off the proceeds of empire. Civilisation of the settled communities though marched on and the empire of the nomad came to an end when the Ottoman empire was dissolved. Islam was in the process of withering away as a consequence but for a couple "miracles" that saved Islam's bacon.

First was the oil bonanza, and the second, the far more important one - the open door policy of the West as regards immigration. Immigration of muslims is really an invasion, an invasion that had been stopped for good but for the cupidity of Western politicians in allowing millions of Muslims into the West. Now we have to live with the horrendous consequences of those decisions. We are being dragged back to the Middle ages where religion was the decisive factor in political discourse. Muslims live by the islamic code ie the nomadic code. One sees this in the way that islamic areas in the West become ghettos in quick time- it is part and parcel of the nomad way of life, as he simply ups tent when the resources have run out and moves to greener pastures - in this context, where the benefits are more generuous. Through history one has seen that the nomadic life style and the settled life are diametrically opposed. When both are forced to live side by side, as we are now doing in the West, a severe clash is inevitable.

Some claim that Islam will die as a global force during this century, simply because its core ideas aren't flexible enough to adapt to a modern world. This pre-supposes that Islam will have to rely on its own tenets. Islam is basically parasitical, and will continue to survive on the back of the rest of humanity as long as we allow it to do so. The roots of Jihad have been invigorated primarily due to immigration to the West and Saudi money. The only way that islam will die out, is if it is contained within dar-ul-Islam. No immigration and all contact reduced to the necessary. This will buy time. Solutions like making them fight among each other, pushing Muslims all out of Europe etc. is buying time - future generations still have to solve the problem. There is nothing wrong with buying time - the advent of the modern age and technologies like TV/cable/Internet MIGHT slowly eat away at Islam and slowly solve the problem. The problem is still whether the time taken by the modern world to penetrate inside Islam will be too long for the world to survive.

Ending the problem for good would require large parts of the opinion makers of the world recognizing that Islam is not a "religion" but an "ideology". Once that is done then the ideology would have to be tackled on all levels just like Communism. However, attaining the "moral high ground" is good and necessary, but will not by itself be enough. Who ever won a war while trying not to hurt the enemy’s feelings? The playing field will NEVER be level. Islam fights from Heaven. You cannot change that fact, for devout Muslims. There is no higher place than heaven. Muslims have no need for a level field. They, according to their Koran is the word of God. There is no "high ground" that we can occupy, in regards to Islam, in the eyes of Muslims, only in our own. The Buddhists of Central Asia undoubtedly held the "moral high ground" in relations to Muslims. They are all dead now. In the end, it is possible that we will win or lose by the sword. At the very least, we must be prepared to back up our ideological war with force on certain occasions. Holding a higher moral standard isn't going to defeat an Iranian President with nukes, threatening another Holocaust.

Further reading:

World War IV

Islam also teaches Muslims to see themselves as part of a nation of Muslims who happen to live in different countries – even in non-Muslim ones. Their loyalty to the nation state is subordinated to the loyalty to the Ummah. This is so even if they are second or third generation British or American or whatever. Each new generation will be taught by Islam to maintain its primary loyalty to the Ummah. Even new converts switch loyalty. In World War IV, the US has handicapped itself by making false declarations such as “Islam is peace”. All world wars have at least three components – the military, ideological and the economic. In World War III, the ideological component was more important than the military one. In World War I and II, it was the military component that was more important. Yet by praising Islam, Bush and Blair have already given up the ideological warfare without firing a shot.

You cannot defeat Islamism without defeating Islam. It is like trying to fight Communism while praising Marxist economic theories! In the Cold War, the US and its allies did not hesitate to argue that Marxism is a false ideology. Marx's ideas are wrong and cannot lead mankind to a better future. The democratic world must make the same case against Islam. Otherwise, we cannot win without relying heavily on the military component, which means more bloodshed. Perhaps we cannot win at all. Remember what Sun Wu said in his classic, “The Art of War”. The side with the higher moral standing is more likely to win. To do this, a leader must convince his people that their cause is just. You cannot persuade your people to make exertions if they do not understand what they are up against. Thus the burden of ideological warfare falls on groups like FFI.

Once were warriors: Why Islam failed Muslims

Islam is a warrior’s creed that served its early followers well. From impoverished desert tribes, they rose to forge an empire in a short time that stretched from Spain to India. The ethos it engendered – brotherhood for believers, contempt and hatred for non-believers, belief in heavenly rewards for fallen warriors, a high fertility rate (which requires the subordination of women), blind obedience – created formidable warriors. But these same qualities are handicaps for Muslims in the age of the microchip. Today they lead to poverty, belligerency, war and defeat. Many Muslims look back with fondness to their days of glory and try to recover their former days by using the old methods. That is why there is today a rising tide of Islamic fundamentalism across the Muslim world. They are bewildered at their weakness and look for conspiracy theories. Muslims think their failure is due to some Jewish or American plot not realizing that failure comes from within themselves. They are out of touch with reality. Once were warriors, Muslims are now like Don Quixote tilting at windmills in a world they no longer understand.

The West in the 21st Century

2005-12-18T22:33:00.000+01:00

Samuel P. Huntington's now almost legendary essay about The Clash of Civilizations has generated a lot of discussion, and some justified criticism. Some would claim that there is no clash of civilizations, just a clash between a global, universal civilization and Islamic neo-barbarism. But Huntington does have some points. The West is still the leading civilization on the planet, but it is in decline. Both because we constitute an ever-shrinking part of global demography, and because we have lost confidence in our own culture. The beginning of the 21st century could perhaps be labelled "the retreat of the Western order", as the Islamic world is challenging us ideologically and China in particular is challenging us economically.

There are many possible scenarios for the first half of the 21st century.

1. Another Atlantic/Western century

The intra-Western, Atlantic ties between Europe and North America will still be the most important and defining global axis. Although not impossible, this is probably not the most likely alternative at this point, given the economic and cultural weakness of Europe in particular.

2. Another American century

The USA, more than Europe and Asia, will continue to be the world's unchallenged superpower. The 21st century will be a continuation of the American Age that started in the 20th century.

3. The Asian/Chinese century

The world will return to the Asia-centric world we had before the rise of Europe and the West. Will this be a world dominated by China, or by Asia as a whole, including India? Will the rise of Asian economies trigger nationalistic rivalries and devastating intra-Asian wars such as WW1 in Europe, or will they cooperate peacefully?

4. The Pacific century

The USA may remain the world's leading power, but Europe fades off the global scene and leaves her spot open for Asia. Global affairs will be shaped by the twin pillars of the USA and East Asia, mainly China.

5. The Anglosphere - Indian century

I believe this is what has been predicted by Mark Steyn, among others. The USA and the UK, the major powers of the previous 3 centuries, will be at the centre of this one, too. But they will share the spot with India and maybe some other countries such as Japan, "honorary members" of the Anglosphere. This alliance will try to contain China, and will have hostile relations with the Islamic world.

6. The Islamic century - Neo-Barbarism and Chaos, the new Dark Ages

Islam manages to derail the West, both Europe and later North America. This disrupts global trade, and the ripples create chaos in other parts of the world, including East Asia. India will be drawn directly into the conflict with Islam, as will Russia and Israel.

In most of the above scenarios, I take it for granted that the USA will remain a major global player, and find it likely that Asia will increase its share of global BNP (although not necessarily to the point of dominance). The big question mark here is Europe. Will Europe become Eurabia, and be crushed by the other infidel powers? Will she slowly decline into third world status, or will she have the strength to expel Islam and forge a new beginning for herself, after generations of decline?

The West needs to reinvent itself, but it should also form a strategic alliance with India. Bush has already adopted a policy designed to draw India closer to the United States in a strategic alliance. This is a good move. Bush has arranged for India to receive some of the very high tech weapons that America's allows only its closest allies to have. Both the U.S. and India were British colonies and have that British influence in common. This helps Americans and Indians communicate even though their religion and cultures are very different. Given that Islam is an enemy to both India and the United States, the combination is a natural one.

It is also my firm conviction that we need to get rid of both the European Union and the United Nations. At the end of the Cold War, Francis Fukuyama pronounced that we had arrived at "The End of History", and that capitalism and liberal democracy would now be the only global system left. But when I look at Europe today, I see democracies under threat because of an elaborate Eurabian bureaucracy and Islamic fanaticism. I see countries unwilling or unable to defend themselves against massive immigration/colonization, and the possible dawn of neo-barbarism. Has democracy become too soft to function? Have we arrived at "the End of Democracy" instead of "the End of History?" What does it take for a democracy to work? Can you still retain a democracy with massive illegal immigration going on? Is Multiculturalism inherently anti-democratic? Some people claim that the nation state is a redundant concept in a globalized world, but I can't see many democratic societies not based on a nation state. Can you? To me, the EU is the perfect example of how democracy becomes weakened when you try to make an organization above the nation state. And the UN is unacceptable because it allows dictatorships and corrupt non-democratic states to dictate democratic ones. Until we have something better, if ever, the nation state is the best way ever discovered of organizing society to provide the greatest good to the greatest number of people. The problem I think is that people get confused between democracy and human rights. Obviously you can't have pure democracy -- that is just mob rule. As some wag once wrote, "Two wolves voting to eat the sheep." That's why the famous concept of "checks and balances" were built into the US system of government -- to give some protection to the sheep. The framers of the US constitution thought long and hard about pure democracy and recognized its limitations.

The US system, with its separation of executive and legislative powers, isn't nearly as "democratic" as the European parliamentary system. Small parties have no influence there -- that's why special interest groups like feminists are often represented by lobbying organizations like NOW here rather than actual political parties as in Europe. But such a set-up mitigates against extremism -- in a Parliamentary system some extremist small party can exert influence beyond its numbers due to providing the swing vote in coalitions. Within the US system, there is a wide spectrum of political beliefs across the two parties. The Democrats have a liberal, centrist, and rightiest wing. Ditto the Republicans (although the liberal Republicans are a dying breed.) Under our system, Republicans are allowed to vote for Democratic proposals and Democrats are allowed to vote for Republican proposals. And representatives do frequently "cross party lines" to vote on issues that matter to their constituents. There is no such thing as "required vote" where you have to vote the way your party votes or else leave the party. Every vote on every issue to come up in the Congress is a "free vote." I think this is superior because it is voting on issues on an individual basis, not on a "group" basis. Of course the party in power does apply pressure, arm-twisting, etc. to get their members to vote "the Republican agenda" etc., but there is no legal requirement for them to vote so.

Ohmyrus: Bring back that Old Time Religion

Democracy is also a secular ideology and its proponents can be as intolerant as any religious fanatic. Other forms of government are viewed as illegitimate and ought to be converted into democracies. Many democrats cannot tolerate any kind of dictatorship – not the fascist kind nor the communist kind or the Islamist kind like what you see in Iran and Saudi Arabia. The Islamists think that the only legitimate form of government is an Islamic state and therefore oppose Bush's plans with suicide bombers. Thus two intolerant ideologies, one secular and the other religious are fighting it out in the sands of Iraq. However, I believe that democracy is not the end of history. Francis Fukuyama is wrong. Democracy will one day be replaced by something else. Perhaps, in a thousand years' time, people will view democrats of our present era as being intolerant of other forms of governments like people of our era view medieval Christians as intolerant of other religions.

Hugh Fitzgerald: Stop taking the UN seriously

Only a fool nowadays would use a phrase such as "international community," which attempts to treat Syria and Iceland as the same kind of members, or Costa Rica and Saudi Arabia, as similarly situated and behaving. What nonsense. There is no "international community." There is no "community" which contains Iceland and Libya, Italy and Saudi Arabia, the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran. Some of these are our enemies; they wish us ill, they do not wish us well. Infidels and Believers cannot -- according to Islam itself, according to everything about Islam -- form a community. There is only the umma al-islamiyya, the Community of Believers. All others must be kept at bay, inveigled, fooled, undermined, ultimately conquered, and conclusively subjugated. No other possible outcome, according to what is contained in Qur'an, Hadith, and Sira, is possible. The phrase "international community" is telling. Those who use it are telling us something about themselves. And what they are telling us isn't flattering.

There are no "united" nations. There is an organization that has been undermined from within. It is now an obstacle to the wellbeing of all those who wish to see clearly what is at stake in the worldwide Jihad, and to preserve themselves, in Europe, in America, in Russia, and in the Middle East, from the imposition of a belief-system -- through being overrun, slowly but surely, by adherents of that belief-system -- that has left every place it has conquered intellectually impoverished, and in every other way as well. Taking the U.N. seriously is by now as absurd as, in September 1939, going to the League of Nations (or as those incurable salon-habitués, the French, liked to call it, la Société des Nations, the "society or community of nations"), to ask it to please, please, please deal with Mr. Hitler -- he is behaving so badly.

Should the EU be Dismantled?

Should the entire European Union simply be dismantled? I've started to wonder whether the whole thing, just like Islam, coincidentally, is simply beyond reform and a threat to democracy. Critics claim that the Council of Ministers, the EU’s supreme law-making body, which decides two thirds of all Britain’s laws, is the only legislature outside the Communist dictatorships of North Korea and Cuba to pass laws in secret.

Online Workshop, Last Days

2005-12-17T17:32:00.000+01:00

The last post I will make here will be about Islam's and our weak points. That part of the workshop is still very much going on, and you are still encouraged to join in with comments and viewpoints. Let me toss in a few more topics at the end: How do we deal with the dhimmi Western and infidel media? What can be done to redirect the masses to less censored news at the Internet?

I'm not sure if I have the time, but I was thinking of making a post called "beheading nations," about how immigrants are heavily concentrated in most major cities in Western Europe, in effect cutting the rest of the country off from its "brain" and nerve centres. If you have any links about this in English from Holland, Germany or pretty much anywhere in Western Europe, you can post them here.

Sharia police, motorcyclists clash in Nigeria over ban on women

2005-12-16T15:03:00.000+01:00

Sharia police, motorcyclists clash in Nigeria over ban on women

A clash between Sharia police (hisbah) and commercial taxi moped operators called 'Achaba' in northern Nigeria's Kano city on Wednesday left 11 people injured and scores of vehicles vandalized. Fighting broke out on the frenetic streets of this commercial city when the hisbah began to enforce the state's ban on women riding on taxi mopeds, a common and speedy means of transportation in Nigerian cities. Hundreds of hisbah took positions at strategic locations in the city, forcing women passengers to get off mopeds. This angered the moped operators who mobilized and launched attacks on the hisbah. Armed with clubs and stones, the achaba attacked the green-uniformed hisbah and public tricycles, leaving at least 11 people injured and two dozen tricycles damaged. An AFP reporter who visited the hisbah headquarters saw 10 young men with various degrees of injuries arrested in the clashes being interrogated by hisbah officials. "We have received reports that one of our men was injured in the attacks while 24 tricycles were vandalized" Mohammed Yahaya, a hisbah commander said in the hisbah headquarters in the metropolis. "We have made several arrests but I can't give you figures at the moment", Yahaya said.

Kano, one of a dozen mainly Muslim northern states to readopt the Sharia legal system since 1999, passed a legislation banning women riding on taxi mopeds in May 2004. Tagged the Traffic Amendment Law 2004, the law provides for six months imprisonment for defaulting motorcyclists with a fine of 5,000 naira ($36). He also risks to forfeit permit for six months. A month later, a 9,000-man hisbah outfit was formed by the state government to enforce the Sharia, including the new traffic law. "This is just the beginning of our resolve to enforce the ban on women riding on achaba", Yahaya Farouk Chedi, head of the hisbah, told a press conference. "We have begun by asking the women to get off the bikes and soon we will start arresting defaulters and taking them to court for prosecution", he added. "The government ought to ban more grievous offenses than carrying women on motorbikes", said Sahabi Idris, a taxi moped operator, after he was forced by the hisbah to drop his female passenger. "There are beer parlors, night clubs and brothels close to the governor's residence and nobody is saying anything about them. The government is just playing politics with the Sharia," he said.

Fjordman at Frontpage Magazine

2005-12-15T23:40:00.000+01:00

My post about the Muslim rape wave in Sweden has generated some interest. It was picked up by Ali Sina at Faith Freedom International, and today by Frontpage Magazine. It is possible I will set a new record for both weekly and daily visitors at the Fjordman blog this week, and I got a reference in the Washington Times a few days ago.

I keep getting MANY requests to continue blogging. I will still close down this blog in a few days, but I may write something and post it at other blogs or websites such as Gates of Vienna, Viking Observer, Jihad Watch and FFI once in a while, if I have the time. I will also post comments at LittleGreenFootballs every now and then.

Online Workshop Part 6: An Alliance of Civilizations?

2005-12-14T11:40:00.000+01:00

How will the relationship be between the West and non-Western cultures in the 21st century? My best bet is that the West (at least the USA, maybe not Europe) will continue to be the most dynamic civilization for a long time to come, but maybe not powerful enough to keep up the present world order alone. Is an alliance with non-Western civilizations such as India, which we are already seeing some signs of, a viable alternative? Is it possible to have this with a democratic China, or is China destined to be a rival more than a partner? Are we seeing the signs of a global, universal civilization, which will join forces against Islam?

Online Workshop Part 5: The End of History or the End of Democracy?

2005-12-13T01:02:00.000+01:00

I was planning to shut down the blog by now, but I have a handful of posts that I'd like to finish before leaving the blogosphere, so I'll keep on blogging for a few more days. Online workshop parts 3 and 4 are still going on:

Online Workshop Part 3: What are Islam's Weak Points, and How do We Exploit Them? What are Ours, and How do We Fix Them?

Online Workshop Part 4: Whose 21st Century? The Retreat of the Western Order

But let us introduce another topic. At the end of the Cold War, Francis Fukuyama pronounced that we had arrived at "The End of History", and that capitalism and liberal democracy would now be the only global system left. But when I look at Europe today, I see democracies under threat because of an elaborate Eurabian bureaucracy and Islamic fanaticism. I see countries unwilling or unable to defend themselves against massive immigration/colonization, and the possible dawn of neo-barbarism. Has democracy become too soft to function? Have we arrived at "the End of Democracy" instead of "the End of History?" What does it take for a democracy to work? Can you still retain a democracy with massive illegal immigration going on? Is Multiculturalism inherently anti-democratic? Some people claim that the nation state is a redundant concept in a globalized world, but I can't see many democratic societies not based on a nation state. Can you? To me, the EU is the perfect example of how democracy becomes weakened when you try to make an organization above the nation state. And the UN is unacceptable because it allows dictatorships and corrupt non-democratic states to dictate democratic ones. Until we have something better, if ever, the nation state is the best way ever discovered of organizing society to provide the greatest good to the greatest number of people. The problem I think is that people get confused between democracy and human rights. Obviously you can't have pure democracy -- that is just mob rule. As some wag once wrote, "Two wolves voting to eat the sheep." That's why the famous concept of "checks and balances" were built into the US system of government -- to give some protection to the sheep. The framers of the US constitution thought long and hard about pure democracy and recognized its limitations.

The US system, with its separation of executive and legislative powers, isn't nearly as "democratic" as the European parliamentary system. Small parties have no influence there -- that's why special interest groups like feminists are often represented by lobbying organizations like NOW here rather than actual political parties as in Europe. But such a set-up mitigates against extremism -- in a Parliamentary system some extremist small party can exert influence beyond its numbers due to providing the swing vote in coalitions. Within the US system, there is a wide spectrum of political beliefs across the two parties. The Democrats have a liberal, centrist, and rightiest wing. Ditto the Republicans (although the liberal Republicans are a dying breed.) Under our system, Republicans are allowed to vote for Democratic proposals and Democrats are allowed to vote for Republican proposals. And representatives do frequently "cross party lines" to vote on issues that matter to their constituents. There is no such thing as "required vote" where you have to vote the way your party votes or else leave the party. Every vote on every issue to come up in the Congress is a "free vote." I think this is superior because it is voting on issues on an individual basis, not on a "group" basis. Of course the party in power does apply pressure, arm-twisting, etc. to get their members to vote "the Republican agenda" etc., but there is no legal requirement for them to vote so.

Ohmyrus: Bring back that Old Time Religion

Democracy is also a secular ideology and its proponents can be as intolerant as any religious fanatic. Other forms of government are viewed as illegitimate and ought to be converted into democracies. Many democrats cannot tolerate any kind of dictatorship – not the fascist kind nor the communist kind or the Islamist kind like what you see in Iran and Saudi Arabia. The Islamists think that the only legitimate form of government is an Islamic state and therefore oppose Bush's plans with suicide bombers. Thus two intolerant ideologies, one secular and the other religious are fighting it out in the sands of Iraq. However, I believe that democracy is not the end of history. Francis Fukuyama is wrong. Democracy will one day be replaced by something else. Perhaps, in a thousand years' time, people will view democrats of our present era as being intolerant of other forms of governments like people of our era view medieval Christians as intolerant of other religions.

Hugh Fitzgerald: Stop taking the UN seriously

Only a fool nowadays would use a phrase such as "international community," which attempts to treat Syria and Iceland as the same kind of members, or Costa Rica and Saudi Arabia, as similarly situated and behaving. What nonsense. There is no "international community." There is no "community" which contains Iceland and Libya, Italy and Saudi Arabia, the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran. Some of these are our enemies; they wish us ill, they do not wish us well. Infidels and Believers cannot -- according to Islam itself, according to everything about Islam -- form a community. There is only the umma al-islamiyya, the Community of Believers. All others must be kept at bay, inveigled, fooled, undermined, ultimately conquered, and conclusively subjugated. No other possible outcome, according to what is contained in Qur'an, Hadith, and Sira, is possible. The phrase "international community" is telling. Those who use it are telling us something about themselves. And what they are telling us isn't flattering.

There are no "united" nations. There is an organization that has been undermined from within. It is now an obstacle to the wellbeing of all those who wish to see clearly what is at stake in the worldwide Jihad, and to preserve themselves, in Europe, in America, in Russia, and in the Middle East, from the imposition of a belief-system -- through being overrun, slowly but surely, by adherents of that belief-system -- that has left every place it has conquered intellectually impoverished, and in every other way as well. Taking the U.N. seriously is by now as absurd as, in September 1939, going to the League of Nations (or as those incurable salon-habitués, the French, liked to call it, la Société des Nations, the "society or community of nations"), to ask it to please, please, please deal with Mr. Hitler -- he is behaving so badly.

Should the EU be Dismantled?

Should the entire European Union simply be dismantled? I've started to wonder whether the whole thing, just like Islam, coincidentally, is simply beyond reform and a threat to democracy. Critics claim that the Council of Ministers, the EU’s supreme law-making body, which decides two thirds of all Britain’s laws, is the only legislature outside the Communist dictatorships of North Korea and Cuba to pass laws in secret.

'Common law' nearer for Samis

2005-12-13T00:54:00.000+01:00

'Common law' nearer for Samis

Efforts to give North European Samis a common law cutting across national borders took a major step forward on Wednesday as experts submitted a draft convention for the indigenous Nordic population. Of a total of 75,000 Samis – formerly known as Lapps or Laplanders – in the Nordic region, 50,000 live in Norway, 20,000 in Sweden and the rest in Finland. Each of the three countries currently applies its own laws to Samis and the new text, after three years of negotiations, aims to harmonize their economic, cultural and linguistic rights regardless of national boundaries. "The Nordic Sami convention will represent historic progress for the recognition of the rights of indigenous people," Pekka Aikio, president of the Sami parliamentary council, told reporters in Helsinki. "It has been clear for a long time that national borders obstruct cooperation between Samis. Cooperation has been made particularly difficult by the fact that all states treat Sami questions differently and have different laws and a different judiciary," he said. For the first time in a joint declaration, Samis are recognized as the region's indigenous population and not just a minority, and as having a right to self-determination as well as having suffered "injustices". The convention's authors said it was to establish a minimum level of rights, leaving each state free to go further towards granting Samis special rights. This is a reflection of divergent views between the three countries, with Finland dragging its feet on some Sami rights, especially the exclusive right to hunt reindeer. Finland was also still doubtful on the exact meaning of self-determination for Samis, as well as their water and land rights, Finland's minister for justice, Leena Luhtanen, said.

Norwegians - Indigenous People in Norway?

The Sami people were, before the recent waves of immigration, the most significant ethnic minority in Scandinavia. They inhabit parts of northern Norway, Sweden, Finland and northwestern Russia, the region sometimes called Lapland. In the 1980s, they were granted a Constitutional right to preserve their culture in Norway. Earlier this year the Norwegian parliament, Stortinget, passed a law that went further than that, granting the Sami people special property rights in the northernmost province of Finmmark, over that of Norwegian citizens of non-Sami origin. Carl I. Hagen, leader of the right-wing Progress Party, has argued that the law is racist, in effect creating an apartheid regime in Finnmark. I tend to agree with him. My first thought about the law regarding Finnmark is that it should be repealed. It sets a very dangerous precedent to give a special legal status to a particular ethnic group, at a time when this country is rapidly becoming the home of people from all around the world. It is the road to Balkanization, and yet another indication that our leaders have completely lost their grip on reality. Groups don't have rights. Only individuals do.

On the other hand: The special status granted to the Sami people is based on the logic behind the UN Convention concerning Indigenous Peoples. The interesting question, which nobody in our intellectual establishment has asked, is what legal ramifications this law has for the rest of Norway. If the Sami people can be given status as indigenous people in the northernmost regions of Norway, why can't Norwegians be given the same status in the rest of the country? After all, we have stayed here for centuries, probably even for thousands of years. And we belong to a small "tribe" of only 4 million people, a drop in the sea of humanity. Again, I am as a matter of principle skeptical of granting rights to groups within a country. But it is an intriguing question. I have no illusions about the UN, but I find it difficult to see how our politicians could deny us this when they just gave it to others.

Immigrant Rape Wave in Sweden

2005-12-12T15:28:00.000+01:00

Swedish girls Jenny and Linda were on their way to a party on New Year's Eve when they were assaulted, raped and beaten half to death by four Somali immigrants. Sweden's largest newspaper has presented the perpetrators as "two men from Sweden, one from Finland and one from Somalia", a testimony as to how bad the informal censorship is in stories related to immigration in Sweden. Similar incidents are reported with shocking frequency, to the point where some observers fear that law and order is completely breaking down in the country. The number of rape charges in Sweden has tripled in just above twenty years. Rape cases involving children under the age of 15 are six - 6 - times as common today as they were a generation ago. Most other kinds of violent crime have rapidly increased, too. Instability is spreading to most urban and suburban areas.

According to a new study from the Crime Prevention Council, Brå, it is four times more likely that a known rapist is born abroad, compared to persons born in Sweden. Resident aliens from Algeria, Libya, Morocco and Tunisia dominate the group of rape suspects. According to these statistics, almost half of all perpetrators are immigrants. In Norway and Denmark, we know that non-Western immigrants, which frequently means Muslims, are grossly overrepresented on rape statistics. In Oslo, Norway, immigrants were involved in two out of three rape charges in 2001. The numbers in Denmark were the same, and even higher in the city of Copenhagen with three out of four rape charges. Sweden has a larger immigrant, including Muslim, population than any other country in northern Europe. The numbers there are likely to be at least as bad as with its Scandinavian neighbors. The actual number is thus probably even higher than what the authorities are reporting now, as it doesn't include second generation immigrants. Lawyer Ann Christine Hjelm, who has investigated violent crimes in Svea high court, found that 85 per cent of the convicted rapists were born on foreign soil or by foreign parents.

A group of Swedish teenage girls has designed a belt that requires two hands to remove and which they hope will deter would-be rapists. "It's like a reverse chastity belt," one of the creators, 19-year-old Nadja Björk, told AFP, meaning that the wearer is in control, instead of being controlled. Björk and one of her partners now plan to start a business to mass produce the belts and are currently in negotiations with potential partners. "But I'm not doing this for the money," she said. "I'm really passionate about stopping rape. I think it's terrible." In an online readers' poll from the newspaper Aftonbladet, 82% of the women expressed fear to go outside after dark. There are reports of rapes happening in broad daylight. 30 guests in a Swedish public bath watched as a 17-year-old girl was raped recently, and nobody did anything. The girl was first approached by 16-year-old boy. He and his friends followed her as she walked away to the grotto, and inside the grotto he got her blocked in the corner, ripped off her bikini and raped her, while his friend held her firm.

There are even reports of Swedish girls being attacked and cut with knives on the dance floor. A 21-year-old man who came to Sweden a couple of years ago admits that he has a low opinion of Swedish females –or “whores” as he calls them. He is now prosecuted, suspected of cutting eight girls in several pubs. He is also charged with raping a girl at a private party, and with sexually harassing another girl in the apartment. Several witnesses claim that the 21 year old has said that he hates Swedish women.

Some Muslim immigrants admit their bias quite openly. An Islamic Mufti in Copenhagen sparked a political outcry after publicly declaring that women who refuse to wear headscarves are "asking for rape." Apparently, he's not the only one thinking this way. “It is not as wrong raping a Swedish girl as raping an Arab girl,” says Hamid. “The Swedish girl gets a lot of help afterwards, and she had probably fucked before, anyway. But the Arab girl will get problems with her family. For her, being raped is a source of shame. It is important that she retains her virginity until she marries.” It was no coincidence that it was a Swedish girl that was gang raped in Rissne – this becomes obvious from the discussion with Ali, Hamid, Abdallah and Richard. All four have disparaging views on Swedish girls, and think this attitude is common among young men with immigrant background. “It is far too easy to get a Swedish whore…… girl, I mean;” says Hamid, and laughs over his own choice of words. “Many immigrant boys have Swedish girlfriends when they are teenagers. But when they get married, they get a proper woman from their own culture who has never been with a boy. That’s what I am going to do. I don’t have too much respect for Swedish girls. I guess you can say they get fucked to pieces.”

The number of rapes committed by Muslim immigrants in Western nations are so extremely high that it is difficult to view them only as random acts of individuals. It resembles warfare. Muhammad himself had forced sex (rape) with several of his slave girls/concubines. This is perfectly allowed, both in the sunna and in the Koran. If you postulate that many of the Muslims in Europe view themselves as a conquering army and that European women are simply war booty, it all makes perfect sense and is in full accordance with Islamic law. Western women are not so much regarded by most Muslims as individuals, but as "their women," the women who "belong" to hostile Infidels. They are booty, to be taken, just as the land of the Infidels someday will drop, it is believed, into Muslim hand. This is not mere crime, but ideologically-justified crime or rather, in Muslim eyes, attacks on Infidels scarcely qualify as crime. Western women are cheap and offensive. We Muslims are here, here to stay, and we have a right to take advantage of this situation. It is our view of the matter that should prevail. Western goods, like the land on which we now live, belong to Allah and to the best of men -- his Believers. Western women, too, essentially belong to us -- our future booty. No wonder there is a deep and increasing suspicion against Muslims in the Swedish and European public.

Sweden has national elections less than a year from now. Here is a suggested draft email, in English and Swedish, that you can send in to Swedish politicians and media to protest the lack of honesty about what Muslim immigration is doing to the country:

I would hereby like to protest against the passivity and the lack of resolve demonstrated by Swedish authorities in the face of a huge spike in the number of rapes in their country. It is time for Swedish politicians, Swedish media and the Swedish public to admit that the large increase in the number of rape charges in their country during the past generation is intimately tied to the immigration that has taken place during that same time period. The attitude among many Muslim men is that women who are not veiled and act properly submissive have themselves to blame if something happens to them. Such a line of thinking is incompatible with the culture of freedom in any Western country. It means that as long as Muslim immigration continues, Sweden will continue to import an Islamic culture that will destroy women’s freedom in Swedish society. The strains caused by immigration are now so large that unless something serious is done about this, pretty soon Sweden will face the same kind of riots we have recently seen in France, and will approach the point of permanent ethnic and religious strife. Swedish politicians and media need to put the well-being of their daughters above that of political correctness and their own Multicultural vanity, and it is shocking that they actually need to be reminded of this. It is an international embarrassment to Sweden as a nation that Swedes travel around the world to lecture about women’s rights, and at the same time their own young women are finding that their most basic rights, such as being able to go outside wearing normal clothes without being harassed, are slipping away. It’s a sham, and it needs to end. Unless Swedish authorities are able to provide basic security to a population that has some of the highest tax rates in the world, the Swedish government should publicly admit its inadequacy and resign from office. At the very least, it should be honest enough to tell Swedish citizens that they must provide security for themselves, and stop making it difficult for people to do this. The Swedish general elections are less than a year away, and this time, Muslim immigration needs to be raised to the very top of the public agenda.

Jag vill med detta protestera mot passiviteten och bristen på beslutsförmåga hos svenska myndigheter beträffande den enorma topp vi ser nu i antalet våldtäkter i Sverige. Det är dags för svenska politiker, svensk media och svenska folket att inse och erkänna att den stora ökningen i antalet våldtäktsfall i Sverige under loppet av den senaste generationen är intimt knuten till den innvandring som har skett under samma tidsperiod. Attityden hos många muslimska män är att kvinnor som inte är beslöjade, och underkastar sig rätt sorts kvinnligt beteende, har sig själva att skylla om något händer dem. Ett sådant synsätt är oförenligt med vår västerländska frihetskultur. Det betyder att så länge som muslimsk innvandring fortsätter som nu, så kommer Sverige att fortsätta att importera en islamisk kultur som i förlängningen kommer att förgöra kvinnors frihet i det svenska samhället. Motsättningarna skapade av denna invandring är nu så stora att om inte kraftfulla åtgärder tas, kommer man i Sverige snart ha samma sorts upplopp som vi har sett nyligen i Frankrike, och som kommer att fortsätta tillväxa till en permanent etniskt-religiös konflikt. Svenska politiker och media måste sätta sina döttrars välbefinnande före den politiska korrektheten och sin multikulturella fåfänga. Det är chockerande att man alls skall behöva påminna dem om det. Det är en pinsamhet för Sverige på den internationella scenen att svenskar åker jorden runt för att läxa upp folk i andra länder om kvinnors rättigheter, när samtidigt unga tjejer här hemma märker att deras mest grundläggande rättigheter, som att kunna gå ut i normala kläder utan att bli trakasserad och attackerad, håller på att glida dem ur händerna. Det hela är skandalöst, och det måste bli ett slut på detta. Om inte svenska staten och svenska myndigheter kan ge grundläggande skydd till en befolkning som betalar världens högsta skatter, så måste den svenska regeringen erkänna sin oduglighet och avgå. Och som ett absolut minimum, borde de vara hederliga nog att erkänna inför svenska folket att de behöver ta hand om sin säkerhet och sitt skydd själva, och sluta lägga hinder i deras väg för att kunna göra så. Det är val i Sverige om mindre än ett år. Muslimsk invandring behöver sättas allra högst upp bland frågorna i valdebatten.

Note: The email addresses have been removed as they may no longer be updated.

Gender quota set for company boards of directors

2005-12-12T01:33:00.000+01:00

Gender quota set for company boards of directors

Female directors must make up at least 40 percent of all new shareholder-owned companies' boards of directors from January 1. Existing stock companies will have two years to conform to the new quotas. Investors are already protesting after Norway's new justice minister and government minister in charge of equality issues announced the change in corporate regulations. Retailing entrepreneur Ola Mæle, for example, thinks the mandate will actually harm women's careers, not enhance them. Mæle told Norwegian Broadcasting (NRK) Friday morning that women brought onto company boards simply because they're women may leave them in a position of being "second-class" directors. Government Minister Karita Bekkemellem nonetheless is firm in pushing through the new corporate regulation that politicians have been talking about for years. "Now there's no way back," she said. "This is all about sharing power and influence and it is intervention in private ownership, but it was overdue." The new regulations will apply to all stockheld companies, those formed as an "ASA" that have broad ownership, as well as state-owned share companies and other publicly owned firms. Violation of the new rules for board composition will be penalized with forced dissolution of the company.

Wikipedia needs safeguards that work

2005-12-12T01:07:00.000+01:00

The free, online encyclopedia Wikipedia is widely used, but also increasingly criticized. I personally use it and will think it ok to put up a link to a post there about, say, Julius Caesar. However, it gets a lot weaker when you move closer to contemporary and politically sensitive issues. That's why Faith Freedom International has decided to make their own, online encyclopedia about Islam, for instance:

Wikipedia needs safeguards that work

Jimmy Wales has often described himself as the constitutional monarch of Wikipedia, the free online encyclopedia written and edited by volunteers. Queen Elizabeth II of England and other constitutional monarchs can only intervene in affairs of state on rare occasions of great crisis. Wales, who co-founded the non-profit Wikipedia in 2001, exercised his royal power last week. But he only took a tiny step in the midst of a crisis where bolder leadership is required. They're not enough to resolve Wikipedia's fundamental dilemma: It can't meet what Wales calls the project's primary goal -- producing ``a free, high-quality encyclopedia'' -- while also clinging to the utopian concept that anyone can contribute without restrictions. How this crisis plays out will reverberate across the emerging landscape of ``social media,'' where loose groups -- such as Wikipedia's volunteer contributors -- come together through the Web to create news, community forums and information.

The result of Wikipedia's open editing system is predictable: Most contributors provide useful material, while a small number of ``trolls'' repeatedly deface the encyclopedia. Wikipedia is also plagued by endless ``revert wars,'' where dueling groups keep reversing each other's changes to controversial articles. This undermines the credibility of Wikipedia, which now offers an unprecedented 857,000 articles in English, along with versions in more than 100 other languages. Wikipedia is becoming a first reference stop for millions of people, from schoolchildren to journalists, including me. But many of these users don't realize a small percentage of articles are flawed. Even more troubling, there's no way to know when you've hit one of those defective entries. That's why I never put a fact from Wikipedia into one of my columns without first double-checking it elsewhere.

I have a suggestion: Wales should issue a royal decree moving Wikipedia to a ``gatekeeper'' model, borrowed from successful open-source software projects such as the Linux operating system and the Firefox browser. These projects are administered by networks of trusted volunteers who carefully review additions and changes before they are made, and there's a hierarchy to resolve disputes. Wikipedia is now big enough, with a core group of 13,000 active volunteers, to pre-screen all of its contents. New entries and edits could still be submitted -- even anonymously -- by any visitor to the Wikipedia site but would be placed in a kind of holding pen until one of the trusted volunteers took a look and said OK.

Bjørn Stærk: Why we need professional encyclopedias

Quality is holistic, it requires understanding. Getting individual facts right isn't good enough. There is no gradual slope of quality as there is with factual accuracy, only a long plain of mediocricity followed by a sharp rise at the end. Britannica is at the top of that rise because it is written by individuals who know how to write, who know their subject, and know how to present it clearly in few words. Wikipedia is at the bottom of the same rise because it is written by committee. Britannica is consistently good. Wikipedia is good only by accident. Britannica gives experts the freedom to do their job, Wikipedia drowns their experts in tedious committee work. Wikipedia should perhaps emulate the free software movement. A free software system like Linux is not written by any Joe R. Newbie with a text editor. Linux is controlled by an elite of brilliant hackers. They decide which contributions to accept, and which to reject. They ensure that the whole isn't sacrificed in favor of the parts, and they decide when to rewrite code that has deteriorated in a larger sense than just containing individual bugs. This way of working actually works, and should be emulated by Wikipedia. Let anyone make a contribution, but use experts to guard the gates.

Replacement candidate: Islam is terror

2005-12-11T19:48:00.000+01:00

For those who haven't seen this at Jihad Watch:

Replacement candidate: Islam is terror

A few days after the Danish People’s Party (DF) punished its Copenhagen mayoral candidate for publishing racist remarks on her website, removing her from the post as the party spokesman on educational affairs, her successor went ahead and described the Muslim religion as a terrorist movement. Defeated mayoral candidate Louise Frevert’s website compared Muslims with tumours, causing a public outrage. Though she blamed the statement on her website editor, DF punished her by removing her from a number of spokesman posts in parliament, including the one on educational policies. Her replacement, Martin Henriksen, however, has also been criticised for having a website that is equally anti-Muslim. ‘From its beginning, Islam has been a terrorist movement,’ Henriksen stated on his website, warning against letting Muslims run for office in parliament and municipal councils. ‘It’s well known that Islam is lying low, well-knowing that no Islamic group or state has the military power it takes to conquer us. The goal we know, the method is to quietly take over and infiltrate our democratic institutions,’ Henriksen said on his website. Danish converts to Islam get their share of the blame as ‘moral criminals’. ‘These young Danes, who turn their backs on their heritage and thereby all of us, are committing an indescribable moral crime,’ the website stated. The website was discussed in a DF parliamentary group meeting last Thursday, where Henriksen said he had received full backing from his fellow party members. ‘It shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone that an MP from the Danish People’s Party is critical of Islam. It’s a part of the party’s policy, so I’m not removing anything from my website,’ Henriksen told national broadcaster DR.

More than half of Asia's software illegal

2005-12-11T17:01:00.000+01:00

More than half of Asia's software illegal

More than half the computer software used in the Asia Pacific region last year was illegally downloaded and cost the region billions in lost economic potential, a study released on Thursday said. According to the Business Software Alliance (BSA), the regional software piracy rate was 53 percent in 2004, unchanged from the previous year. Asia's IT industry is worth $195 billion and brings in at least $120 billion in tax revenues, BSA said. The biggest culprits were Vietnam, which topped the list with a piracy rate of 92 percent, followed by China at 90 percent, BSA said in the study that it commissioned research firm International Data Corp. to carry out. Indonesia had the third-worst record with 87 percent of software illegally downloaded. Thailand took fourth spot at 79 percent.

Microsoft ready for Xbox rematch against Japanese foes

When Microsoft brought the first Xbox game console to the home turf of its Japanese archrivals in 2002 it was nearly two years behind Sony's PlayStation 2 and it has trailed behind ever since. This time the US software giant is doing its utmost to prevent history from repeating itself. On Saturday it will launch the next-generation Xbox 360 some months ahead of the PlayStation 3 and Nintendo Revolution, and in time for the Christmas rush. In a country where brand image is everything, the new sleek, silver Xbox 360 design should prove a plus compared with the chunky black box it replaces. Even so, analysts expect Sony to fight back with a powerful new console of its own next year. They believe that Microsoft will still struggle to make a significant dent in the Japanese icon's share of the game console market. "No one - consumers or software makers - has been talking about the Xbox 360 lately although we only have a couple of days before the release," said Nobuyuki Kawamata, an analyst at Tokai Tokyo Research Center. "Given also the fact that basic functions of Xbox 360 are inferior to Sony's next-generation machine, and that there are not many newly-developed titles ready for the Japanese launch, Xbox 360 is not likely to become a must-buy console here in Japan," Kawamata said. The first Xbox, which was launched in 2001 and came to Japan in February 2002, flopped here in part due to a lack of games that appealed to local tastes, analysts say. This time the US software behemoth has turned to local firms like Square Enix to create titles specifically for Japanese gamers.

Norway: ElBaradei Calls for "Elimination of Poverty"

2005-12-11T16:26:00.000+01:00

ElBaradei is in Norway to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, just as Yassir Afarat, Dhimmi Carter and other great people have done before him. And he thinks the way to reduce global nuclear tensions is to reduce poverty. Because we all know it was poverty that prompted Iran's president to announce that Muslims should "wipe Israel off the map" and destroy Western civilization, right? RIGHT? Via Western Resistance:

Norway: ElBaradei Calls for "Elimination of Poverty"

The world should stop treating the nuclear ambitions of Iran and North Korea as isolated cases and instead deal with them in a common effort to eliminate poverty, organized crime and armed conflict, the director general of the United Nations' nuclear monitoring agency said Saturday in accepting the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize. The director general, Mohamed ElBaradei, said a "good start" would be for the United States and other nuclear powers to cut nuclear weapon stockpiles sharply and redirect spending toward international development. "More than 15 years after the end of the cold war, it is incomprehensible to many that the major nuclear weapon states operate with their arsenals on hair-trigger alert," Dr. ElBaradei, 63, said. Despite some disarmament, he continued, the existence of 27,000 nuclear warheads in various hands around the world still hold the prospect of "the devastation of entire nations in a matter of minutes." Feelings of insecurity and humiliation, exaggerated by today's nuclear imbalance, are behind the spread of bomb-development programs at the national level, said Dr. ElBaradei, who has headed the International Atomic Energy Agency since 1997.

Cultural flash points

2005-12-10T14:33:00.000+01:00

Via Jihad Watch. The always excellent Diana West in the Washington Times writes about blasphemy and Islam, and has been reading Fjordman. The story of the UN involvement in the Muhammed cartoons case in Denmark has attracted some attention, especially after Charles Johnson at LittleGreenFootballs linked to it:

Cultural flash points

Now they want to put him to death — Mohaqeq Nasab, the Afghan editor already sentenced to two years hard labor for "blasphemy" against Islam. Now, Afghan prosecutors want to put him to death. Why? The Muslim editor of Women's Rights magazine published articles in post-Taliban Afghanistan that criticized aspects of Islamic law, including the penalties of stoning for adultery, amputation for theft, and death for leaving Islam. "Sometimes the whole religion and the rules of the religion were attacked," explained Muhammed Aref Rahmani, who sits on Afghanistan's council of Islamic scholars. Attacked? "For instance," Mr. Rahmani told the Chicago Tribune, "he says one woman should be equal to one man, as a witness in a case, which is completely against our religion."

The Islamic furor over a dozen Mohammed cartoons published in a Danish newspaper — and Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen's refusal to meddle with his country's freedom of speech — continues to rise up the food chain, from death threats and street riots, to ambassadorial protests, to heads-of-state deliberations at the December OIC meeting in Mecca. Denmark's Berlingske Tidende, via the blogger Fjordman (fjordman.blogspot.com), reports that the 56 countries of the OIC have now written the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights to "help contain this encroachment on Islam, so the situation won't get out of control." In response, U.N. commissioner Louise Arbour emphasized her "regret" over "any statement or act that could express a lack of respect for the religion of others." Which sounds like the Danes are in U.N.-trouble. But what about the statements or acts — from censorship to death sentences — of the religion that encroach on the rights of others? That's a question no one dares to ask.

Norway Says No to a Free Cuba

2005-12-10T14:11:00.000+01:00

Norway has a three-party coalition government, where the Labor Party is the leading force, but which also includes the Socialist Left Party and is backed by the Norwegian Socialist Trade Union (LO). The deputy leader of the Socialist Left Party recently announced that he wants to abolish private property. The leader of the Socialist Left Party, Kristin Halvorsen, is Norway's Minister of Finance. She started her election campaign in 2005 in the Pakistani countryside. Norway, which is a significant player in the global oil market, is actively involved in searching for oil in Iran. No boycott there:

Norway Says No to a Free Cuba

The Norwegian government of Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, an extreme-left coalition of Stoltenberg’s Workers’ Party (Ap), the Socialist Left Party (SV) and the green Center Party (Sp), wants to ban Cuban democrats from attending Norway’s national holiday festivities. The SV is also calling for a boycot of Israel. On Monday Jonas Gahr Støre (Ap), the Norwegian Foreign Minister, announced that he is considering to no longer invite opponents of Cuban dictator Fidel Castro to the Norwegian embassy’s party in Havana on May 17, Norway’s national holiday. Gahr Støre is doing this at the request of Gerd-Liv Valla, the chairperson of the Norwegian Socialist Trade Union (LO), who considers herself to be the godmother of Stoltenberg’s party. Valla, a former member of the far-left student organisation Kommunistisk Universitetslag, recently visited Cuba. She returned to Oslo with the message that it is more important for Norway to have good relations with Castro than with the Cuban democratic opposition. The Cuban regime refuses to attend events at embassies if representatives of the opposition are also present. Norway is not a member of the European Union, but the latter also believes that the pro-democracy activists in Cuba should stop “provoking” Castro by drawing attention to themselves and ask for freedom. Though the Workers’ Party has no qualms about bashing Cuban dissidents, the demand by prominent leaders of the SV, the second party in the Norwegian government, for a government boycot of Israel is not going down well with the Ap. During the election campaign last Summer the SV had promised its voters a pro-Castro and an anti-Israel policy. Last week, however, Prime Minister Stoltenberg said that the SV has a right to its own opinions, but made it quite clear that boycotting Israel is not the official policy of his government. SV leader Kristin Halvorsen, the Finance Minister, admitted that the coalition agreement does not mention a boycot of Israel.

Socialist Left politicians want boycott of Israel

The Socialist Left Party (SV) has already started to work on an action against Israel, in sympathy with the Palestinians, according to the public broadcaster. - The main focus of the campaign will be a general boycott of Israel. We will especially work for a consumer boycott of foodstuffs and cosmetics, but also for a boycott of the sale of arms. Both of which have been adopted by SV, says campaign leader Gjermund Skaar. SV leader Kristin Halvorsen says to Dagsavisen that a boycott of Israel is one of the themes which has not been given a final discussion by the Government. Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, however, states that as long as it is understood that a boycott of arms sales to Israel is not the Government's policy, the prime minister will accept that SV expresses its own opinions. - An arms embargo against Israel is not the Government's policy. Boycott is not part of the Government's program declaration (the Soria Moria declaration), says Stoltenberg.

Kashmir shutdown over Quran desecration, Prophet caricature

2005-12-09T13:16:00.000+01:00

Via Jihad Watch. These Muhammed cartoons in Denmark are turning into quite the international incident:

Kashmir shutdown over Quran desecration, Prophet caricature

Shops and establishments in most parts of Kashmir Valley were closed Thursday to protest a Danish newspaper publishing a caricature of the Prophet and the alleged desecration of the Quran in Sopore town. The strike call was given by the separatist Hurriyat Conference group led by Syed Ali Geelani. The Kashmir bar association and other groups supported the shutdown. Authorities have made elaborate security arrangements all over the valley to maintain law and order. Though shops in parts of Kashmir capital Srinagar and other major towns were closed, traffic was plying. Tension is still high in the north Kashmir town of Sopore, famous for its apples, where three drunk youths had desecrated the Quran and also tried to set ablaze the mosque earlier this week.

Cartoon protest closes Kashmir

Thousands of shops and businesses were closed down on Thursday in the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir in protest against twelve caricatures of the Muslim prophet Mohammed printed in daily newspaper Jyllands-Posten in September. Jyllands-Posten reported that newspapers in the area said businesses in entire neighbourhoods in the capital of Jammu and the province of Srinagar had been closed down. 'In four to six of the biggest cities in the province shops were closed to express anger over the caricatures of the holy prophet. In some places there were clashes, and people started throwing rocks. Most Muslims feel deeply affronted,' said Abdur Rasheed, editor-in-chief of the newspaper Kashmir Observer. In the city of Sopore, shops were closed in protest. 'We are talking about hundreds of thousands of shops in six of the seven biggest cities. In large areas, 98-99 percent of the shops were closed. People are not allowed on the streets because of the strained situation in the region, so instead they close their shops to demonstrate against the Danish newspaper,' said Meraj Wani from the newspaper Greater Kashmir.

Chinese and Japanese teens differ in aspirations

2005-12-09T01:31:00.000+01:00

Chinese and Japanese teens differ in aspirations

A glaring discrepancy has emerged between the career ambitions of Chinese female teenagers and their Japanese counterparts, according to a survey published on Tuesday by a leading Japanese think tank. The top five desired careers among Chinese female teens aged 16-19 include president or chief executive of a company, senior management or manager, or teacher. In comparison, the top-five list for Japanese teens include housewife, flight attendant and child-care worker. “Against a backdrop of doubts about the future from a protracted recession, Japanese youths have a very strong desire for stability,” said the report, which was compiled by the Hakuhodo Institute of Life and Living. “In contrast, young Chinese want to move up in the world.” According to the UNDP, the percentage of total seats in parliament held by women is 20.2 per cent in China, compared with 9.3 per cent in Japan. Meanwhile, the ratio of estimated female to male earned income is 66 per cent in China, compared with 46 per cent in Japan. Separately, the survey also noted Chinese teens thought that Japanese women made “good wives and mothers” and that Japanese were hard workers. Chinese teens said that they were concerned about problems such as wealth disparity and environmental problems.

Sarkozy backs Finkielkraut over Muslim riot comments

2005-12-09T00:03:00.000+01:00

Via Uriasposten and Peaktalk. Read the whole article and you will note that Sarkozy’s comments are seen as a full frontal assault on France’s left-wing elites. This certainly helps to set the stage for a very interesting battle over Chirac’s legacy in 2007, where De Villepin for now appears to be the frontrunner:

Sarkozy backs Finkielkraut over Muslim riot comments

The storm aroused by French-Jewish philosopher Alain Finkielkraut refuses to subside. On Sunday, French Interior Minister Nicolas Sarkozy threw his full weight behind the beleaguered philosopher, who has been forced to remain cloistered at home following the sharp reactions to an interview he gave to Haaretz. Speaking to reporters on Sunday, Sarkozy said: "Monsieur Finkielkraut is an intellectual who brings honor and pride to French wisdom ... If there is so much criticism of him, it might be because he says things that are correct." The minister was asked about Finkielkraut because several reporters saw similarities between the conservative views the philosopher expressed about the recent riots in France and the tough stance the minister took in dealing with the agitators who took to the street night after night. The liberal weekly Nouvel Observateur devoted its cover story to what it called "the new neo-reactionaries." Alongside Finkielkraut's picture on the cover was a title stating that Finkielkraut and his colleagues had worsened the social chasms in the country. Others mentioned as supporters of similar ideas were Sarkozy, philosopher Andre Gluksman and historian Pierre-Andre Taguieff (who coined the phrase Judeophobia). They are described as belonging to a right-wing wave that is now prominent in France.

Sarkozy appeared ready to take on the media. He had been following the attacks on Finkielkraut for two weeks and was waiting for a suitable opportunity. "What do you want of him?" he asked the media representatives. "M. Finkielkraut does not consider himself obliged to follow the monolithic thinking of many intellectuals, which led to Le Pen winning 24 percent in the elections. The philosophers who frequent the salons and live between Cafe de Flor and Boulevard St. Germain suddenly find that France no longer bears a resemblance to them." This is an unprecedented attack on the left wing by the very person who is seen by many French as being the only one capable of preventing the disintegration of the republic. While interviewees stressed his intellectual acumen, they almost all felt Finkielkraut had slipped up by mentioning the ethnic identity of the rioters - he had described them as blacks, Arabs and Muslims. Nevertheless, to date, all the organizations and bodies that threatened to sue him for racism have changed their minds.

"When an Arab torches a school, it's rebellion. When a white guy does it, it's fascism."

Finkielkraut: "In France, they would like very much to reduce these riots to their social dimension, to see them as a revolt of youths from the suburbs against their situation, against the discrimination they suffer from, against the unemployment. The problem is that most of these youths are blacks or Arabs, with a Muslim identity. Look, in France there are also other immigrants whose situation is difficult - Chinese, Vietnamese, Portuguese - and they're not taking part in the riots. Therefore, it is clear that this is a revolt with an ethno-religious character. These people were treated like rebels, like revolutionaries. This is the worst thing that could happen to my country. Why? Because the only way to overcome it is to make them feel ashamed. Shame is the starting point of ethics. But instead of making them feel ashamed, we gave them legitimacy. They're `interesting.' They're `the wretched of the earth.' "Imagine for a moment that they were whites, like in Rostock in Germany. Right away, everyone would have said: `Fascism won't be tolerated.' When an Arab torches a school, it's rebellion. When a white guy does it, it's fascism. I'm `color blind.' Evil is evil, no matter what color it is. And this evil, for the Jew that I am, is completely intolerable.

"Moreover, there's a contradiction here. Because if these suburbs were truly in a state of total neglect, there wouldn't be any gymnasiums to torch, there wouldn't be schools and buses. If there are gymnasiums and schools and buses, it's because someone made an effort. Maybe not enough of one, but an effort." I think that the lofty idea of `the war on racism' is gradually turning into a hideously false ideology. And this anti-racism will be for the 21st century what communism was for the 20th century. A source of violence. Today, Jews are attacked in the name of anti-racist discourse: the separation fence, `Zionism is racism.' This is really a bigger problem: We're living in a post-national society in which for everyone the state is just utilitarian, a big insurance company. This is an extremely serious development.

Girls shoplifting for Christmas

2005-12-08T15:38:00.000+01:00

Girls shoplifting for Christmas

Girls under age 15 in western Norway shoplift three times as much as their male counterparts according to new figures from Hordaland County police. The conclusion is based on three times as many girls under 15 being caught shoplifting compared to boys in the same age group, newspaper Bergens Tidende reports. Now with the Christmas shopping rush under way security guards and alert staff catch an average of one shoplifter per day at the Sartor shopping center in Bergen. "I think it may be connected with purchasing pressure. The girls see things they want, but don't have the money," Sartor director Mette Nora Sætre told the newspaper. The divisional leader of security firm Securitas, Kjell Inge Thorkildsen, said that nearly all of the youngsters caught react with shame, and he too blamed consumer pressure as the reason behind most of this type of shoplifting.

How do you tackle an invasion of giant jellyfish? Try making sushi

2005-12-08T03:00:00.000+01:00

How do you tackle an invasion of giant jellyfish? Try making sushi

THEY are called echizen kurage and they sound like monsters from the trashier reaches of Japanese science fiction. They are 6ft wide and weigh 450lb (200kg), with countless poisonous tentacles, they have drifted across the void to terrorise the people of Japan. Vast armadas of the slimy horrors have cut off the country’s food supply. As soon as one is killed more appear to take its place. Finally, the quarrelsome governments of the region are banding together to unite against the enemy. Echizen kurage is not an extraterrestrial invader, but a giant jellyfish that is devastating the livelihoods of fishermen in the Sea of Japan. Nomura’s jellyfish, as it is known in English, is the biggest creature of its kind off Japan and for reasons that remain mysterious its numbers have surged in the past few months. The problem has become so serious that fishery officials from Japan, China and South Korea are to meet this month for a “jellyfish summit” to discuss strategies for dealing with the invasion. The problem first became obvious in the late summer when fishermen chasing anchovies, salmon and yellowtail began finding huge numbers of the jellyfish in their nets. Often the weight of the echizen kurage broke the nets or crushed the fish to death. Fishermen on the northern tip of Honshu, Japan’s main island, were forced to suspend work at the height of the lucrative salmon season. In some places jellyfish density is reported to be a hundred times higher than normal. Worst of all, no one yet understands why. In the meantime locals are making the best of it — rather than just complaining about jellyfish they are eating them. Jellyfish are an unusual ingredient of Japanese cuisine but are much more prized in China. Coastal communities are doing their best to promote jellyfish as a novelty food, sold dried and salted. Students in Obama have managed to turn them into tofu, and jellyfish collagen is reported to be beneficial to the skin.

Hobbits may be earliest Australians

2005-12-08T02:18:00.000+01:00

Hobbits may be earliest Australians

THE tiny hobbit-like humans of Indonesia may have lived in Australia before they became extinct about 11,000 years ago. The startling claim comes from archaeologist Mike Morwood, leader of the team that in 2003 uncovered remains of the 1m-tall hominid at Liang Bua cave on Indonesia's Flores island. They believe the pint-size person - known officially as Homo floresiensis and unofficially as the "Hobbit" - was wiped out by a volcanic eruption that spared their Homo sapiens neighbours. Speaking at a public lecture in Perth, Professor Morwood from the University of New England in Armidale, NSW, raised the prospect that Hobbits colonised Australia before Aboriginal settlers arrived about 60,000 years go. He suggested that the Hobbits may have been pushed out by the bigger people, in part because their population was too small to compete. Professor Roberts said conditions during the north Australian wet season meant that small, ancient remains were unlikely to have survived. He noted that no early human remains have been unearthed in northern Australia and said that even the remains of the giant prehistoric animals, the mega-fauna, were scarce. There is also the troubling question of how the Hobbits would have travelled south from their Indonesian homeland. To date, there's no hard evidence they could sail or raft.

Online Workshop Part 4: Whose 21st Century? The Retreat of the Western Order

2005-12-07T15:05:00.000+01:00

The workshop part 3, about identifying the weaknesses of Islam and of ourselves, is still going on, but it's time to launch a few other topics. How will the 21st century be like, and who will be the leading powers/civilizations? Is it possible to make any predictions about this at all?

Samuel P. Huntington's now almost legendary essay about The Clash of Civilizations has generated a lot of discussion, and some justified criticism. Some would claim that there is no clash of civilizations, just a clash between a global, universal civilization and Islamic neo-barbarism. But Huntington does have some points. The West is still the leading civilization on the planet, but it is in decline. Both because we constitute an ever-shrinking part of global demography, and because we have lost confidence in our own culture. The beginning of the 21st century could perhaps be labelled "the retreat of the Western order", as the Islamic world is challenging us ideologically and China in particular is challenging us economically.

Let us debate the likelihood of a few different scenarios for the first half of the 21st century.

1. Another Atlantic/Western century

The intra-Western, Atlantic ties between Europe and North America will still be the most important and defining global axis. Although not impossible, this is probably not the most likely alternative at this point, given the economic and cultural weakness of Europe in particular.

2. Another American century

The USA, more than Europe and Asia, will continue to be the world's unchallenged superpower. The 21st century will be a continuation of the American Age that started in the 20th century.

3. The Asian/Chinese century

The world will return to the Asia-centric world we had before the rise of Europe and the West. Will this be a world dominated by China, or by Asia as a whole, including India? Will the rise of Asian economies trigger nationalistic rivalries and devastating intra-Asian wars such as WW1 in Europe, or will they cooperate peacefully?

4. The Pacific century

The USA may remain the world's leading power, but Europe fades off the global scene and leaves her spot open for Asia. Global affairs will be shaped by the twin pillars of the USA and East Asia, mainly China.

5. The Anglosphere - Indian century

I believe this is what has been predicted by Mark Steyn, among others. The USA and the UK, the major powers of the previous 3 centuries, will be at the centre of this one, too. But they will share the spot with India and maybe some other countries such as Japan, "honorary members" of the Anglosphere. This alliance will try to contain China, and will have hostile relations with the Islamic world.

6. The Islamic century - Neo-Barbarism and Chaos, the new Dark Ages

Islam manages to derail the West, both Europe and later North America. This disrupts global trade, and the ripples create chaos in other parts of the world, including East Asia. India will be drawn directly into the conflict with Islam, as will Russia and Israel.

In most of the above scenarios, I take it for granted that the USA will remain a major global player, and find it likely that Asia will increase its share of global BNP (although not necessarily to the point of dominance). The big question mark here is Europe. Will Europe become Eurabia, and be crushed by the other infidel powers? Will she slowly decline into third world status and irrelevance, or will she have the strength to expel Islam and forge a new beginning for herself, after generations of decline?

The UN is Appeasing Muslims - Again

2005-12-07T12:50:00.000+01:00

My translation of this article in the Danish newspaper Berlingske Tidende, via Antipsykopatisk Senter:

FN bekymret over profet-tegninger

UN Concerned over Prophet Cartoons

by Ole Damkjær

The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights understands the concern in Muslim countries over the 12 cartoons of the prophet Muhammad and expects UN experts on racism to deal with the matter. At the same time as Islamic countries in a meeting in Mecca are going to discuss joint action against Denmark, the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour has involved herself in the discussion.

The leader of the UN's work on human rights is saying in plain words that she is concerned over the drawings that Jyllands-Posten printed in September, expressing "apologies" for statements and actions demonstrating a lack of respect for the religion of other people. In a letter to the 56 member countries of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), she states: "I understand your concerns and would like to emphasize that I regret any statement or act that could express a lack of respect for the religion of others". In a complaint to the High Commissioner, the 56 Islamic governments have asked Louise Arbour to raise the matter with the Danish government "to help contain this encroachment on Islam, so the situation won't get out of control." Two UN experts, on religous freedom and on racism and xenophobia, are said to be working on the case. The Islamic governments have expressed satisfaction with the reply from Louise Arbour.

Danish prime minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, who has stated that he neither can nor wants to interfere in the freedom of speech of Danish media, has confirmed that he is aware of the letter to the UN High Commissioner, but has got no comment to it.

According to the director of the Danish Center for Human Rights, Morten Kjærum, the attitude of the High Commissioner is "by the book.""The concern of the High Commissioner reflects that the ban on discrimination is one of the most important and general within human rights law, because we know how disastrous it is when different groups are pitted against one another,« says Morten Kjærum.

Mohammed cartoonists on Arabic meeting agenda

The episode concerning twelve Danish cartoonists who were hired to draw caricatures of the prophet Mohammed for the daily Jyllands-Posten continues to cause unrest in the Muslim world. Today 56 Islamic countries are holding a top meeting in Mecca in Saudi Arabia, and on the agenda is a discussion of a united front against Denmark. Also the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Louise Arbour has involved herself in the discussion. She has written a letter to the 56 Muslim countries expressing her apologises for the lack of respect for others religion that the episode has caused. She has also asked the UN's racism experts to look at the case. Prime Minster Anders Fogh Rasmussen said he was aware of the Commissioner's letter but decline to comment further.

UNCHR: Protecting Religion– Specifically Islam

In an astonishing move on 12 April 2005, the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) moved from promoting respect for human rights to promoting "respect for all religions and their value systems". On Tuesday 12 April 2005, the UN Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) passed Human Rights Resolution 2005/3 entitled, "Combating Defamation of Religions". Islam On Line (IOL) reported it this way: "The United Nations Commission on Human Rights adopted on Tuesday, April 12, a resolution calling for combating defamation campaigns against Islam and Muslims in the West." IOL quotes Cuba's delegate who claimed that Islam has been the subject of a "very deep campaign of defamation". The resolution was pushed forward by Pakistan on behalf of the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC). It was put under Agenda Item 6 that deals with racism and all forms of discrimination." The OIC nations managed to gain majority support and the resolution was passed this year. Khan reports that the United States, United Kingdom and Israel were amongst those nations that voted against the resolution. Russia and China voted in favour while India was among those who abstained.

UN refugee commissioner warns Denmark

The United Nations High Commissioner for refugees Antonio Guterres has warned Denmark against closing its borders to poor refugees, during a visit to Copenhagen yesterday. His comments came after the Employment Minster Claus Hjort Frederiksen, suggested that Denmark should stop immigration of persons from Somali, Palestine, Iran and Iraq as they place to heavy a burden upon society due to their poor education. The Minster was praised by the Danish Prime Minister for starting a necessary debate, though he admitted it would be against international law if Denmark began screening refugees and immigrants after which country they came from. The High Commissioner emphasised at a press conference that some politicians and the media are responsible for creating a problem which does not exist as they are lumping together refugees, economic immigrants and even terrorists.

Death threats and a bounty on the heads of illustrator

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has warned Danish travellers to Pakistan of increased hazard after a Danish newspaper's decision to publish cartoons of Muslim prophet Mohammed escalated into a bounty being placed on the heads of the cartoonists. Daily newspaper Jyllands-Posten published twelve cartoon drawings of Mohammed in September, sparking angry reactions from Denmark's Muslim population and a number of Muslim countries. A bounty of DKK 50,000 had been put on the head the cartoonist responsible for the drawings, daily newspaper Berlingske Tidende reported on Friday. The Pakistani group offering the reward mistakenly believes that the 12 cartoons were created by just one person.

Islam vs. Free Speech: The Case of Denmark

As an expression of solidarity, you can send in this draft message:

I would hereby like to express my support for the newspaper Jyllands-Posten publishing cartoons of Islam’s prophet Muhammad. Freedom of speech is the lifeblood of a democratic society, and cannot be tampered with. Muslims in Denmark freely exercise this right, even to say things that people in Denmark find greatly offensive. A leading Danish mufti in 2004 said that Danish women not wearing the veil “were asking for rape.” Another imam wanted to import the sharia concept of blood money to Denmark, and pay the equivalent of 100 camels for a man’s life. If Muslims in Denmark think these are acceptable statements, they cannot by any right claim to be offended by a few simple drawings. At least not if they really mean that Islam is compatible with Western democracy. Jyllands-Posten should know that this case is being followed by individuals from all around the world, and that you have the support of thousands of people who don’t want to see their freedom slip away. Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen should also be commended for his clear and principled stand in this case, as Dutch ex-Muslim Ayaan Hirsi Ali points out. In an age where too many political leaders shy away from defending the basic values of our societies, it serves to Denmark’s credit to have a leader who still possesses a backbone.

I would also like to condemn the actions made by the ambassadors of several Muslims countries in this case, and those of Turkey in particular. The behavior of the Turkish government is incompatible with that of a nation with a desire to become a part of a Western community such as the EU. If Turkey thinks that the EU shouldn’t be a Christian club, than Turkey should respond in kind by withdrawing from all “Islamic clubs” such as the OIC. Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan has earlier stated that anti-Islamism should be viewed as a ”crime against humanity”, has pushed for criticism of Islam to be treated as racism within the EU and is now backing an effort to curtail the freedom of speech of the citizens of an EU nation. These actions are not those of a secular politician such as Ataturk, but more closely mirror the attitude of the Ottoman sultans of old. They indicate that a Turkey within the EU would threaten the freedom of European citizens, and clearly demonstrate that Turkey is not yet ready to become a part of the European community.

Suggested email addresses:

Newspaper Jyllands-Posten:

jp@jp.dk , debat@jp.dk

Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen:

stm@stm.dk

Embassy of the Republic of Turkey, Copenhagen, Denmark:

turkembassy@internet.dk

Office of the Turkish President:

cumhurbaskanligi@tccb.gov.tr

The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC):

info@oic-oci.org , cabinet@oic-oci.org

Infidels in Space

2005-12-07T03:33:00.000+01:00

Via Replikk. Iran wants its own space program, and are getting help and technology from Russia (and maybe North Korea). Cartoon by Cox & Forkum, who are nominated in Wizbang's 2005 Weblog Awards under the category Best Humor/Comics Blog . Give them your vote, will you?

"Too few politicians quit" - Persson

2005-12-06T13:59:00.000+01:00

"Too few politicians quit" - Persson

Too few Swedish politicians resign, and they are too afraid to accept personal responsibilty. That was the argument put forward in a 1997 book by Göran Persson. Today, however, he is singing from a different hymn sheet: after last week’s stinging report on the government’s handling of the tsunami disaster, Sweden’s prime minister said that nobody would lose their job. In the book, Those who are in debt are not free, Persson made his philosophy clear: leaders should pay for their mistakes with their jobs. “Many of our bosses and leading politicians get criticised but remain in their jobs. It would be better if people left their jobs, often to go on to a much better life. I believe that if people went of their own accord and took the initiative it would be easier to make a comeback,” he said in one passage of the book, which was brought to light again by Swedish Radio on Tuesday. Last week the Catastrophe Commission’s report said there were serious failings in the way the government handled the aftermath of the tsunami disaster. The report was widely seen as containing the damning criticism of a Swedish government in living memory, but Persson appeared to have changed his philosophy. He insisted that his resignation or that of any member of his government would solve nothing.

Swedish PM slams French government over riots

Swedish Prime Minister Göran Persson has criticised the way the French government has handled the unrest in the country. "They have chosen a confrontational route and it is hard to see how it will become a dialogue," he said. Persson reserved his strongest criticism for France's interior minister, Nicolas Sarkozy. "It's clear that if you resort to emergency legislation then it's naturally very dramatic, the like of which I haven't seen in Europe in the last 30-40 years. It feels like a very hard and confrontational approach." Persson also rejected the idea of more local police as a "first step" in Sweden. "It could be a method that works, but I don't believe that's the way we would choose in Sweden. For us it is about working on the opportunities for education. To start sending out signals about strengthening the police is to break with the political line we have chosen to follow," he said.

Sweden: Shots fired at police station

A police station in Södertälje, near Stockholm, was hit by around fifteen shots from an automatic weapon on Sunday night, following a major confrontation between local youths and police. Apart from police staff, two civilian women were in the police station. They were being questioned about a reported harrassment earlier in the day, which had been the background to the rioting. The women had called the police and reported that they had been harrassed in the shop where they work. Police refused to reveal details of their allegations, because questioning had been broken off by the gunfire, but three young men who had been identified by the women were suspected of making illegal threats. The three men were released in the evening, but the arrests had provoked strong reactions among 20-35 other youths in the area. The group advanced on the police and attacked them with stones.

Is Swedish Democracy Collapsing?

This article in the newspaper Expressen about Prime Minister Göran Persson's visit to Malmö during May Day is brimming with sarcasm, presenting him as a modern Swedish version of clueless Marie Antoinette:

Swedish Prime Minister Göran Persson, surrounded by a dozen body guards, took part in the May Day demonstrations in the city of Malmö. "It is a splendid celebration, a manifestation of freedom and security", Persson says. Meanwhile, a couple of blocks from there, a handicapped man is beaten to the ground by a group of thugs. The victim was about to demonstrate under the slogan "Welfare is most important". Now he is kicked in the face and the chest. When two of the assailants are finally taken into police custody, the man is terrified and suffering from severe pains. "This is one of Sweden's finest meeting places," says the Prime Minister as he enters the platform after listening to Socialist anthem The Internationale. "In a Malmö I love. Sweden's face to the world." Persson doesn't notice that the police are taking action against a neo-Nazi counterdemonstration nearby. "Open to the winds of the world lies my fair country," says Persson. "There is no greater freedom than security. A society with clean air, clean water and safe people, open to the world.". It's 3.3o pm and a police patrol is cutting down a doll resembling a politician being hanged, carrying a photo of Malmö's Mayor Ilmar Reepalu. The Prime Minister has just promised improved dental care for young people, and concludes: "Look up! The fabulous fact is that the sun is breaking through." The police and the fire department get an alarm. The Örtagård school in Rosengård, an area of Malmö with close to 100 % Muslim immigrants, is burning yet again. Several police patrols are called out. But Prime Minister Persson has already been escorted by special security police into his bulletproof Volvo, on his way back to the Cabinet's private jet and out of Malmö.

Sweden's rising Muslim tide

2005-12-06T12:44:00.000+01:00

Hey, do they read Fjordman at the Christian Science Monitor?? With thanks to Charles Johnson and LittleGreenFootballs:

Sweden's rising Muslim tide

As a group of Swedish Muslims begin their midday prayers in a mosque still blackened by smoke from a recent Molotov-cocktail attack, Bejzat Becirov, director of Malmo's Islamic Center, is talking urgently. "I'm afraid the same thing will happen here as in Paris," says Mr. Becirov, a Macedonian immigrant who opened Scandinavia's first mosque in this city in southern Sweden in 1984. Malmo, which has one of the highest percentage of Muslims of any western European city, illustrates the challenges facing a continent whose native population is increasingly wary of a rapidly expanding and often discontented Muslim population. Bosnian authorities arrested a Muslim Swede in Sarajevo in October for possession of explosives while Islamist websites published several inflammatory but unsubstantiated claims in late summer that a mujahideen training camp has been established in southern Sweden. "France has a tradition of revolt and demonstration against the state," says Jonathan Friedman, professor of social anthropology at the nearby University of Lund. "But in Sweden it's almost as if the state has sided with the immigrants against the Swedish working class."

Some older Fjordman posts:

Is Swedish Democracy Collapsing?

There are few if any Western nations less suited intellectually to deal with the Islamic challenge than Sweden. It shows. Sweden is already a banana republic, perhaps on its way to becoming an Islamic republic. Swedish culture is disappearing with astonishing speed in front of our eyes. If the trend isn't stopped, the Swedish nation will simply cease to exist in any meaningful way during the first half of this century. The country that gave us Bergman, ABBA and Volvo could become known as the Bosnia of northern Europe. The "Swedish model" will no longer refer to a stable and peaceful state with an advanced economy, but an Eurabian horror story of utopian multiculturalism, Socialist mismanagement and runaway immigration. Sweden has national elections in 2006. This will be one of the last opportunities the country has to resolve its towering internal tensions in peaceful and civilized ways. Some fear it's already too late.

Another Arson Attack on Malmö Mosque

The mosque in Malmö was the target of a new arson attack just before midnight on Friday. Several minor fires were started in the main building, but these were put out quickly by the emergency services after passers-by had spotted smoke coming out of the building.

Swedish Cultural Symbols Targeted by Attackers

Two weeks ago in Malmö, the Scandinavian city with the highest percentage of Muslim immigrants, attackers vandalized graves in one of the city's churchyards. They only seemed to be interested in the crosses. This week, two important buildings and tourist attractions were destroyed by fire. Somebody also tried to set fire to an old church in the area. Is somebody deliberately targeting Swedish national and cultural symbols? Who would want to do that?

Sweden: Steep Rise in Crime

Instability is spreading to most urban and suburban areas. Street violence of all kinds is soaring on a national level. Private security companies are in great demand in major Swedish cities, as a serious lack of police to combat rising crime has made many citizens tired of being robbed. The official number of rape charges in Sweden has more than tripled in 30 years. The number of reported cases of physical abuse/assault in Stockholm has also tripled in three decades. This steep rise in all kinds of crime and violence has happened at the same time as an unprecedented amount of immigration to the country. Of course, Swedish politicians would never dream of connecting the two. However, in one of those rare cases where a Swedish newspaper has actually told the truth, Aftonbladet revealed that 9 out of the 10 most criminal ethnic groups in Sweden are Muslims. A trend known from other European countries such as France, where Muslims make up 10% of the general population, but 70% of the prison population.

Jihad in Swedish Schools

A high school teacher in Malmö, Sweden, who discovered that about a dozen Arab students were laughing and shouting "Allahu Akbar!" while watching a DVD of infidel hostages being beheaded in Iraq. The headmaster didn't think the incident was such a big deal. At least 139 schools in Sweden suffered arson attacks during 2002 alone. Björn Vinberg from the fire department in Kroksbäck in the Malmö area says it's humiliating and degrading to put out fires again and again in the same immigrant areas, with school kids laughing at them and lighting a new one just afterwards. His colleagues have been to the same place no less than twenty times, all totally unnecessary.

Swedish Welfare State Cracking?

Are we seeing some major cracks in the Swedish welfare state, with its 25% real unemployment rate? 500,000 people are on early retirement in Sweden today, 68,000 of whom are between the ages of 20 and 40. "If the sick-leave levels in Sweden really were an indicator of how sick we are, we would be facing a plague here."

U.S. Army report: Israel can't stop Iran nukes

2005-12-05T20:37:00.000+01:00

U.S. Army report: Israel can't stop Iran nukes

Geopolitical limitations render Israel's air force militarily incapable of halting Iran's nuclear weapons program according to a new report published the by U.S. Army War College. The report asserts Israel lacks the military capability to locate and destroy Iranian nuclear assets. The report said the Israel Air Force cannot operate at such long distances from its bases. "The Israeli Air Force has formidable capabilities and enjoys unchallenged supremacy vis-à-vis the other Middle East air powers, but Israel has no aircraft carriers and it cannot use airbases in other Middle East states," the report entitled "Getting Ready for a Nuclear-Ready Iran," said. "Therefore its operational capabilities are reduced when the targets are located far from its territory." Brom said Iranian nuclear assets are located between 1,500 and 1,700 kilometers from Israel. The report expressed doubts whether such Israeli allies as India and Turkey would allow Israel to launch a military strike from their territory.

Samira Munir - Champion for Muslim Women

2005-12-05T12:55:00.001+01:00

Samira Munir, Norwegian politician of Pakistani origins, died on November 14, 2005. All the details surrounding her death have not been revealed, but the police have hinted that it may have been suicide. It is not impossible that this could be the case, but she had received death threats many times from the Pakistani community in Norway because of her courageous fight for the rights of Muslim immigrant women, and for banning hijab, the Islamic veil. The website of Human Rights Service brought the shocking news that Samira had died under circumstances which still seem mysterious. Officially, she was killed by a train at Kolbotn station, one of the suburban lines outside Oslo. However, there has been quite a lot of speculation unofficially that the details surrounding her death don't add up, and that she may have been killed or even was dead before she was hit by the train.

Muslim men go to great lengths in Western European nations to control their women from outside influence and signs of independence. In Denmark recently, a number of taxi drivers with immigrant backgrounds were spying on female immigrants who were hiding from their families. Taxi drivers using mobile phones are photographing females, who are seeking asylum in crisis centres, and their whereabouts are being sent onto their families. A group of Taxi drivers informed a Pakistani man recently, who was looking for his sister, where she could be found. The man murdered his sister outside Slagelse train station because she had married a man from Afghanistan against her families orders. Samira Munir invoked the wrath of very powerful people with her fight against the veil and for the liberty of Muslim women. A Pakistani by birth, she was even threatened by Pakistani authorities and Pakistan's ambassador to Norway on several occasions.

Munir received many death threats against herself and her family because of her work as a champion of the rights of Muslim immigrant women. In an interview earlier this year, she claimed to receive threatening phone calls on an almost daily basis, and that Muslim men would stop her in the streets, intimidating her and threatening to kill her. She told that Muslim girls who refuse to wear the veil are seen as whores. She also claimed that there was widespread cooperation between the Socialist parties and Muslim communities during this year's elections in Norway. "The heads of families and the mosques would decide how entire groups of immigrants would vote. They made deals such as "How much money will we get if we get our people to vote for you?", and the deals were always made with the Socialist parties" said Munir, who was a local politician and a member of the city council in Oslo.

But Munir's own party, the Conservatives, were far from blameless in courting Muslims. Even as she lived with death threats for her fight to ban the veil, her own party leader managed to pass a law that would make any opposition to the veil "discriminatory" and illegal and that those accused of discrimination have to mount proof of their own innocence. Former Cabinet minister and leader of the Conservatives Erna Solberg, who has earlier called for the establishment of a sharia council in Norway, proposed the new act. In a recent case, a local furniture store wouldn't allow a female employee to wear a head scarf, arguing that it violated the store's dress code. Solberg argued that existing law already made it illegal for employers, for example, to prevent women from wearing head scarves if their religion calls for it. Her new law "would make this even more clear."

Samira Munir thus received no support whatsoever from her party in her struggle for the rights of Muslim immigrant women. Quite the contrary, one of her party colleagues, a Muslim, threatened her with a lawsuit for some of her statements. Her proposals to improve the conditions for Muslim women in Norway were continuously sabotaged and backstabbed by the rest of the party. She spoke about how Muslim girls who in public said they wore hijab of their own free will in private confided in her that they were being forced to do so, and urged her to carry on being a voice for those who had neither the possibility nor the courage to speak for themselves.

There are many uncertainties about Samira’s tragic death. But even if it was a suicide it does not add up. A healthy 42-year-old woman and the mother of two does not just jump in front of a train for no reason. As a matter of fact there has to be a very good reason. If that is what actually happened we will probably never know the true reason in detail, but a few facts we do know. We know that both she and her family were being harassed and received death threats, and we know she was being very concerned about the development of the Muslim immigrant community in Norway, which is becoming ever more radical and extremist. The pressure against her, and the bleak outlook for the future can surely be enough to drive a person to commit suicide, and the lack of support from within the Conservative party most certainly did not make it any better. So even if the final act was one of her own choosing her blood remains on the hands of Norwegian Muslims and their appeasers on both sides of the political spectrum.

Perhaps the real question isn't whether Samira Munir was pushed in front of that train, but whether she was pushed physically or just mentally. The night before she died, Samira Munir had expressed great satisfaction on Norwegian radio with the European Court of Human Rights upholding a ruling banning the veil in Turkish universities. She was a brave woman, and will be missed. Her death puts this country to shame. May she rest in peace. But first of all, she is a symbol and a tragic reminder of just how bad the situation is becoming for Muslim women in Europe, and how hypocritical "Multicultural" Europeans are. Even in Scandinavian countries priding themselves of being champions of women's rights, Muslim women who stand up for their rights receive too little support and risk ending up dead in front of a train. Samira Munir's death is thus a warning to Europeans of how dangerous things are starting to become, not just in France, but all over Western Europe.

Oslo politician felt pressured by Pakistan's ambassador

A member of Oslo's City Council who was born in Pakistan but now holds Norwegian citizenship has twice been called to Pakistan's local embassy. Both times, Pakistan's ambassador to Norway questioned her political standpoints, and now Norway's foreign minister Jan Petersen has been told that she felt pressured. The two calls from Pakistan's ambassador to City Council member Samira Munir have raised eyebrows. It's highly unusual for a Norwegian citizen to be asked to meet up in another country's embassy to draft political issues with an ambassador. "It crosses the line, to put it mildly, if pressure is put on our politicians," said the city's top elected politician Erling Lae. "An embassy has nothing to do with what a politician on Oslo's City Council may believe." Lae, Petersen and Munir all hail from Norway's Conservative Party (Hoeyre). Munir has lived in Norway since the early 1970s and has been a Norwegian citizen for more than 20 years. The calls from Pakistan's embassy came after Munir became the first known Muslim woman in Norway to support a proposed ban on the use of head scarves and other religious symbols for youth. She then became a target of criticism within the local Pakistani community. She declined to comment on the issue after receiving several anonymous and bothersome phone calls. Newspaper Aftenposten Aften understands that Pakistan's ambassador, Shahbaz Shahbaz, noted in his second meeting with Munir that she still has family in Pakistan. Shahbaz confirmed he has had two meetings with Munir in his office since she went public with her position on religious head scarves called hijab in February. They had no contact prior to that point.

The Big Four Alliance

2005-12-05T02:45:00.000+01:00

The Big Four Alliance

Over the past six months, the Bush administration has upgraded its budding "strategic partnerships" with India and Japan. Along with the steady "special relationship" with Great Britain, what is beginning to emerge is a global coalition system--it is too soon to call it a true alliance--for the post-Cold War world. Much work remains to be done to translate the expressions of similar political interests and values into usable military strength. Still, the prospects for expanding the number of genuine "stakeholders" in the Pax Americana are quite bright. It is built around four great powers--the United States, Great Britain, Japan, and India--who share four basic strategic principles--that the dangers of radicalism, failing despotic governments, and nuclear proliferation in the greater Middle East are too great to ignore; that the growing military strength and political ambitions of Beijing's autocrats make it far from certain that China's rise will be a peaceful one; that the spread of representative forms of government will increase the prospects for a durable peace; and that military force remains a useful and legitimate tool of national statecraft. It is no accident that the four pillars of this emerging alliance stand in roughly similar geostrategic position relative to the Eurasian landmass. In the nomenclature of international relations theorists, the United States, Britain, Japan, and India fit the traditional profile of offshore balancers --powers apart from, but with vital interests in, Eurasia. In India's case, the Himalayas ranges give, albeit less perfectly, the separation that the English Channel, the Sea of Japan, and the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans have given to others, but the basic relationships are the same.

Den flerkulturelle verdenskrigen

2005-12-05T02:11:00.000+01:00

Fjordman fikk kjeft av Anders Giæver i VG for å være ”retorisk rabiat”. Det er selvsagt mulig at jeg er det, men det kan også hende at jeg ser noe VGs kommentator ikke ser, eller vil se. Ja, jeg tror dette er de tidlige fasene av en verdenskrig, og jeg tror det er såpass mange som begynner å ane det nå at det ikke lenger bare kan avfeies som paranoia. I beste fall er vi ubehagelig nær en verdenskrig. I den grad jeg har tatt feil av noe hittil, er det faktisk at jeg har undervurdert problemet. Det som skjedde, og fortsatt pågår i Frankrike, var 100 % forutsigbart. Det var like forutsigbart at Jihad-opptøyene raskt spredte seg til land som Belgia, Nederland og til og med Danmark, om enn i mindre omfang. Det overrasket meg imidlertid litt at det skjedde så tidlig. Om fem år kanskje, om ti år sannsynligvis, om femten år definitivt, men ikke allerede nå. Selv Bat Ye’or, som har oppfunnet begrepet ”Eurabia” om det islamiserte Europa, var noe forbauset over dette, så jeg er i godt selskap.

Det Frankrike som vi kjenner er ferdig og vil bryte sammen. Selv om de skulle hermetisk lukke grensene, hvilket de ikke kommer til å gjøre, er det nå så mange muslimer innenfor landets grenser, og med et så høyt antall barn, at borgerkrig sannsynligvis er uunngåelig. Med mindre franskmennene kort og godt gir opp og aksepterer islam, noe som ikke er utenkelig. Flere andre vesteuropeiske land er like bak i køen, særlig Nederland, Belgia og Sverige, men også deler av England, Danmark og Tyskland. De ligger klare som dominobrikker, som vil falle over i tur og orden når de virkelige problemene starter. Norge ligger ikke like ille til, men vi er raskt på vei mot det samme problemet, når innvandrere snart vil dominere hele Osloregionen og flere andre av våre større byer. Det er liten grunn til å forvente noe annet resultat her.

Det enkle faktum er at den franske staten for lengst har mistet kontrollen over deler av sitt eget land. Dette begynte slett ikke i 2005, det ble bare svært tydelig nå. Det finnes store, og stadig flere, soner der muslimske grupper kontrollerer gatene og der sharia er lov. En kvinne ble i fjor steinet til døde, ikke i Afghanistan, men i Frankrike. Er Frankrike på vei til å bli en ”failed state”, ikke i Sentral-Asia eller Afrika, men midt i hjerte av Europa? Det er et land som har anslagsvis 500 atomstridshoder, noe som gjør dem til den tredje største atommakten i verden, etter USA og Russland. Vil Frankrike bli det tredje muslimske landet med atomvåpen, slik Mark Steyn spør, etter Pakistan og Iran?

Det vi ser nå er at muslimske innvandrere holder ett av de største og viktigste landene i Europa, EUs drivkraft og fast medlem av FNs Sikkerhetsråd, som gissel. De har demonstrert at de kan utfordre hele landets politistyrke, og holde stand. De har i realiteten truet til seg vetomakt over all fransk politikk i fremtiden. Franske myndigheter kan aldri igjen gjøre noe, verken hjemme eller på den internasjonale arenaen, uten å ta hensyn til muligheten for en eksplosjon fra sin raskt voksende og stadig mer aggressive hjemlige femtekolonne. Kan Frankrike da lenger regnes som et vestlig land, eller er det i praksis en arabisk-muslimsk koloni? Og holdes ikke nederlendere, engelskmenn og dansker i stadig større grad som gisler i egne land på samme måte? Den konstante trusselen om terrorangrep gjør at muslimer kan presse frem stadig nye innrømmelser, og i stigende grad kneble den ytringsfriheten som hele demokratiet er avhengig av. Europeisk demokrati er nå i større fare enn det har vært noen gang siden nazismens fremvekst på 1930-tallet, kanskje større.

Som Hans Rustad skriver: Nazistene og kommunistene tok makten over sine samfunn mot alle odds. De gjorde det fordi deres tro var så mye sterkere enn motstandernes, som var splittet. Islam har en like sterk tro. Vi har delt opp vår verden i mange deler. I islam tilhører hele mennesket islam. Det er en skremmende og fascinerende forestilling. Det løser en masse problemer. På 30-tallet ble det kalt den totalitære lengsel.

Det eneste som kan hindre krig i større skala nå er at Vest-Europa kort og godt gir opp, og aksepterer islamsk overhøyhet: Eurabia. Det er slettes ingen umulighet, i praksis er det bare en fortsettelse av dagens appeasement-politikk, men jeg tror personlig at man vil få en nasjonalistisk motreaksjon som vil skape krig i flere land. Det vil da i prinsippet være tre mulige utfall: 1. Islam underlegger seg Vest-Europa, 2. Islam blir kastet ut av Vest-Europa eller 3. Balkanisering. Muslimer og ikke-muslimer deler Vest-Europa mellom seg, i et komplisert kart med flere islamske mini-stater a la Kosovo. Dette er fullt i samsvar med islams lære, som sier at de vantro enten skal underkaste seg eller kriges mot. Den innvandringen som har pågått de siste tiårene er ett av de største feilgrepene som er begått i moderne europeisk historie.

Stort sett alle steder der islam har gjort sitt inntog i verden i løpet av de siste 1400 årene er resultatet blitt krig og voldshandlinger, der enten den opprinnelige befolkningen blir utslettet og/eller islamisert, eller der man får meget langvarige kriger om territorium. Bevisbyrden ligger strengt tatt på de som hevder at resultatet skulle bli noe annerledes i Europa. Det som skjer i Frankrike tyder dessverre ikke på det.

Helle "Hamas" Klein i Aftonbladet snakker om at svenskene trenger å "oppdatere sin svenskhet". I den svenske debatten er det nå blitt intolerant og rasistisk å i det hele tatt snakke om at "vi" skal integrere "dem". Sagt på en annen måte: Problemene vi ser nå i Europa skyldes at det er så provoserende mye igjen av den innfødte, vestlige kulturen. Vi må derfor intensivere vårt arbeid med å utslette den. Det synes å være elitenes konklusjon. Den flerkulturelle ideologien er slått feil, og svaret på det er.....enda mer flerkultur. Det er akkurat den samme logikken som ligger bak den nye diskrimineringsloven her hjemme. Konklusjonen på kritikk av din ideologi er å forby opposisjon til den. Det fungerte jo så godt i det gamle Sovjetunionen, med multikulturalismens eldre stebror kommunismen.

Det illustrerer også min påstand om at den flerkulturelle ideologien dypest sett er en hatideologi, bygget på vestlig selvhat og et ønske om å utslette den jødisk-kristen kulturen i Europa. De jødisk-kristne verdiene allerede har forvitret i flere generasjoner, og at det pågår en aktiv kampanje for å fjerne de siste restene av dem. Dette skjer i alle vestlige land, men mer i noen enn i andre. Sverige er et ekstremt tilfelle, der det er noe som ligner ren hets mot alt som kan oppfattes som "svensk". Dokument.no har sitert Finkielkraut tidligere på at ”Europa ikke lenger elsker seg selv”, og at konklusjonen på Auschwitz blir å utrydde absolutt hele kulturen som ledet frem til det, og til kolonitiden. Det er dette, ikke noen misforstått toleranse, som ligger til grunn for det flerkulturelle innvandringssamfunnet. Vi er vitne til et kontinents kulturelle selvmord. Islam er egentlig sekundært i dette. Det minner mer om et barmhjertighetsdrap på en hel sivilisasjon: Europa er lei av å leve, islam gjør bare slutt på dets lidelser. Europa har kjempet i 1300 år for å holde islam ute av kontinentet. I dag inviterer vi dem hit, betaler dem for å kolonisere oss og forbyr alle å kritisere dem. Europa hater seg selv og vil gjerne erstattes av noe annet. Muslimene har ventet på muligheten i over tusen år, og lar seg ikke be to ganger.

For øvrig er analysen til multikulturalistene riv, ruskende gal. Muslimer har intet ønske om å bli ”mer inkludert” i vårt vantro, vestlige samfunn. Deres religion forbyr det. De er her for å ta over vårt samfunn innenfra, eller i det minste avskjære seg fra det, samtidig som de kan nyte de økonomiske og teknologiske fruktene av det. Personlig tror jeg at en islamsk reformasjon er meget lite sannsynlig, ettersom islam og kristendommen kort og godt er grunnleggende forskjellige på vesentlige punkter. Forøvrig er det en av multikulturalismens "dirty little secrets" at en islamsk reformasjon, dersom den rent teoretisk skulle skje, høyst sannsynlig ville bli meget langvarig og voldelig, og gå tvers igjennom Europas storbyer. Den kristne reformasjonen var ikke akkurat noen piknik da den pågikk, og det var på et tidspunkt da man ikke hadde tilgang til atomalderens teknologi.

Mantraet om at ”mangfold er et gode i seg selv” blir gjentatt i blinde, uten at særlig mange spør om det faktisk er riktig. Premissene er at verden er stor og kompleks, og at å motta impulser fra så mange kulturer som mulig derfor er nyttig. Selv om dette skulle være riktig, hvorfor i all verden skal det være et argument for innvandring? Vi har internett, globalt fjernsyn og reiser over hele verden hyppigere enn noensinne. Vi mottar flere kulturelle impulser en vi rekker å fordøye, selv om vi bor i et monokulturelt samfunn.

Det landet i Vest-Europa som kanskje gjør det best i teknologi er også det som har tatt i mot færrest innvandrere: Finland. Nabolandet Sverige har tilsvarende skyhøy kriminalitet, og ledende svenske akademikere mener velferdsstaten allerede er avgått ved døden, ikke minst takket være utgifter på titalls milliarder hvert år grunnet innvandring. Flerkulturelle Libanon og Jugoslavia fikk borgerkrig, mens monokulturelle Norge hadde fred og stabilitet. Dersom ”mangfold er et gode i seg selv” og et konkurransefortrinn, hvorfor er da ikke afrikanske land med sine mange etniske grupper blant verdens rikeste?

Statsmaktens primære, noen ville si det burde være den eneste, oppgave er å opprettholde ro og orden i landet, å vedta lover etter folkets ønsker og til folkets beste og å sørge for at disse lovene blir overholdt. Det er smertelig klart at franske myndigheter ikke lenger klarer å opprettholde lov og orden i sitt eget land. Det ble sagt at situasjonen ”var tilbake til det normale” da hundre biler ble satt i brann hver dag, hvilket tilsvarer godt over 30.000 biler (!) per år. Dersom dette er ”normalt”, bør vi kanskje definere hva som egentlig kan karakteriseres som geriljakrig. Den skatten franskmenn betaler, som skal gå til å opprettholde landets lover, er tydeligvis bortkastet. Hvorfor skal franskmenn da fremdeles betale skatt, når statsmakten ikke overholder sin del av kontrakten? Det samme spørsmålet kan stilles i større byer over hele Vest-Europa, der aggressive innvandrergjenger i stadig høyere grad regjerer gatene.

Til og med i det en gang så fredelige Norge meldes det om foreldre som må kjøre barna sine til skolen fordi innvandrergjenger venter på dem utenfor. Ikke bare i de største byene, men også i mange av de mindre. I Kristiansand meldes det om norske skolegutter som har voldsalarm etter trusler og overfall fra innvandrere. På Grenland rapporteres det om jenter helt ned i femtenårsalderen som tvinges til å ha sex med kosovoalbanske bander. Samlet sett dreier det seg kanskje om tusenvis av norske barn som daglig, ukentlig lever i et lite frykthelvete i sitt eget land, uten at samfunnet greier å beskytte dem. Pers foreldre ser at deres skattepenger ikke gjør at myndighetene klarer å forhindre at en gruppe pakistanere truer deres sønn for penger og mobiltelefon gjentatte ganger. Samtidig ser Pers foreldre at deres skattepenger går til å betale nye moskeer og morsmålsundervisning for de samme pakistanerne. Hvorfor skal de gidde å betale det? Betyr skatt ikke da i praksis at man betaler andre for å kolonisere oss?

Når en kritisk masse av mennesker begynner å tenke slik, vil tilliten til våre myndigheter og institusjoner som demokratiet bygger på gradvis bryte sammen, og da vil hele vårt samfunnssystem gå sakte i oppløsning. Det snakkes allerede om borgervern flere steder, og i Sverige dukker det opp tilfeller av selvtekt. Da er alt lagt til rette for borgerkrig. ”Nå er krigen kommet!” ropte grupper av unge muslimer i gatene i Nederland i kjølvannet av opptøyene i Frankrike. De tok det for gitt at krigen ville komme. Kanskje ventet de utålmodig på at deres Jihad kunne starte på alvor. De må nok ikke vente lenge. Den eurabiske borgerkrigen vil antageligvis begynne før 2020, ikke 2050 slik noen snakker om. De fleste av dem som leser dette komme til å få se resultatene av flere tiårs innvandringsgalskap. Sannsynligvis vil det dreie seg om flere lavintensitets borgerkriger som gradvis smelter sammen til en, stor krig: ”Den flerkulturelle verdenskrigen".

Sjefen for Statistisk Sentralbyrå gjentar igjen og igjen at det er "lite innvandring til Norge", og pakker sine argumenter inn i mye statistikk. Dette er en klassisk hersketeknikk som brukes for å få vanlige folk til å føle seg små og dumme. Faktum er at innvandringsdebatten ikke er komplisert i det hele tatt. Den global befolkningen er nå på over 6 milliarder mennesker, og fremdeles voksende. Vi har også raskere kommunikasjonsmidler enn noen gang tidligere. Kombinasjonen av historiens største befolkningsvekst og historiens raskeste kommunikasjoner gjør at vi står med begge beina midt oppe i den største og raskeste folkevandringen i menneskehetens historie. Til sammenligning var den samlede globale befolkingen tretti ganger mindre under det som er blitt kalt Folkevandringstiden, etter Romerrikets fall. Og man hadde ikke fly, tog eller bil på den tida. Små land som Norge vil kort og godt bli knust under dette dersom vi ikke kjører en knallhard innvandringspolitikk. Dette er ikke paranoia i det hele tatt, bare en enkel lesning av tall.

Islamistenes mål er islamsk verdensherredømme. Punktum. Dette er fullt i tråd med islamsk lære slik den har vært siden Muhammeds tid. Det har ingenting med fattigdom, Bush, Blair, Guantanamo Bay, Irak eller Israel å gjøre, slik papegøyene på venstresiden gjentar til det kjedsommelige. Den vestlige sivilisasjonen står i veien for islamsk verdensherredømme. Europa må derfor knuses eller tvinges til å underkaste seg islam. Våre demokratier skal langsomt kveles innenfra gjennom muslimsk innvandring, og vi skal terroriseres med jevne mellomrom til vi av ren frykt gir etter for alt muslimene dikterer oss, til all krtikk av islam forbys eller trues til taushet.

Denne situasjonen var dessverre fullt forutsigbar. Innvandringspolitikken som har vært ført de siste tretti-førti årene, kombinert med den idiotiske ideen om et flerkulturelt samfunn, kommer til å bli stående som et monument over menneskelig dumhet. Vi lar millioner av mennesker fra en kultur som hater oss og har prøvd å knuse oss i over tusen år bosette seg i våre største byer, og så presterer vi å bli overrasket over at Europa stadig mer minner om en krigssone. Mens storbyene i Vest-Europa ligner trykkokere av etniske spenninger som følge av innvandringen, og Europa utsettes for de største folkevandringene i menneskehetens historie, selv større en Folkevandringstiden etter Romerrikets fall, sitter våre eliter og sier vi skal ØKE innvandringen.

Dess mer det blir klart at det flerkulturelle eksperimentet har mislyktes katastrofalt, dess hardere presser elitene på for at det skal gjennomføres. Selv om det setter helt grunnleggende rettssikkerhet til side. Ideen om et flerkulturelt samfunn, tvungen kulturell likhet, er en like farlig utopi som kommunismen, ideen om tvungen økonomisk likhet. Akkurat som kommunismen skadet Øst-Europa for generasjoner, vil det flerkulturelle idealet skape dype sår i Vest-Europa. Kanskje ødelegge byer og hele land for alltid. Islam i enhver form er uforenelig med vestlig demokrati, og kan ikke "integreres" mer med vår kultur mer enn ild kan integreres med vann. Muslimsk innvandring vil få katastrofale konsekvenser for Europa, og våre barn og barnebarn kommer til å betale regningen for vår feighet og dumhet.

Det er en fullstendig avpsoring å i det hele tatt hinte om at krigen i Irak er skyld i de terroraksjonene vå nå ser i Europa. Da nazi-Tyskland ble stadig mer aggressive på midten av 1930-tallet var deres forhandlere med vestmaktene instruert om at dersom deres krav ble møtt, skulle de umiddelbart komme med nye. Alle de "rimelige innrømmelsene" som demokratiene kom med, også kalt "appeasement", skapte bare mer forakt for deres svakhet hos deres anti-demokratiske motstandere. Det mest groteske eksempelet var da Tsjekkoslovakia ble kastet til ulvene, og Chamberlaine proklamerte "Peace in our time".

Kanskje er Israel vår tids Tsjekkoslovakia, et lite land som de store landene gjerne vil kaste til ulvene for å redde sitt eget skinn. De skjønner ikke at det lille offerlammet bare vil skjerpe ulvenes appetitt, før de går løs på resten av saueflokken. Vi fant rasjonelle grunner og unnskyldninger så lenge selvmordsbomberne bare gikk løs på jødene i Israel. Plutselig finner vi ut at de fortsetter med oss, og da har vi egentlig fortjent det.

Kanskje er det kvinnene i Europa som er vår tids Tsjekkoslovakia. Særlig innvandrerkvinnene, der altfor mange blant dem holdes innesperret og utenfor vårt fellesskap, uten at vi gjør mer enn halvhjertede forsøk på å hjelpe dem. Kanskje er det våre egne kvinner, som i økende grad i europeiske storbyer må gå i frykt for aggressive gjenger av muslimske innvandrere som trakasserer "hvite, vantro horer", mens et nesten samlet pressekorps ser en annen vei og skriver enda en artikkel om hvor fæle USA er.

Det er godt mulig at våre etterkommere vil omtale dette som "multikulturalismens verdenskrig", slik første verdenskrig var imperialismens verdenskrig, andre verdenskrig var fascismens verdenskrig og Den kalde krigen var kommunismens verdenskrig. Fascismen skapte en varm verdenskrig, kommunismen en kald en. Multikulturalismens verdenskrig er bare i sin spede begynnelse, men ting tyder på at den kommer til å bli meget varm.

Hva koster innvandringen? Åpent brev til Dagbladet

2005-12-05T00:17:00.000+01:00

Noe av det mest irriterende med Dagbladet er at de har ledet an i å fremstille Fremskrittspartiet, Carl I. Hagen og andre som har kritisert innvandringen som halvrasistiske tullinger i over en generasjon. Nå som svært alvorlige konsekvenser av den flerkulturelle innvandringen begynner å bli åpenbare i hele Vest-Europa, viser de ingen tegn til å innrømme at de har tatt feil. Tvert imot omtalte de FrPs tanker med ord som "brunspettede" og "grums" så sent som i november 2005. Det er mange av oss som har vært naive, men det finnes ærlig talt en grense for hvor dum det er lov til å være, og den er nådd nå.

Helt siden 1980-tallet har Dagbladet og andre argumentert for at innvandringen er lønnsom for oss. De drev noe som minnet om heksejakt på FrP-ere på 90-tallet som ville ha et innvandringsregnskap. Blant annet kjørte de en forside med Carl I. Hagen og skrev "Dette koster Hagen nordmenn", der de stilte opp et regnskap som viste at Hagen var en netto utgift for Norge som stat. Morsomt.

Nå begynner den egentlige regningen å komme på bordet, og det er det svært stille om. Høyreekstremistene i NRK meldte for eksempel at familien til 47 prosent av barn med ikke-vestlig bakgrunn trengte sosialhjelp i løpet av 2001. Dette er nesten ti ganger så mange som blant norske barnefamilier. Dersom dette er riktig, kan det da umulig stemme at innvandringen er lønnsom for oss? Aftenposten viste seinest i høst at en svært høy prosentandel av innvandrerne i Norge får sosialhjelp, uføretrygd eller andre former for offentlige støtte. Innvandringen vil derfor fortsette å bidra til en økt snarere enn til en redusert forsørgelsesbyrde, dvs. til at byrdene på den arbeidende befolkning blir større i stedet for mindre. Tall fra Sverige og Danmark tyder på at innvandringen koster samfunnet flere titalls milliarder kroner netto hvert år. Det er en av de viktigste grunnene til at hele den svenske velferdsstaten nå vakler, for eksempel. I tilfelle betyr det at en avis som Dagbladet har systematisk feilinformert nordmenn i over en generasjon, og aldri blitt stilt til ansvar for dette.

Ikke bare øker andelen innvandrere voldsomt, det koster oss altså store summer hvert år. Skandinavia og Europa må være den første sivilisasjonen i historien som med et smil betaler andre for å kolonisere oss, og henger ut alle som protesterer som "rasister". Vår elite synes dette har vært så vellykket at prosjektet bør fortsette på ubestemt tid. Tallene dreier seg bare om reine utbetalinger i sosialhjelp og trygd. Dersom vi inkluderer en sterk økning i kriminalitet og vold generelt som har fulgt i kjølvannet av innvandringen, stiger kanskje de årlige kostnadene med enda noen titalls milliarder. I tillegg kommer store utgifter til anti-terrortiltak, men også tolker, morsmålsundervisning, støtte til alle mulige foreninger og grupper, bygging av moskeer pluss, pluss. Likevel sier ledende politikere som Høyres leder Erna Solberg at dette er "ønsket innvandring" som vil ha positive økonomiske virkninger for landet. Hvorfor får hun slippe unna med å si noe som er åpenbart uriktig?

Dersom andre viktige samfunnsinstitusjoner hadde tatt så grovt og systematisk feil over et så langt tidsrom ville mediene krevd at de skulle stå til ansvar for det. Hvem gjør det når mediene selv har gjort det? Kanskje noen bloggere skal drite ut Dagbladet litt?

Dagbladet burde be Carl I. Hagen og Fremskrittspartiet offentlig om unnskyldning for tjue år med ufortjent hets. Hva med en forside som sier: "Sorry, Carl Ivar, vi tok feil. Det finnes ikke noe flerkulturelt samfunn"? De bør også argumentere for at han skal få Fritt Ords pris for sitt lange engasjement for å ta opp upopulære temaer. I den grad Hagen og FrP har tatt feil i noe er det fordi selv de kan ha undervurdert farene ved muslimsk innvandring. Ellers har de stort sett hatt rett i det meste. Dagbladet har drevet intellektuell terrorisme mot alle de som har kritisert et flerkulturelt samfunn som nå åpenbart ikke fungerer. Til en viss grad har denne intellektuelle terrorismen hjulpet med å gi virkelig terrorisme et fotfeste i Norge. Da Mulla Krekar stod helt åpenlyst og truet Norge med terrorangrep om han ble utvist, skrev Dagbladet på lederplass at riktignok likte de ikke det Krekar sa, men at "det er de ubehageligste ytringene som trenger det sterkeste ytringsvernet". En prisverdig innstilling til ytringsfriheten. Bare synd Dagbladets redaksjon har korttidshukommelse som en middels norsk gullfisk. Før valgkampen i år gikk nemlig Senter Mot Etnisk Diskriminering (SMED) ut med en erklæring der alle partiene skulle undertegne et løfte om å holde en "snill" valgkamp i innvandringsspørsmål. Alle unntatt FrP undertegnet, og FrP fikk kjeft for at de ikke lot seg presse med på dette. Dersom Dagbladet var så opptatt av ytringsfrihet burde de kanskje spurt hvorfor en statsstøttet institusjon som SMED fikk lov til å drive en slik åpenbar innskrenking av den offentlige debatten. Dagbladet bryr seg om ytringsfriheten til islamske terroristsympatisører som Krekar, men ikke til Olga fra Drammen som helst ikke vil at flere slike som Krekar skal kunne bruke Norge som sosialkontor og true oss etterpå.

Dagbladet har selv skrevet at "rasismen må bekjempes med andre midler enn forbud mot ytringer. Når man krever forbud mot ytringer, taler det om en mistillit til det sivile samfunnet. Når lovendringer innføres i Norge uten videre debatt og uten informasjon, taler det ikke bare om en mistillit, men om et nærmest bevisstløst sivilsamfunn." Hvorfor gjorde da Dagbladet ingenting da Erna Solberg satt og sa helt åpenlyst i deres egen avis at ytringsfriheten skal vesentlig innskrenkes, noe som da også skjer fra 2006 gjennom diskrimineringsloven og innskjerping av rasismeparagrafen? I følge Solberg er dette "først og fremst utformet med tanke på mennesker med etnisk bakgrunn", noe som på godt norsk betyr at en innvandringsdebatt som allerede hemmes av rasismehysteri nå skal knebles ytterligere. Innvandringen koster oss derfor mye mer enn bare penger: Den har allerede kostet oss vår trygghet, med stadig mer aggressive innvandrergjenger i mange byer og stigende terrortrusler fra muslimer. Og nå koster den oss delvis vår frihet.

Hva med å slå et slag for pressefriheten ved å gjentrykke de tegningene av Muhammed som danske Jyllands-Posten har fått trøbbel med? Kanskje kunne man også påpeke at den pakistanske gruppen som nå utsteder en dusør til den som dreper de danske illustratørene er den Qazi Hussein Ahmad var leder for da han besøkte blant annet Norges regjering ved Erna Solberg nylig? Den samme Solberg som altså vil ha "dialog" med muslimske fascister, men aktivt knebler sin egen befolkning. Eller kan det tenkes at Dagbladet synes religionskritikk er interessant bare når man kan hetse kristne? Først av alt bør Dagbladet kjøre en kampanje, sammen med resten av norsk presse, for å få Stortinget til å omstøte den fullstendig uakseptable diskrimineringsloven før den trer i kraft i 2006. Hvis ikke, kan man en gang for alle slå fast at Dagbladets snakk om ytringsfrihet er tom retorikk, bortsett fra når de kan omtale Norges nest største parti som "brungrumsete".

BAKGRUNNSINFORMASJON:

Mange innvandrerbarn trenger hjelp

Familien til 47 prosent av barn med ikke-vestlig bakgrunn trengte sosialhjelp i løpet av 2001. Dette er nesten ti ganger så mange som blant norske barnefamilier.

Innvandrere på trygdetoppen

En svært høy prosentandel av førstegenerasjons innvandrerne i Norge får sosialhjelp, uføretrygd eller andre former for offentlige støtte. Det fastslår samfunnsøkonom Tyra Ekhaugen, doktorgradsstipendiat ved Frisch-senteret i Oslo. Ekhaugen går langt i å motsi det en rekke politikere i mange år har hevdet; nemlig at Norge må løse sitt behov for arbeidskraft ved mer innvandring. Hvis ikke norsk integrasjonspolitikk legges drastisk om, vil innvandringen fortsette å bidra til en økt snarere enn til en redusert forsørgelsesbyrde, dvs. til at byrdene på den arbeidende befolkning blir større i stedet for mindre. Generelt sett har Norge bare vært i stand til å utnytte arbeidskapasiteten til innvandrere fra den tredje verden i perioder med ekstrem høykonjunktur, ifølge Ekhaugen. Forskere fra blant annet Statistisk sentralbyrå (SSB) har flere ganger hevdet at "innvandringen går seg til gjennom tid". Tyra Ekhaugens avhandling tyder på at SSB tar feil.

- Kriminelle utlendinger må utvises

I Norge er vi naive. Det er et enormt gap mellom det folk oppfatter som virkelighet og den faktiske kriminelle virkeligheten. Arne Johannessen og Politiets Fellesforbund vil utvise utlendinger som begår kriminalitet. - I 1993 ble ble det anslått at krininaliteten i Norge koster omlag 40 milliarder kroner i året Det er dessverre grunn til å frykte at mørketallene i dag er minst det dobbelte - mellom 80 og 100 milliarder kroner, sier forbundslederen.

Den nye underklasse

Mange indvandrerkvinder forklarer, at de ikke søger job, fordi de skal passe børn, og familien ikke ønsker at de arbejder. En anden faktor er, at mange ville gå ned i indkomst, hvis konen tog et job. En ny undersøgelse fra Rockwoolfondens forskningsenhed har netop sat fingeren på dette punkt. Undersøgelsen viser, at mange indvandrere har meget lidt økonomisk at vinde ved at tage et job. 35 procent af de beskæftigede indvandrere, som stod i en A-kasse i 2001, havde mindre end 500 kroner ekstra om måneden ved at gå på arbejde frem for at være arbejdsløs. I dag koster det samfundet 33 milliarder kroner årligt, at indvandrerne ikke er i arbejde i samme omfang som danskerne.

Indvandrere er på overførselsindkomst

Langt flere indvandrere end danskere modtager overførselsindkomster. Det drejer sig om 25 procent af danskerne, mens det for eksempelvis irakere og somaliere er over 70 procent, der forsørges af det offentlige, viser en ny undersøgelse fra Beskæftigelsesministeriet. For indvandrere fra ikke-vestlige lande drejer det sig om 42 procent.

Every other immigrant unfit for work

Every other immigrant from the Third World lacks the qualifications for even the most menial jobs on the organised Danish labour market, a new study finds. Daily newspaper Politiken reported on Monday that an unreleased study from the Rockwool Foundation Research Unit, a privately funded social and economic research institution, revealed that immigrants were worse off than previously thought. 'The new figures indicate that up to half the group will have problems handling a job corresponding to the minimum wage of unskilled labourers,' said the unit's research chief Torben Tranæs. 'If you look at the immigrant population, lack of qualifications will be an enormous problem.'

Velfærdskommisionen foreslår indvandrerstop

Et stop for indvandring fra mindre udviklede lande kan løse problemet med, at færre unge skal forsørge flere gamle, mener Velfærdskommissionen.En total opbremsning i indvandringen fra mindre udviklede lande kan spare statsfinanserne for 50 mia. kr. om året i 2040. "Velfærdskommissionen påpeger, at indvandring ikke vil løse problemet, snarere tværtimod. Mens en nyfødt dansker i gennemsnit vil koste samfundet 750.000 kr. fra vugge til grav, vil omkostningen på en indvandrer på grund af generelt lavere erhvervsdeltagelse være 2,5 mio. kr., vurderer Velfærdskommissionen. »Det er således knap tre fjerdedele af det samlede langsigtede finansieringsproblem, der tilskrives den fremtidige indvandring fra mindre udviklede lande,« skriver Velfærdskommissionen.“

En del innvandrere oppfatter Skandinavia som et stort sosialkontor:

An Immigrant's Tale

In Sweden my family encountered a political system that seemed very strange. The borders were apparently not very heavily watched, since the smuggler could drive us all the way from Berlin to Stockholm without encountering any government officials. The driver bragged about how he was responsible for getting thousands of people into the country. The interpreter told us that Sweden is a country where the government will put a check into your mailbox each month if you don't work. She explained that there was no reason to get a job. Although my mother got several jobs, we concluded that this really didn't improve our family's economy. During the sixteen years we have been in Sweden, my mother has in total worked less than one year.

Selsom kronikk om Mekka-tur i Aftenposten

"Fordi jeg jobbet for en pakistansk butikk, men arbeidet der er helt "uoffisielt": Hverken sjefen eller jeg betaler skatt til norske myndigheter. Jeg har videre 100 prosent uføretrygd og mottar full stønad fra trygdebudsjettet, og jeg skammet meg ikke over det. Jeg må være lur for å tjene mest mulig penger, fordi dette er det eneste formålet mitt med å være i Norge. Allah, derimot, er alltid imot penger som er tjent ved hjelp av knep, og sier at den slags penger ikke er lovlig i det hele tatt for en muslim. Når det gjelder kjøringen min, er jeg også litt sleip, for jeg kjører uten førerkort og narrer myndighetene når jeg blir spurt om å vise førerkortet. Da svarer jeg alltid til politiet:"Å, beklager - lommeboken med førerkortet ligger igjen hjemme, men vær snill å sjekke personnummeret mitt!" Navnet mitt står ikke skrevet i ansiktet mitt og avslører hvem jeg er, så jeg bruker å gi dem navnet og personnummeret til vennen min som har gyldig førerkort."

Innvandringen er en av de viktigste grunnene til at den svenske velferdsstaten nå er i full oppløsning:

Vad kostar invandringen?

Invandringens kostnader uppgick enligt mina beräkningar 1999 till 267 miljarder kronor. 1990 uppgick kostnaden för invandringen till 100 mdr. Den starka ökningen under nio år upp till 267 mdr beror bland annat på att vi har en kostsam välfärd, som även invandrarna får del av. Invandringskostnaden ökade årligen med 11 procent under hela 1990-talet. Det är nästan tre gånger så mycket som ökningen för hela den offentliga sektorn.

Invandrarna kostar 30 mdr inte 267

Invandrarna kostar 30 mdr inte 267. För närvarande är läget att invandrarna årligen tar i anspråk cirka 30 miljarder kronor mer av den offentliga sektorn än vad de bidrar med i form av direkta och indirekta skatter samt socialförsäkringsavgifter. Denna skillnad finansieras av infödda, vilket således blir kostnaden för denna grupp.

Vem ska försörja flyktingarna?

Flyktingar. Flyktingmottagandet kommer att öka kraftigt. Enligt Andreas Carlgren på Integrationverket väntas 24 000 människor till Sverige under 2006 — en tredubbling av det kommunala flyktingmottagandet på ett år. En hel liten svensk småstad! Men Herre Gud, vem skall betala för försöjningen av alla dessa människor? Sverige har redan det högsta skattetrycket i EU, och medborgarna får minst ut tjänster för pengarna. Visst kan man tycka synd om dessa männsikor som är ifråga, men det finns miljarder människor som det är synd om, och alla kan inte bo i Sverige! Den svenska invandrarpolitiken kostar flera hundra miljarder kronor per år. Kan vi inte reda upp problemen med alla de invandrargetton som redan finns innan vi tar ännnu fler från vilt främmande kulturer? Finns det ingen verklighetsförankring hos de svenska politikerna? Det bör väl tilläggas att merparten av dessa 24 000 människor redan fått avslag på sina asylanskökningar!

"Svenska modellen fungerar inte"

Den svenska modellen fungerar inte längre. Sverige är inte längre en välfärdsstat. En ny forskarraport visar att antalet sysselsatta har minskat kraftigt, med drygt 250.000 personer under de senaste tio åren. Två forskare vid Internationella handelshögskolan i Jönköping har kartlagt samtliga vuxna som inte arbetar. Inte bara de arbetslösa, utn även långtidssjukskrivna, förtidspensionerade, studerabde och andra utanför arbetsmarknaden. Rapporten visar att cirka 23 procent av den arbetsföra befolkningen är "icke arbetande", skriver professor Bo Södersten som leder forskargruppen.

Søkte asyl for å stjele

En liga fra tidligere Jugoslavia søkte asyl for å begå kriminalitet i Sverige. På tre måneder begikk de 2000 forbrytelser. Falske familier hadde med seg "barn" som kunne stjele mens "familiene" bodde gratis med sosialstønad. "Familiene" kom til Malmø i juni og juli i år og hevdet de var forfulgte i det tidligere Jugoslavia. Migrationsverket i Sverige sendte dem til asylmottak i Kronoberg der de ble sendt videre til leiligheter i området. De fikk penger til livsopphold, manglet de noe, så fikk de ekstrabidrag. Fra sitt faste sted i Kronoberg startet de tyverier i Halmstad, Ljungby, Växsjö, Kalmar, Malmø og Karlskrona, skriver aftonbladet.se De fremstod som familier. Alle tenåringene ble oppgitt til å være under 15 år, (under den kriminelle lavalder).

Sweden: Polish Dentists and Thai Doctors

2005-12-04T15:41:00.000+01:00

Via Geopolitical Review:

Polish Dentists and Thai Doctors

Like "the Polish plumber", who in France has come to symbolize the challenges of low-cost services from new EU members, Swedes are grappling with the phenomenon of Polish dentists and Thai doctors, who are offering services at half the cost of their Swedish competitors. While Stockholmers with toothaches are flocking to "City Dental", which opened earlier this month in the heart of the capital and is staffed entirely by Polish dentists, not everyone is happy. "Is this the beginning of the end for the Swedish model?" asked Marja Torsteinsrud, a dentist from Vaesteraas, west of Stockholm, in an irate letter to the Dagens Nyheter daily this week. "In the short term the winners are those who buy services cheaply, but in the end only businessmen and profiteers will benefit."

"It's a challenge," admitted Ingemar Olsson, spokesman for the Swedish health ministry. "But the government has always said that it welcomes competition when it happens in a fair way, according to the laws," he told AFP. Reports have suggested that the team of Polish dentists would leave Sweden before six months are up to avoid paying Sweden's exorbitant taxes and social charges, to be replaced with a fresh team, which will also stay for just six months, and so on. Within weeks of the Polish dentists arriving, a hospital in Thailand opened up an information centre this week in Stockholm to persuade Swedes to travel to Thailand for private care and skip long public sector queues at home. "In Sweden, the waiting period for an operation or treatment can be anywhere from two to 80 weeks," Leif Erre, the head of the Swedish company RelaxU which is organizing the trips, told AFP. Despite the controversy, the challenge to the Swedish healthcare model "should not be exaggerated", the health ministry's Olsson said. "The real challenges are political, for example if the conservatives win the next election and start privatizing hospitals. That would be a real threat," he said.

Napoleon's genocide 'on a par with Hitler'

2005-12-03T12:40:00.000+01:00

I believe there are two very different interpretations of both Napoleon and of the French Revolution that preceded him: One is the traditional French/continental version, in which the French Revolution is seen in a positive light, and Napoleon is viewed as a great, albeit megalomaniac, French leader. The other is the Anglo-American version, in which the French Revolution is viewed as leading directly into chaos and terror, and later to the rise of an authoritarian warmonger: Napoleon. In this interpretation, the French Revolution leads to the Totalitarian and Utopian ideologies of 20th century Europe, and Napoleon is an early version of Lenin or even Hitler. The British propaganda was, however, false on some points: The "diminutive" French general wasn't very short at all. Napoleon was about average height, perhaps slightly above, for men of his time:

Napoleon's genocide 'on a par with Hitler'

A French historian has caused uproar by claiming Napoleon provided the model for Hitler's Final Solution with the slaughter of more than 100,000 Caribbean slaves. In The Crime of Napoleon, Claude Ribbe accuses the emperor of genocide, gassing rebellious blacks more than a century before the Nazis' extermination of the Jews. His accusations refer to the extreme methods used to put down a ferocious uprising in Haiti at the start of the 19th century. Then known as San Domingo, the colony was considered a jewel of the French empire and to save it troops launched a campaign to kill all blacks aged over 12. "In simple terms, Napoleon ordered the killing of as many blacks as possible in Haiti and Guadeloupe to be replaced by new, docile slaves from Africa," Ribbe said yesterday. He said he had found accounts from officers who refused to take part in the massacres, especially the use of sulphur dioxide to kill slaves held in ships' holds. His book is already provoking controversy prior to its publication on Thursday. The newspaper France Soir juxtaposed images of Napoleon and Hitler yesterday before asking: "Did Napoleon invent the Final Solution?"

Napoleon Fans to Re-Enact 1805 Triumph

France's defense minister met with Czech leaders Friday while in the Czech Republic to help commemorate the 200th anniversary of Napoleon's battle of Austerlitz. "We live in the present, but we always return to the roots of our history," French Defense Minister Michele Alliot-Marie said after meeting her Czech counterpart, Karel Kuehnl, in Prague. "It is a celebration of the strategy and tactics of the armies that fought there," she said. "It also is a celebration of the wisdom of nations that succeeded in overcoming problems that were dividing them." Later Friday, Alliot-Marie traveled to Austerlitz, the site of the battle in which Napoleon Bonaparte defeated Russian and Austrian armies in 1805. She laid a wreath at the Zuran Hill from which Napoleon directed the battle. "We gathered here to remember the event that was both tragic and fascinating in the history of Europe," Alliot-Marie said. She said that the reconstruction of the battle connected thousands of people who had come from around the world "not to celebrate a war, but to commemorate those who died ... for their countries." Napoleon enthusiasts planned to re-enact the famous battle Saturday at its original site near Slavkov, known in history books by its German name Austerlitz and located near the Moravian capital of Brno, about 150 miles southeast of Prague.

Napoleon was poisoned: toxicological study

Napoleon Bonaparte was murdered by arsenic poisoning and did not die naturally of a stomach cancer, according to a new toxicological study which attempts to end long running historical controversy. "The latest analysis suggests a criminal intent," said Dr Pascal Kintz, a toxicologist who regularly gives expert evidence in court cases, and who conducted a new study on Napoleon's hair. For International Napoleonic Society (INS) spokesman Jean-Claude Damamme the new study by Dr Kintz has produced "the definitive proof of the criminal poisoning of Napoleon". Napoleon died aged 51 in 1821, on the island of St Helena in the south Atlantic, where he had been banished after his military defeat by British and Prussian forces at Waterloo. The toxic form of arsenic, used for centuries as rat poison, was found in Napoleon's hair samples at 37 to 42 times above the normal level in the new study.

Battle of Trafalgar Anniversary Sunk by Political Correctness

Admiral Horatio Nelson may have guided the British naval fleet to a famous victory at the Battle of Trafalgar, but he faces a far tougher foe during celebrations to mark its 200th anniversary -- the massed forces of political correctness. According to a newspaper report on Sunday, organisers of a re-enactment of the sea battle next month have decided to bill it as between a "Red Fleet" and a "Blue Fleet", rather than Britain and its French and Spanish adversaries. This is being done to avoid the embarrassment of assembled French dignitaries at the event feeling humiliated by watching their nation routed again, The Sunday Times said. Official literature for the planned event next month will also be toned down, describing the extravaganza as a re-enactment not of Trafalgar but of "an early 19th century sea battle". Trafalgar, in which the British Royal Navy saw off a combined Franco-Spanish fleet off the southern coast of Spain, marked a crucial defeat for Napoleon's sea power. Nelson himself fell during the battle, mortally wounded by a French sharpshooter.

Tolerance or Death!

2005-12-03T04:10:00.000+01:00

By Bruce Bawer:

Tolerance or Death!

For some Europeans in the expression business, government limits haven't been necessary: they've opted for self-censorship. After being "warned by Muslim friends" shortly after van Gogh's murder, Dutch movie director Albert Ter Heerdt decided to "postpone" a sequel to his "multicultural comedy" Shouf Shouf Habibi! And in January producer Gijs van de Westelaken canceled a screening of Submission at the Rotterdam Film Festival, whose theme was "censored films." (Instead, the audience saw two pictures sympathetic to suicide bombers.) Defenders of this many-fronted assault on free speech routinely tag critics of Islam as racists. Of course, Islam is not a race but a religion whose ideology should, in a democratic society, be entirely open to criticism—and, for that matter, to parody and mockery. Outraged by the House of Commons measure, comedian Rowan Atkinson (who plays the character Mr. Bean on television) commented: "For telling a good and incisive religious joke, you should be praised. For telling a bad one, you should be ridiculed and reviled. The idea that you could be prosecuted for the telling of either is quite fantastic." Atkinson was nearly alone among British authors, artists, and entertainers in his vocal criticism of the bill.

Online Workshop Part 3: What are Islam's Weak Points, and How do We Exploit Them? What are Ours, and How do We Fix Them?

2005-12-02T15:01:00.000+01:00

How do we defeat Islam? What are Islam's weak points, and what are ours? Ali Sina from Faith Freedom International wants to confront Islam by education. I support and applaud his efforts, but I don't think they will solve all the problems. Quite a few hardcore Islamists have more than average education, for instance. Islam has rational components. It is an excellent warrior creed (or at least used to be) and is great as an excuse for plundering the wealth of others. But first and foremost, it is an irrational cult based on fear. As such, it may not always be susceptible to rational arguments. So what is the solution? Please give your thoughts about this, and I'll make another post about the issue later. For inspiration, you can start with reading a couple of essay by Ohmyrus over at FFI, and continue with some comments by readers over at the Gates of Vienna:

Once were warriors: Why Islam failed Muslims

Islam is a warrior’s creed that served its early followers well. From impoverished desert tribes, they rose to forge an empire in a short time that stretched from Spain to India. The ethos it engendered – brotherhood for believers, contempt and hatred for non-believers, belief in heavenly rewards for fallen warriors, a high fertility rate (which requires the subordination of women), blind obedience – created formidable warriors. But these same qualities are handicaps for Muslims in the age of the microchip. Today they lead to poverty, belligerency, war and defeat. Many Muslims look back with fondness to their days of glory and try to recover their former days by using the old methods. That is why there is today a rising tide of Islamic fundamentalism across the Muslim world. They are bewildered at their weakness and look for conspiracy theories. Muslims think their failure is due to some Jewish or American plot not realizing that failure comes from within themselves. They are out of touch with reality. Once were warriors, Muslims are now like Don Quixote tilting at windmills in a world they no longer understand.

World War IV

Islam also teaches Muslims to see themselves as part of a nation of Muslims who happen to live in different countries – even in non-Muslim ones. Their loyalty to the nation state is subordinated to the loyalty to the Ummah. This is so even if they are second or third generation British or American or whatever. Each new generation will be taught by Islam to maintain its primary loyalty to the Ummah. Even new converts switch loyalty. In World War IV, the US has handicapped itself by making false declarations such as “Islam is peace”. All world wars have at least three components – the military, ideological and the economic. In World War III, the ideological component was more important than the military one. In World War I and II, it was the military component that was more important. Yet by praising Islam, Bush and Blair have already given up the ideological warfare without firing a shot.

You cannot defeat Islamism without defeating Islam. It is like trying to fight Communism while praising Marxist economic theories! In the Cold War, the US and its allies did not hesitate to argue that Marxism is a false ideology. Marx's ideas are wrong and cannot lead mankind to a better future. The democratic world must make the same case against Islam. Otherwise, we cannot win without relying heavily on the military component, which means more bloodshed. Perhaps we cannot win at all. Remember what Sun Wu said in his classic, “The Art of War”. The side with the higher moral standing is more likely to win. To do this, a leader must convince his people that their cause is just. You cannot persuade your people to make exertions if they do not understand what they are up against. Thus the burden of ideological warfare falls on groups like FFI.

Confronting the Enemy

peggy said...

I have been saying for a long time that the solution to the problem that islam poses is a simple one if we only have the courage and vision to pursue it relentlessly. Just tell the truth about it. The truth is our greatest weapon. We should only resort to other means if our free speech to protest against islam were threatened by the powers that be and then it is our right as citizens to fight those powers. The average muslim person should never have to worry about our intentions towards their persons or families or property or businesses or prayer centers as long they abide by the laws of our land. If we keep to the high ground, we should with time be able to turn things around. The first idea we must get across with meticulous care is this: It is possible to oppose islam without bearing hatred towards all those who believe it and everyone should be able to freely and openly dispute the ideas and beliefs of others by right as long as they dont call for violence against the other group in an indiscriminate way that would hurt peaceable folks.

Heloise said: Mohammed was a brilliant intuitive leader/general/ and he and his companions devised a near perfect closed system of war aginst the rest of humanity. Although a large percentage of the muslim world is illiterate, I don't believe that education is the answer here for I know muslims with PhD's that want the world to become islamic and for the sharia to be the law of all lands. Rather, I think, only by showing allah is not infallible can we be victorious in keeping our freedom, our life, our liberty and pursuit of our happiness.

Jason_Pappas said...

Be honest – brutally honest. Peggy covered this but let me put it in my words. Call things as they are. We are civilization and we should boast of our aspirations and achievements. We are facing Islamic barbarians and we should make the appropriate moral judgments without hesitation. I trust I don’t have to explain this point in this venue. Nor do I have to contrast this with the moral equivalence, relativism, and multi-cultural nonsense. Let’s appreciate two important points about being honest – its effect on us and its effect on them. Being honest will reaffirm our values, maintain our intellectual and moral clarity, and maintain morale. It’s the only way to live. That being said, there is also the instrumental effect on the enemy. Arab societies are very sensitive to humiliation and shame. During the 19th century, when the British weren’t shy about their cultural greatness, they helped to virtually eradicate slavery around the world. They shamed Arabs into changing. Muslims never developed Abolitionist Societies but they did capitulate and marginalize many aspects of their religion.

PD111 said...

joec:

Your comparison of islam to cancer, set me off in a flight of whimsical thought, yet again.

Over the years islam has been a compared to a virus, cancer, a pandemic. In some ways yes. However, such diseases are unthinking, they are bacteria, virus or the body attacking itself. None of these are able to plan and think. Islam OTH is carried forward by human beings capable of planning, thinking, and organising a plan of devouring infidel cultures, all in keeping with explicitly written down instructions in the jihad manual. Islam in my view, is more like a predator- a tiger or lion, and one that operates in the social domain. Islam is really a very good predator in the cultural domain, in and off human cultures. There is no other predator in the cultural domain except islam.

If we regard islam as a top predator and the rest as prey, it is easy to see why no other culture, whether Hindu, Buddhist or Christian has been able to withstand islam. No matter if a deer resists or not, it has no chance against a tiger or lion. The deer can preach the benefits of vegetarianism to the tiger as much as it likes (as our politicians are doing right now), the tiger will merely smile and then proceed to devour the deer.

Here again is an oft quoted view of Churchill on islam.

“How dreadful are the curses which Mohammedanism lays on its votaries! Besides the fanatical frenzy, which is as dangerous in a man as hydrophobia in a dog, there is this fearful fatalistic apathy. The effects are apparent in many countries. Improvident habits, slovenly systems of agriculture, sluggish methods of commerce, and insecurity of property exist wherever the followers of the Prophet rule or live. A degraded sensualism deprives this life of its grace and refinement; the next of its dignity and sanctity. The fact that in Mohammedan law every woman must belong to some man as his absolute property, either as a child, a wife, or a concubine, must delay the final extinction of slavery until the faith of Islam has ceased to be a great power among men. Individual Moslems may show splendid qualities - but the influence of the religion paralyses the social development of those who follow it. No stronger retrograde force exists in the world. Far from being moribund, Mohammedanism is a militant and proselytising faith. It has already spread throughout Central Africa, raising fearless warriors at every step; and were it not that Christianity is sheltered in the strong arms of science, the science against which it had vainly struggled, the civilisation of modern Europe might fall, as fell the civilisation of ancient Rome.”

—Sir Winston Churchill, from The River War, first edition, Vol. II, pages 248-50 (London: Longmans, Green & Co., 1899).

Note in particular the last sentence. Christianity withstod islam not because of its martial strength but because it was fortunate enough to invent modern science and its handmaiden - technology.

So how do we tackle a predator such a tiger or a pride of lions prowling about our towns and cities. There are two humane options in current use.

1. Dart and confine them to a zoo (prison), where they are unable to harm humans.

2. Sedate and then ship back to the wilds i.e. to their native habitat.

We are at the moment employing option 1 i.e. after the predator has killed a human or several humans.

Islam is a code of life that was codified by Mohammed for a tribal and nomadic culture. If some humans persist to live by this code in civilised and settled societies such as ours, then a severe clash is inevitable, as we are finding out. If in addition the tribal culture is predatory, then we have virtually no options left except 2. The lion or the tiger will not lie down with the lamb.

I believe that option 2 is far better. We are happy and the predator is also more content in his native habitat.

The Carnival of the Armchair Generals

Bill said...

I'm not taking exception here about the posters who desire the "high ground." It is a strategy to win, and that alone makes it unassailable from the standpoint of those who would surrender. However.... Why should America bother to take the high ground? Someone explain to me the benefits of America playing by "white glove" rules when no one else will play by them? Who are we trying to impress? Our own egos? The rest of the world will undoubtedly write a history that excoriates our war and how we win it (under the assumption that we will). If we are the bad, evil bastards no matter how we wage this war, does it make any logical sense to hamstring our efforts to win as quickly and as efficiently as possible? We're going to be villains no matter how we act. Just look at Gitmo for any indication of the world's opinion, no matter how far we push the royal treatment on people that have never before seen such luxury. This high ground? Is this just a salve for our own conscience as secularist Americans (whatever religious background) because we're engaging a war against a politically correct religion in contravention of all politically correct righteousness? More lives will be spent this way.

The playing field will NEVER be level, Peggy. Islam fights from Heaven. You cannot change that fact, for devout Muslims. There is no higher place than heaven. Muslims have no need for a level field. They, according to their Qu'ran, are gods chosen ones. There is no "high ground" that we can occupy, in regards to Islam. We will win, or they will win, by the sword.

China's new way of tracking its people

2005-12-02T13:43:00.000+01:00

The optimists in the USA, or "Panda huggers" as they are called, think that China will eventually move in a democratic direction, and that the economic growth in China does not constitute a threat to the USA. China could indeed become democratic or it could implode, but it could also become a Fascist state held together by fierce nationalism:

China's new way of tracking its people

China was considering the introduction of a new weapon to curtail dissent: Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags. About the size of a grain of rice, RFID tags are relatively simple devices comprised of an integrated circuit and antenna that transmits information to a receiver called a “reader.” The reader is then processed according to the needs of the host or particular application. Calls by the Chinese government for the rapid acceptance and broad implementationofRFID technology have grown louder recently, based upon several perceived benefits, including increased efficiencies related to supply-chain management; cost savings; and the ability for government agencies to capture, share and save vast amounts of accurate and precise data. But many critics are beginning to question whether Beijing’s sudden interest in RFID technology is driven by a more sinister, underlying “benefit”—the potential to track human beings. Dr. “Rocky” Shih, a Chinese government representative, stated at last year’s RFID World Conference that he expected China would issue more than 1 billion active RFID identification cards—one for each Chinese citizen. Approximately 3 million handheld RFID readers would also be issued by the Chinese government, one for each police officer in the country.

Denmark: New death threats against Mohammed cartoonists

2005-12-02T13:07:00.000+01:00

Denmark is a brave and underrated little infidel nation. Even though they already have trouble because of these cartoons of Muhammad, they still want to make a Muslim "Lif of Brian" - movie based on Ayaan Hirsi Ali's script:

New death threats against Mohammed cartoonists

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has warned Danish travellers to Pakistan of increased hazard after a Danish newspaper's decision to publish cartoons of Muslim prophet Mohammed escalated into a bounty being placed on the heads of the cartoonists. Daily newspaper Jyllands-Posten published twelve cartoon drawings of Mohammed in September, sparking angry reactions from Denmark's Muslim population and a number of Muslim countries. A bounty of DKK 50,000 had been put on the head the cartoonist responsible for the drawings, daily newspaper Berlingske Tidende reported on Friday. The Pakistani group offering the reward mistakenly believes that the 12 cartoons were created by just one person. Danish Ambassador to Pakistan Bent Wigotski said the bounty had been promised by religious party Jamaat-e-Islami and its youth organisation, which had also demanded Danish representatives expelled from the country. Danish authorities immediately informed the Pakistani government about the death threats and bounty promised by the party, which is described as nationalistic and fundamentalist. Ever since the demonstrators marched through the streets of Islamabad, the party has been spreading its message through the media and flyers. Wigotski said he had no plans to leave Pakistan, despite hundreds of angry protest letters from Muslims around the world.

'But the situation is of course serious,' he said. 'They might want to get to the Danish illustrators, but if they can't reach them, they could make to with a scapegoat.' That scapegoat could be anybody, the embassy warned, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has issued a new travel advisory for Pakistan warning Danes not to visit the country, given that the Jyllands-Posten cartoons were 'seen by many Muslims as derogatory and blasphemous'. Pakistani Ambassador to Denmark Javed Qureshi denounced the death threats. 'No Pakistani government would ever support such a thing, I'm sure that the current government will take action in the case. I can't imagine that a bounty like that doesn't violate Pakistani legislation,' said Qureshi, who was one of the 11 Muslim ambassadors in Denmark to sign a protest letter to Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen about the cartoons. Jyllands-Posten had no comment about the bounty placed on the cartoonists' heads.

Islam vs. Free Speech: The Case of Denmark

As an expression of solidarity, you can send in this draft message:

I would hereby like to express my support for the newspaper Jyllands-Posten publishing cartoons of Islam’s prophet Muhammad. Freedom of speech is the lifeblood of a democratic society, and cannot be tampered with. Muslims in Denmark freely exercise this right, even to say things that people in Denmark find greatly offensive. A leading Danish mufti in 2004 said that Danish women not wearing the veil “were asking for rape.” Another imam wanted to import the sharia concept of blood money to Denmark, and pay the equivalent of 100 camels for a man’s life. If Muslims in Denmark think these are acceptable statements, they cannot by any right claim to be offended by a few simple drawings. At least not if they really mean that Islam is compatible with Western democracy. Jyllands-Posten should know that this case is being followed by individuals from all around the world, and that you have the support of thousands of people who don’t want to see their freedom slip away. Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen should also be commended for his clear and principled stand in this case, as Dutch ex-Muslim Ayaan Hirsi Ali points out. In an age where too many political leaders shy away from defending the basic values of our societies, it serves to Denmark’s credit to have a leader who still possesses a backbone.

I would also like to condemn the actions made by the ambassadors of several Muslims countries in this case, and those of Turkey in particular. The behavior of the Turkish government is incompatible with that of a nation with a desire to become a part of a Western community such as the EU. If Turkey thinks that the EU shouldn’t be a Christian club, than Turkey should respond in kind by withdrawing from all “Islamic clubs” such as the OIC. Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan has earlier stated that anti-Islamism should be viewed as a ”crime against humanity”, has pushed for criticism of Islam to be treated as racism within the EU and is now backing an effort to curtail the freedom of speech of the citizens of an EU nation. These actions are not those of a secular politician such as Ataturk, but more closely mirror the attitude of the Ottoman sultans of old. They indicate that a Turkey within the EU would threaten the freedom of European citizens, and clearly demonstrate that Turkey is not yet ready to become a part of the European community.

Suggested email addresses:

Newspaper Jyllands-Posten:

jp@jp.dk , debat@jp.dk

Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen:

stm@stm.dk

Embassy of the Republic of Turkey, Copenhagen, Denmark:

turkembassy@internet.dk

Office of the Turkish President:

cumhurbaskanligi@tccb.gov.tr

The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC):

info@oic-oci.org , cabinet@oic-oci.org

Last Days of Fjordman - Request for Topics?

2005-12-01T14:31:00.000+01:00

This is the last month I will write here, and I will shut down the blog probably within the coming ten days or so. I have some posts that I will make anyway, but maybe some of my readers have some requests for topics we could discuss here during the last couple of weeks? I have to make a selection, as I don't have enough time to do everything.

And yes, I will shut down during December, that decision is final. It's only a matter of which date. I keep getting emails from people who want me to keep on blogging. I appreciate that, but I won't change my mind.

Film director sparks debate over origins of 'Harry Potter'

2005-12-01T14:12:00.000+01:00

The latest movie, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, is quite good, and people should see it. But it is no longer for children, and I didn't see as many 7-year-olds in the cinema as I did during the first one:

Film director sparks debate over origins of 'Harry Potter'

A Norwegian film director has sparked a debate in Norway over whether JK Rowling really is the enormously successful author who launched the Harry Potter craze, or whether she's just a good actress fronted by multinational commercial interests. Film director Nina Grünfeld simply thinks the rags-to-riches story of JK Rowling is too good to be true. Writing in a commentary in Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten's cultural pages this week, she questioned whether it's really possible for Rowling to have been the sole creative force behind what's become an international book and movie empire. Grünfeld recounted the stories told about Rowling, where it's claimed the aspiring author was a poor, single mother with a hungry child to feed, who got the idea for Harry Potter while she sat on a delayed train between Manchester and London. With no money for paper or an office, Rowling reportedly started scribbling out the story of Harry Potter on paper napkins picked up in Edinburgh's cafés. Grünfeld called it a "fantastic" story, that "gives hope" not least to single mothers around the world as well as mothers with unrealized dreams and strong purchasing power.

"But can a person be so productive and commercially successful in a media industry where nothing is left to coincidence?" wondered Grünfeld. "Is it possible that a person can write six thick books that are translated into 55 languages and sell more than 250 million copies in less than 10 years? Is it probable that the stories then get filmed and commercially exploited to the degree seen here, without any well-thought-out strategy or highly professional players behind them?" And then came Grünfeld's provocative question: "Is it possible that JK Rowling exists?" Her own answer: "Well, who do they think they're kidding? Not me!" Grünfeld then went on to float what she willingly concedes may be a conspiracy theory, that the books instead have been produced by hack writers like those at the syndicate that produced the "Nancy Drew" mystery series for young readers. The author printed on all the books, "Carolyn Keene," never really existed, Grünfeld notes, adding that she thinks Rowling is a product of "a gigantic concern with the names Bloomsbury Publishing plc and Warner Bros" in the concern's ranks. "I may be both paranoid and conspiratorial, but I can't shake the thought that JK Rowling is a pseudonym along the same lines as Carolyn Keene," wrote Grünfeld, the 36-year-old daughter of a prominent psychiatrist who's been decorated by King Harald. Grünfeld recently completed a highly acclaimed documentary on her father's life as a juvenile Jewish refugee from Slovakia who was sent to Norway in the 1930s, and knows all too well the challenges artists face in securing financing for projects. "I think the secret behind JK Rowling is guarded more strongly than the entrance to Willy Wonka's chocolate factory," Grünfeld wrote. The truth, she believes, won't emerge until "the market for Harry Potter is saturated, until the actress behind JK Rowling gets tired of her role and not until the real authors behind the pseudonym feel an enormous need for recognition."

Nonsense, reply Norwegian publishers and translators. Torstein Bugge Høverstad, who has translated the "Harry Potter" books into Norwegian, says the books offer evidence that just one author is behind them. He notes how it took three years to get the fourth book finished, and he sees consistent weaknesses in Rowling's writing that no group of hack writers would leave behind. Tom Dahl of publishing firm Damm, which releases the books in Norway, says he doesn't take Grünfeld's theory seriously. "This is pure speculation," Dahl told Aftenposten on Thursday. "It's fun to fantasize about such theories, but this one is entirely without facts. We're parking (Grünfeld's theory) here and now." Øyvind Hagen, head of the first publishing house who had the rights to "Harry Potter" in Norway, Bazar Forlag, laughed at Grünfeld's commentary in Aftenposten. "I met the author (Rowling) a few years ago, and she was decidedly genuine and human, in addition to being a charming and quite special person," Hagan said. "There are actually some people who are very talented and productive."

Iran Nuclear Race Reaches Point of No Return

2005-12-01T00:25:00.000+01:00

Iran Nuclear Race Reaches Point of No Return

The Iranian nuclear arms race has reached a point of no return, stated the head of Israeli intelligence, Gen. Ze’evi Farkash, at a meeting of the Knesset Committee for Foreign Affairs and Defense. He believes that the current diplomatic window that would prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear arms is soon to close, even within a few weeks. Gen. Farkash stated that diplomatic moves against a nuclear bomb in Iran were reaching a point of no return in terms of the Iranian nuclear arms race. Farkash added that the Iranians had improved their technique of preparing centrifuges to a very advanced level, which is of some concern to the Israeli defense and diplomatic echelons. Members of the committee expressed their concern due to the western countries’ inability to stem Iran’s race toward nuclear arms.

Iran president had ‘religious vision’ during UN speech

A leading website in Iran has published a transcript and video recording of President Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad claiming to have felt “a light” while addressing world leaders at the United Nations in New York in September. Baztab.com – a website linked to Mohsen Rezaei, former commander of the Revolutionary Guards – said the recording was made in a meeting between the president and Ayatollah Abdollah Javadi-Amoli, one of Iran’s leading Shia Muslim clerics. According to the transcript, Mr Ahmadi-Nejad said someone present at the UN, possibly from his entourage, subsequently told him: “When you began with the words ‘In the name of God’… I saw a light coming, surrounding you and protecting you to the end [of the speech].” Mr Ahmadi-Nejad said he sensed a similar presence. “I felt it myself, too, that suddenly the atmosphere changed and for 27-28 minutes the leaders could not blink,” the transcript continues. “I am not exaggerating…because I was looking. All the leaders were puzzled, as if a hand held them and made them sit. They had their eyes and ears open for the message from the Islamic Republic.”

Iran's new president glorifies martyrdom, says that Islam will conquer the world

A nation with martyrdom knows no captivity. Those who wish to undermine this principle undermine the foundations of our independence and national security. "The message of the [Islamic] Revolution is global, and is not restricted to a specific place or time. It is a human message, and it will move forward. "Have no doubt... Allah willing, Islam will conquer what? It will conquer all the mountain tops of the world."

Iran's New President: “The wave of the Islamic revolution will soon reach the entire world”

IRAN’S ultra-conservative President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, threw down a challenge to the West yesterday by declaring that his election victory marked the dawn of a new Islamic revolution that would spread around the world.

The Death of Samira Munir - Accident, Murder or Suicide?

2005-11-30T18:01:00.000+01:00

This is a sensitive topic, but I believe it needs to be talked about. Samira Munir, Norwegian politician of Pakistani origins, died two weeks ago. All the details surrounding her death have not been revealed, but the police have hinted that it may have been suicide. It is not impossible that this could be the case, but she had received death threats many times from the Pakistani community in Norway because of her courageous fight for the rights of Muslim immigrant women, and for banning hijab, the Islamic veil. Regardless of what caused her death, it is a fact that she received far too little support from Norwegian authorities and even her own party, who were afraid that her outspoken defence of women's rights could cost them Muslim votes and damage the country's glossy, Multicultural self-image. Her death thus puts this country to shame. She was a brave woman, and will be missed. May she rest in peace. The following text is not written by me, but by Norwegian Islam-critic Prithivi from Antipsykopatisk Senter, and was posted at the forum of Faith Freedom International:

The Death of Samira Munir - Accident, Murder or Suicide?

Of Pakistani origin, Samira Munir proclaimed herself to be a muslim. She was not, however, your average muslim woman, not by a long shot. For those familiar with Irshad Manji, the Canadian author who wrote the book The Trouble With Islam and runs the website Muslim Refusenik Samira Munir can probably be best described as a Norwegian counterpart or equivalent of Irshad Manji. Samira spoke relentlessly and very courageously for the rights of women in the muslim immigrant community in Norway, how they were faced with threats of forced marriages, so called honour-killings and female sexual mutilation. She also warned Norwegian politicians of dire consequences of their neglect and indifference. As a matter of fact she entered politics herself. she was elected to the municipal assembly in Oslo as a representative for The Conservatives. As one would expect she received no support whatsoever in her struggle for the rights of muslim immigrant women. Quite the contrary, one of her party colleagues, a real muslim, threatened her with a lawsuit for some of her statements. Rumours have it that within the party she was not looked upon favourably at all, they feared that her outspoken critics of muslim leaders may cost them muslim votes. Her proposals to improve the conditions for muslim women in Norway were continuously sabotaged and backstabbed by the rest of the party, including a proposal to copy the French ban on hijab i public schools. She spoke about how muslim girls who in public said they wore hijab of their own free will in private confided in her that they were being forced and threatened to do so, and urged her to carry on being a voice for those who had neither the possibility nor the courage to speak for themselves.

In several interviews she told that she was being harassed and receiving death threats, not only against herself, but also against her family. Then, on November 14, 2005, the website of Human Rights Service brought the shocking news that Samira had died under circumtannces which still seem mysterious, to say the least. The story was that she had been run over by a train at a station on one of the suburban lines in Oslo. For someone who recently had claimed she was receiving almost daily death threats this seemed highly suspicious. It was made even more suspicious by the fact that the PC media in Norway for several days did not mention by a single word what had happened. Earlier the same day as she was killed she had participated in a radio discussion where she defended the ban on hijab in universities in Turkey. After several days the mainstream Norwegian media eventually broke the story, but in a very muted way. Between the lines they kind of suggested that she had taken her own life, and that out of “respect” one should not try and dig deeper into the story. Although the mainstream media hardly reported the case at all there has of course been a lot of discussions about it in Norwegian internet forums. Many seem convinced that she was murdered by some Norwegian muslims who pushed her into the track as a train was passing. Some suggest she was doped and placed on the tracks to await an arriving train. The latter is based on the fact that one report claimed she was killed between two stations, rather than at a particulalar station. Considering all the hatred and all the threats she had received from muslims in Norway that does not seem unlikely, to say the least. The fact that the Pakistani ambassador had summoned her twice may even suggest that the Pakistani ISI (Interservice Intelligence) was involved.

There are many uncertainties about Samira’s tragic death. But even if it was a suicide it does not add up. A healthy 42 year old women, and the mother of two, does not just jump in front of a train for no reason. As a matter of fact there has to be a very good reason. If that is what actually happened we will probably never know the true reason in detail, but a few facts we do know. We know that both she and her family were being harassed and received death threats, and we know she was being very concerned about the development of the muslim immigrant community in Norway, becoming ever more radical and extremist. The pressure against her, and the bleak outlook for the future can surely be enough to drive a person to commit suicide, and the lack of support from within the conservative party most certainly did not make it any better. So even if the final act was one of her own choosing her blood remains on the hands of Norwegian muslims and their islamophile friends in the conservative party.

Oslo politician felt pressured by Pakistan's ambassador

A member of Oslo's City Council who was born in Pakistan but now holds Norwegian citizenship has twice been called to Pakistan's local embassy. Both times, Pakistan's ambassador to Norway questioned her political standpoints, and now Norway's foreign minister Jan Petersen has been told that she felt pressured. The two calls from Pakistan's ambassador to City Council member Samira Munir have raised eyebrows. It's highly unusual for a Norwegian citizen to be asked to meet up in another country's embassy to draft political issues with an ambassador. "It crosses the line, to put it mildly, if pressure is put on our politicians," said the city's top elected politician Erling Lae. "An embassy has nothing to do with what a politician on Oslo's City Council may believe." Lae, Petersen and Munir all hail from Norway's Conservative Party (Hoeyre). Munir has lived in Norway since the early 1970s and has been a Norwegian citizen for more than 20 years. The calls from Pakistan's embassy came after Munir became the first known Muslim woman in Norway to support a proposed ban on the use of head scarves and other religious symbols for youth. She then became a target of criticism within the local Pakistani community. She declined to comment on the issue after receiving several anonymous and bothersome phone calls. Newspaper Aftenposten Aften understands that Pakistan's ambassador, Shahbaz Shahbaz, noted in his second meeting with Munir that she still has family in Pakistan. Shahbaz confirmed he has had two meetings with Munir in his office since she went public with her position on religious head scarves called hijab in February. They had no contact prior to that point.

The Battle for France

2005-11-30T02:21:00.000+01:00

By Paul Belien from the Brussels Journal:

The Battle for France

France is not exceptional. Police officers and firemen are used to having stones thrown at them in Western Europe’s immigrant neighborhoods as a normal part of their daily routine. This is what Andrew Osborn of the British Sunday newspaper The Observer wrote after visiting Borgerhout, the largely Moroccan suburb of the Flemish city of Antwerp, in December 2002: “Outsiders aren’t welcome. ‘Go home before we beat your f------g white ass,’ is how one group of young men greet The Observer. Passing police cars are bombarded with a barrage of expletives and spittle.” Here is what Rolf Landgren, a police officer in the Swedish town of Malmö, told Steve Harrigan of Fox News in November 2004: “If we park our car it will be damaged—so we have to go very often in two vehicles, one just to protect the other vehicle.” Fear of violence has changed the way police, firemen, and emergency workers do their jobs, explained Harrigan. There are some neighborhoods Swedish ambulance drivers will not go to without a police escort.

These examples, unknown to Americans but all too familiar to many Europeans, show how for years virtual no-go areas have been forming in Old Europe. The areas were abandoned by left-leaning authorities intent on not “provoking” the immigrants with police presence. These pockets of Eurabia are scattered across the western part of the continent. Some of the gangs consist of Islamic radicals, some are plain mafia gangs engaging in “secular” criminal activities, some are a mixture of both. Whenever right-wing law-and-order politicians try to reassert the state’s authority over their territories, heavy rioting follows. Indeed, it is more convenient to think that the cause of the riots is plain thuggishness resulting from discrimination on the job market. The poor natives who live in the immigrants’ neighborhoods know better, however. They know that the generals of Eurabia, the leaders of the “youths,” drive BMWs and Mercedes (which no-one dares to set alight), and that they use mobile phones and PCs to instruct their highly mobile troops. The war in France is not about social injustice, but about territory.

The Luckiest Generation - With apologies to my children

2005-11-30T00:38:00.000+01:00

This has to be the most pessimistic essay I've read to date. I'm not sure whether this is the end of European civilization, but it is definitely the end of an era. And yes, we will face some very troubling times for several decades until a new era can begin:

The Luckiest Generation - With apologies to my children

Born between VE Day and VJ Day, I missed all the greatest horrors of the 20th century. If granted a normal lifespan**, I shall miss the horrors of the 21st, too. If my parents' generation was the greatest, mine has been the luckiest. For that, in this Thanksgiving season, I give sincere and heartfelt thanks. Government is hopelessly broken. Though far larger now than in 1957, it does less, and it does that less very badly. Its most elementary functions — defending our borders, keeping a thrifty eye on the national wealth, apprising us of what our enemies are up to — are no longer performed to any effect. These failures themselves are only symptoms of some more profound civilizational sickness. Western — let us be blunt about it: white-European — civilization is on its way out. If you make a study of any aspect of cultural history — I have just finished a book on one such topic — you are struck by the towering achievements of Europeans and their offspring cultures during the 19th century (which lasted from 1815 to 1914). What went before was mere prologue; what came after were futile, frustrated attempts to re-heat the soufflé. There is of course a sense in which the horrors of 1914-1945 were themselves a product of19th-century overconfidence. Once we had got all that out of our system, though, and found the point of balance, the later 20th century was set to be a garden of delights for those of us in free nations. So much was this so, we did not notice that we were romping through that garden in a deepening twilight.

If I compare my own life to the lives of my parents, and to the prospects for my children, I am struck by my immense good fortune in having been born when and where I was. I was actually born early on a Sunday morning, in a nursing home behind St. Matthew's church in Northampton, England, three weeks after VE Day. I was fit and ready. Lucky! Lucky! Lucky! I can't believe my kids will have that kind of luck. The welfare state, which provided my education, no longer works — not for them, not for anybody. (I sometimes marvel at how well it did work to lift up the deserving poor in the years after WWII. Don't laugh; it really did.) I shall have to beggar myself to put the little Derbs through college, and they will likely still end up with huge debts. There will be no 9-to-5 jobs for them to go to after graduation, quite possibly no jobs at all other than in government work. To my kids I should like to say: I am sorry to have brought you into this mess. There were no bells ringing, no bands playing, at either of your births, and it would have been a travesty if there had been. Even the wisest of us — people like your Dad, I mean — live in part by instinct, and there is no instinct stronger than the one that prompts us to continue the species; so here you are. I am sorry, sorry. There was the Greatest Generation. Then there was ours, the Luckiest. Yours will be the Saddest. Quite possibly — so far as this civilization is concerned, at any rate — it will be the Last. I shall continue to do my best for you as long as I can, but... après moi le Deluge.

Norway: A year of centennial festivities

2005-11-29T14:05:00.000+01:00

Photo from Aftenposten. Norway celebrates 100 years as an independent state this year. The final part of the centennial took place now in November, marking the referendum that elected Prince Carl of Denmark to become Norwegian king Haakon 7. The dissolution of the union between Sweden and Norway was rather unique in Europe by 1905, as it was done peacefully. Two popular referendums were held in Norway, one establishing independence, the other the choice of the new state being a constitutional monarchy rather than a republic. Both king Haakon and his young son, the future king Olav, were born in Denmark. Our present king Harald, Haakon's grandson, is thus the first Norwegian-born king in more than 600 years:

Historical Background

The tradition of Norwegian kingship in various forms stretches back more than a thousand years. In more recent times the country was united with Denmark from 1381 to 1814 and with Sweden from 1814 until 1905 when it once more became independent under Haakon VII of Norway. The list of kings begins with Harald Fairhair (c.865-c.933) who was acclaimed king of all Norway, according to Snorre Sturlason, the Icelandic saga-writer and historian. In the 14th century the old royal lines in all three Scandinavian kingdoms ended with the death of Olav IV. His mother, Margrete Valdemarsdatter, the only queen-regnant Norway has ever had, succeeded in forging the Kalmar Union, with her nephew as king of Norway, Sweden and Denmark. It was a consolidation of assets which long helped to protect the northern countries from Hansa domination, but it ended with the north divided into two camps: Denmark-Norway and Sweden-Finland. In the Napoleonic wars Denmark sided with France, and lost Norway to England's ally Sweden (which had lost Finland to Russia a few years before).

1905 - Dissolution of the Union

The breaking point came with Norway´s demand for separate consuls, a necessary service for a country with the world's fourth largest merchant fleet. The king refused. The Storting then adopted the resolution of 7 June dissolving the union with Sweden. Before accepting dissolution as a fact, the Swedes demanded a public referendum to be certain the Norwegian people agreed with the Storting. As it proved, the national support was massive. In 1905 there was a sizable faction in favour of a republic, but it was more than balanced by the many who believed that monarchy was the form of government most suited to the Norwegian situation. Norway now needed the right man at the helm. Prince Carl of Denmark was 33, the right age to be considered for the role. It was no disadvantage that his wife´s parents were King Edward VII of England and the Danish-born Queen Alexandra. Best of all perhaps was that Prince Carl already had a small son, born in 1903, which meant that the succession was assured. Prince Carl requested the holding of a plebiscite in Norway to decide the future form of government (since a republic would rule out his own involvement) prior to the official offer of the crown. The result of the voting on 12-13 November gave a green light for the new monarchy. On 18 November the solemn election of Prince Carl as king of Norway took place in the Storting, and on the same afternoon the Prince´s telegram of acceptance was read out: "..... I am resolved to accept the election as king of Norway, taking the name of Haakon the seventh and according my son the name of Olav."

Centennial Celebrations in Norway

June 7th marks the centennial of the peaceful dissolving of the union with Sweden on June 7th 1905. The celebrations mark Norwegian politicians' decision on June 7, 1905 to break out of a union with Sweden that had existed for most of the 1800s. Before that, Norway had been under Danish rule for around 400 years, so the decision meant the formal beginning of an indendence process that lasted until late November, when Norway established its own monarchy and emerged as a sovereign nation. A key issue contributing to the dissolution was Norway's desire for its own consular service for representation overseas. Today, things have come full circle, with Norway and Sweden even sharing some embassies and consular services. The split has been viewed by history as being largely peaceful. In September 1905, in an atmosphere of suspicion, Sweden went so far as to send 5,000 fully-equipped soldiers to the Norwegian border. Norway responded with the partial mobilisation of its army. But with the posturing threatening to burst into conflict, Lundeberg met Norway's leader, Christian Michelsen and they reached a compromise.

Multiculturalism has betrayed the English, Archbishop says

2005-11-29T00:10:00.000+01:00

Multiculturalism has betrayed the English, Archbishop says

BRITAIN’S first black Archbishop has made a powerful attack on multiculturalism, urging English people to reclaim their national identity. The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu, said that too many people were embarrassed about being English. “Multiculturalism has seemed to imply, wrongly for me, let other cultures be allowed to express themselves but do not let the majority culture at all tell us its glories, its struggles, its joys, its pains,” he said. He said that the failure of England to rediscover its culture afresh would lead only to greater political extremism. The new Archbishop also strongly criticised the Terrorism Bill. “What is it to be English? It is a very serious question,” he said. “I think we have not engaged with English culture as it has developed. When you ask a lot of people in this country, ‘What is English culture?’, they are very vague. It is a culture that whether we like it or not has given us parliamentary democracy. It is the mother of it. It is the mother of arguing that if you want a change of government, you vote them in or you vote them out.”

Joke About Sale of Alaska Hits a Nerve in Russia

2005-11-29T00:01:00.000+01:00

I think the Russians should be more concerned with not losing their eastern provinces to China or their southern provinces to a string of new Muslim states than of retrieving Alaska:

Joke About Sale of Alaska Hits a Nerve in Russia

It may have been a joke, but some media organizations and politicians in Moscow appear to have taken half-seriously a satirical suggestion that the United States should sell Alaska back to Russia for $1 trillion. The tongue-in-cheek proposal published in a U.S. newspaper raised the vague notion still present here that Russia could one day retrieve the territory it sold to the U.S. The return of Alaska would be marked by a great national holiday, said Vladimir Zhirinovsky, an outspoken nationalist politician. Russia would then have a presence on three continents -- Europe, Asia and America -- noted Zhirinovsky, who is deputy speaker of the lower house of parliament. Last Wednesday, the Washington Post ran a satirical commentary entitled, "Alaska Would Be More at Home in Russia." Vitus Bering, a Danish sea captain serving in the Russian Fleet, and captain Alexey Chirikov claimed Alaska after discovering it in 1741. The Russians established a commercial entity, the Russian-American Company, to capitalize on their new possession. During the Crimean War, British and French fleets attacked and burned Petropavlovsk, the Alaska colony's supply point. As Russia's hold on the territory was threatened, Russian diplomats opted to sell it to friendly Americans than risk having it seized by British foes.

Hands off our women, Russian MP tells foreigners

Scandalised by the fact that some of Russia's most beautiful women are opting to marry foreigners, the ultra-nationalist Vladimir Zhirinovsky is backing a bill that would make them think twice before exchanging vows with a non-Russian. His party, the incongruously named Liberal Democratic Party of Russia, has drafted a draconian marriage bill that will now be considered by the Duma, the Russian Parliament. It envisages severe penalties for Russian girls or women who choose "unpatriotically" to wed a foreigner, a trend the party believes is robbing the country's gene pool of its greatest resource. It is proposing punishing such female "traitors" by stripping them of their citizenship, deporting them to the country of their new husband and never allowing them to return.

Pakistan: After Muslim Honour Killing - Mutilation

2005-11-28T21:36:00.000+01:00

Western Resistance tells the story of yet another barbaric honor killing in Pakistan, a practice which is seeping into Western countries with increasing frequency:

Pakistan: After Muslim Honour Killing - Mutilation

Shamin Mai is in a critical condition in the Bahawal Victoria Hospital in Bahawalpur, a province of Pakistan in the Punjab, adjoining he Indian border. Shamin Mai has had both of her legs chopped off. Her brother Bashir and her uncle Bilal have been arrested for the atrocity. Four others who assisted in the assault have so far avoided arrest. And what motivated this act of barbarity? Shamin Mai, instead of following the course expected of a girl in these regions, of having a marriage arranged for her, had contracted a marriage on her own free will, in Mauza Naseerabad. Among the four assailants still at large one, Faiz Rasool, is a union councillor.

France: March For Muslim Woman Set On Fire

Today's Telegraph announces that yesterday, a march was held in Paris, which was organised by the organisation "Ni Putes ni Soumises" (Neither Prostitutes Nor Submissives). The reason for their protest was to voice anger at a cruel attack upon a young woman, and anger at the media's apparent indifference by virtually ignoring the case. The press in France has deliberately played down reporting of recent events, wary to use the term "Muslim" when referring to rioters. This case is perhaps an embarrassment to the French media, as both victim and perpetrator are both Muslim. 18-year old Chahrazad Belayni is in a critical condition, being kept in an artificial coma, after she received severe burns over 60 per cent of her body. On November 13, the Moroccan was walking near her home in Neuilly-sur-Marne in northeastern Paris, when she was attacked. Her attacker was a workmate of Pakistani origin who was incensed that she had earlier refused to marry him. This man and another, believed to be his accomplice, are in hiding somewhere. "This man asked her to marry him three times. He didn't understand her refusals and wouldn't leave her alone," said Sonia, a classmate. "Chahrazad was a beautiful young girl, very soignee (smart,stylish) and coquettish. He hurt her more than most by physically damaging her."

Train rams into reindeer herd

2005-11-28T11:45:00.000+01:00

Train rams into reindeer herd

An estimated 40 reindeer were mowed down by a passing train over the weekend after they'd roamed onto the tracks. Half were killed instantly, while nearly 20 had to be put out of their misery. The grisly accident occurred near Vongraven between Røros and Trondheim Saturday afternoon. Newspaper Adresseavisen reported that around 40 reindeer cadavers were left lying along the tracks after the collision. Local reindeer herder Even Danielsen claimed the tragedy could have been avoided if fences along the tracks had been properly maintained. Danielsen told Adresseavisen that the fences previously were maintained by state railway NSB, but responsibility was turned over to the state agency in charge of railroad infrastructure in Norway, Jernbaneverket. He said the fences haven't been maintained for the past 10 to 15 years and have collapsed in several places. He believes Jernbaneverket has a moral obligation to maintain fences along railroad tracks. "They say it's cheaper to pay compensation for animals that are killed, than it is to set up fences," he said. Jernbaneverket officials said the owners of the reindeer would be compensated for the loss of the animals. "We can't manage to fence in all the tracks," said Jernbaneverkets information chief Ellen Svendsvoll.

Denmark: Women still forced into marriage

2005-11-28T11:40:00.000+01:00

Women still forced into marriage

The hottest potato in Denmark's immigration debate, the so-called 24-year-rule is in the spotlight again after immigrant organisations and consultants reported that it had failed to help young immigrant women to avoid forced marriages. The rule forbids Danish residents to bring their foreign spouses into the country unless both partners have reached a minimum age of 24. The Liberal-Conservative coalition government has said its main purpose is to prevent young people with immigrant backgrounds from being pressed into marriages with people from their families' homelands. Immigrant organs said that on the contrary, the rule was making life even more difficult for immigrant youths with families bent on making a good match for them in the old country. 'Families that practice forced marriages are increasingly using physical and psychological violence to force a spouse upon their marriages. We experience more and more that parents threaten to kill their children if they don't say yes,' said Leif Randeris, leader of the Immigrants' Counselling Services in Copenhagen and Århus. Randeris said every week he usually helped two girls with foreign backgrounds to get a secret address, because they felt that their lives were in danger after they rejected an arranged marriage. He said the 24-year-rule was causing parents to force their daughters to move to their country of origin, because the regulations prevented them from getting their husbands to Denmark. 'I know a number of girls who are now being kept as domestic slaves with their husbands in the village their parents originally came from,' he said.

Parties across the parliamentary spectrum demanded that Liberal Minister of Refugee, Immigration, and Integration Affairs Rikke Hvilshøj launch an investigation of whether the 24-year-rule was working as planned. 'There is nothing to document that the 24-year-rule works,' said Elsebeth Gerner Nielsen, Social Liberal MP and spokesman on immigration affairs. 'The minister must start an investigation on how the rule works, or if it works at all.' The Social Democrats and the Danish People's Party, which have supported the 24-year-rule up until now, said they agreed that an investigation was needed. 'If immigrant consultants say we have a problem, we have to listen to them and investigate if they're right,' said Jesper Langballe, the Danish People's Party's MP and spokesman on immigration affairs. 'I find it hard to believe that there are girls being isolated in their parents' homelands, but it's something we have to check.' Hvilshøj told Politiken that the government had never claimed that the rule would put an end to all forced marriages, and said there were plenty of evidence that the rule was having the effect intended.

Are Muslims the Jews of Today?

2005-11-28T01:30:00.000+01:00

Australian Lawyer Stephen Hopper thinks that Muslims are being dehumanized in the public discourse surrounding terrorism, in the same way Nazis dehumanized Jews before World War II. He’s not the only one to see such a connection. Kari Vogt, Norwegian Islam expert at the University of Oslo, has compared Ibn Warraq’s book ”Why I am not a Muslim” to anti-Jewish fabrications “The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion.” Professor Bernt Hagtvet, also from the University of Oslo, sees many parallels, but also some differences. There are far more Muslims in Europe now than there were Jews before WW2, and their numbers are rising fast. Swedish historian of religion Matthias Gardell claims that Islamophobia is perhaps the greatest threat to democracy in the Western world today. Swedish writer and leftist intellectual Jan Guillou has stated that the rhetoric employed by the Nazis against Jews is now used to target Muslims. The Nazis thought that all Jews were part of an international conspiracy to control the world and subdue others in their own lands. Guillou thinks the exact same thing is now happening, only this time, Muslims are the victims of this hate.

The curious thing about this mantra warning against “Islamophobia”, which is now commonplace in the media, is that very few bother to analyze it properly. If they did, they would discover that the Jews of today are, well, Jews. Jews are suffering attacks across much of Western Europe at worse rates than at any time since the rise of the Nazis in the 1930s. In Sweden, an anti-Semitic crime is reported to the police once every three days. The Jewish congregations in major cities Stockholm, Göteborg and Malmö are forced to spend up to 25 percent of their membership fees on security and hired guards. And most of these hate crimes are perpetrated by Muslims. Even some non-Jews from Sweden say they feel "liberated" when they go to Israel. In Israel, you know who the country's enemies are, and you are prepared to fight for your country and for your convictions. It is hard to overstate the extent to which Sweden is a politically repressed nation, thanks to self-proclaimed guardians of the Multicultural Truth such as Mr. Guillou. No dissent is tolerated, and the few "racists" who try to raise a debate about Muslim immigration are attacked, sometimes even physically.

Jews in the 1930s were a minority everywhere, and had no country they could call their own. Jewish refugees were rejected by many countries even when some of them tried to escape the rise of the Nazis. Muslims today count more than one billion individuals, and constitute the majority in about 60 countries worldwide. In most of these countries, non-Muslims face various levels of discrimination, or even in some the continuous threat of physical extermination. Jews in Western countries do not constitute a terror threat, and never have. Muslims do all the time. Jews do not have a history of more than 1000 years of armed attacks on Europe, India, Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia. Muslims do. Jews do not cut the throats of Buddhist monks in Thailand, massacre Hindus in Bangladesh or stab Christian nuns in Egypt. Muslims do. Jews do not take hostages, decapitate them and distribute videos of their acts. Muslims do. Jews do not gang rape Christian women in Western nations. Muslims do. Jews represent the most prosperous and talented ethnic groups in Europe. Muslims in Europe are ranked close to the bottom of all indicators of education and social achievements. Muslims, being 20 % of the world's population, have produced only three Nobel laureates in science and literature, whereas Jews, being only 0.2% of the world's population, have received more than 120 Nobel prizes in science, economics, medicine and literature. Jews before WW2 filled up Europe’s universities. Muslims now fill up Europe’s prisons.

In fact, the comparisons to the 1930s make a lot more sense if you compare Muslims to the Nazis. And there was a connection, even during WW2. Adolf Hitler is reputed to have stated his admiration for Islam, and thought it would be a better match for Nazism than Christianity, with its stupid notions of compassion for inferior people. Hajj Amin al-Husseini, the grand mufti of Jerusalem and the leader of Muslim fundamentalists in Palestine, resided in Berlin as a welcome guest of the Nazis throughout the years of the Holocaust. The Nazi-Islamic love affair remains strong. Hitler's 'Mein Kampf' is a bestseller in Islamic nations such as Turkey, at the same time as Turkish PM Erdogan wants anti-Islamism to be accepted as a crime against humanity in the EU. And not few Muslim leaders state their wish to finish what the Nazis started. Broadcasts from imams in the Palestinian Authority have stated that: “The day will come when we will rule America. The day will come when we will rule Britain and the entire world – except for the Jews. Listen to the Prophet Muhammad, who tells you about the evil end that awaits Jews. The stones and trees will want the Muslims to finish off every Jew."

In Denmark, professor of Islamic studies Mehdi Mozaffari tells of how he and thousands of others have fled burkas, sharia, blood money, muftis and Islamism in the Middle East, only to witness the same beast rear its ugly head in Europe. And he warns of the consequences: “Historical experience has shown that those people fear will win, eventually. We saw this in Nazi Germany. There were too many Nazis, and people were scared. I fear that this is where we are heading, once more.” Danish author Kåre Bluitgen had difficulties in getting artists to illustrate his book about Muhammad due to fear of reprisals from Islamic extremists. Jyllands-Posten, Denmark's largest newspaper, responded by asking 40 illustrators to make drawings of Muhammad, and published twelve. The decision has caused a stir among Muslims, triggered threats against the newspaper and a diplomatic row with many Muslim countries that is still going on. The most immediate victims of this climate of fear are Muslim women. A Pakistani man in Denmark recently murdered his sister in the street outside a train station because she had married a man against her family’s orders.

Perhaps worst is the way the experience of Nazism has been turned on its head and used to promote the ideology of Multiculturalism. Any objection to mass immigration or the destruction of traditional Judeo-Christian moral values is deemed as racist, akin to support for fascism. As a result, in the name of Multicultural tolerance, we have allowed the creation of the brutal, anti-democratic monster of Islamism in our midst. It is a bizarre paradox that the hysteria over Nazism has encouraged Europe to be swamped by Islam, in which anti-Semitism appears to be an integral part of the creed. If criticism of Islam causes Muslims to behave badly, then what has 2,000 years of persecution done to the Jews? Surely the Holocaust and other pogroms in Europe would have made Jews start their own Jihad? Then how come Jews don’t go on the rampage throughout Europe? The comparison between Muslims today and Jews 70 years ago is nonsense, and needs to be confronted and dismissed as such. It is an insult to the Buddhists who are beheaded in Thailand, the Christians who are persecuted in Indonesia, the Hindus who are killed in Pakistan and the Europeans who are no longer safe in their own cities. But above all, it is an insult to the memory of the millions of teachers, artists, writers and intellectuals who were murdered in Nazi-controlled Europe.

As one Spanish observer notes, Europe herself may soon pay for having decimated much of her Jewry and replaced them with Muslims:

Europe died in Auschwitz

We assassinated 6 million Jews in order to end up bringing in 20
million Muslims!

We burnt in Auschwitz the culture, intelligence and power to create.

We must admit that Europe, by relaxing its borders and giving in
under the pretext of tolerance to the values of a fallacious
cultural relativism, opened it's doors to 20 million Muslims, often
illiterates and fanatics that we could meet, at best, in places
such as Raval, the poorest of the nations and of the ghettos, and
who are preparing the worst, such as the 9/11 and the Madrid
bombing and who are lodged in apartment blocs provided by the social
welfare.

We also have exchanged culture with fanaticism, the capacity to
create with the will to destroy, the wisdom with the superstition.

We have exchanged the transcendental instinct of the Jews, who even
under the worst possible conditions have always looked for a better
peaceful world, for the suicide bomber. We have exchanged the pride
of life for the fanatic obsession of death. Our death and that of our
children.

What a grave mistake that we made!!!

Norway: Shock over school reform plans

2005-11-27T16:05:00.000+01:00

Shock over school reform plans

Teachers, students and experts have expressed widespread bafflement as to how proposed education program reforms can include a curriculum that ignores modern history. A key component in the draft national high school curriculum proposes replacing much Norwegian, European, world and modern history with digital presentations of the Viking age, the rise of the Roman Empire and the development of medieval China. Students already fear a knowledge gap filled by repetitive Power Point presentations on the same few subjects. The new program leaves out the world wars, the Russian Revolution, the Cold War, and does not mention the topics of Nazism or Communism. The world wars are potentially included under a clause that would allow teachers and students "to choose and examine two or more recent international conflicts, and assess cause and effect". The reform would further complicate the teaching of general education by reducing the number of hours of history to two hours a week. Criticism of the plan, and its bureaucratic formulation, has come from all quarters, and while Minister of Knowledge Øystein Djupedal has insisted that the reform process will be ready by January 2006 and in force by autumn next year, he has clearly registered the protests.

Paths Toward an Anti-Capitalist Liberation

2005-11-27T15:27:00.000+01:00

In any nomination for "Most evil and inherently destructive ideology in human history", I think Islam would win. But Marxism doesn't make for a very bad second. Some at the People's Republic of Berkeley are worried that there is an attempt to "discredit Communism". Eh, wasn't that sort of done a long time ago? It's dead, but it won't lie down:

Paths Toward an Anti-Capitalist Liberation

The balanced job complex is a redefinition of our concept of work. Basically, jobs are organized so that everyone has an equal set of both empowering and un-empowering tasks. Jobs are balanced within each work place and across work places. Balancing work across work places is equally necessary so that disempowering and menial work places are not ruled by empowering ones. The outcome of the participatory balanced job complex is that everyone has an equal share of both desirable and undesirable tasks, with comparable empowerment and quality of life circumstances for all. Another key element is remunerative justice, or pay for effort and sacrifice. This method of pay insures that unequal outcomes are not produced and reproduced, due to ownership of the means of production, bargaining power, output, genetic endowment, talent, skill, better tools, more productive coworkers, environment, inheritance, or luck. Of all these factors people control only their effort. So, effort and sacrifice is the remunerative norm in parecon, tempered by need as appropriate in cases of illness, catastrophe, incapacity, etc. Participants are organized into federations of workers and consumers councils who negotiate allocation through "decentralized participatory planning". Workers in worker councils propose what they want to produce, how much they want to produce, the inputs needed and the human effects of their production choices. Consumers propose what they want to consume, how much they want to consume and the human effects of their consumption choices.

Berkeley: Mao debunkers defend their book, Critics call it effort to discredit Communism

"During the 10 years of the Cultural Revolution, he turned China into a cultural desert," she told the crowd at Haas. "He made torture public. My mother went through over a hundred of those denunciation meetings. She was made to kneel on broken glass and so on. China must be the most traumatized nation in the world." Halliday said Mao appealed to "a large group of fantasists" who gullibly thought he was the real thing. Halliday said Mao also attracted leftists who tolerated violence. Maoist intellectuals have counterattacked, saying the book negates any historical grounds for the Chinese revolution and positive changes in what had been a corrupt society before Mao's military victory in 1949. "It's just outrageous," said Gary Miller, a volunteer at Berkeley's Revolution Books, as he leafleted the authors' event on campus. "A lot of people look with a great deal of affection at the Mao years because China's been turned into one giant sweatshop." Raymond Lotta, a Chicago-based Maoist political economist and author, spoke to students at UCLA and UC Berkeley in what he called a bid to set the record straight. "What sets this apart from other historical studies is that this person Mao, who led an historic revolution and changed the landscape of China and was an inspiration throughout the world -- they're saying this was a scheming, bloodthirsty opportunist who was evil from the day he was born to the day he died and who hijacked a revolution," Lotta said. "I think it's part of a continuing attempt to discredit communism and Maoism and any alternative to the current world order."

Mao Zedong: Sacred symbol and bloodiest mass killer

Every morning, as many as 20,000 people flock to Tiananmen Square to join the vast queues of pilgrims, often stretching a kilometre long, at the entrance to the tomb of Mao Zedong. Almost 30 years after his death, Mao remains the sacred symbol that China dare not touch. His massive portrait still looms above the entrance to the Forbidden City. His face is on every banknote in the country. Yet while he continues to be worshipped in China, a shocking new book has concluded that Mao was the bloodiest mass murderer in history, a sadistic thug who enjoyed torture and was willing to sacrifice half of China's population for his dream of global domination. The book estimates that Mao caused the deaths of 70 million people in peacetime, making him a far worse killer than Hitler or Stalin. It portrays him as a sociopath who loved killing and allowed millions of peasants to starve to death while he exported food to pay for his nuclear weapons; a man whose legendary achievements in the Long March were an invention; a man who turned China into a cultural desert of misery and violence, while maintaining dozens of luxury villas and a troupe of female sexual partners. China's rulers have acknowledged that Mao made some "serious mistakes," but only "in his old age." And they continue to praise him lavishly, decades after his death.

Malaysia investigates abuse claim

2005-11-27T03:05:00.000+01:00

Malaysia investigates abuse claim

Malaysia has launched an inquiry after a video emerged which apparently shows a police officer humiliating an ethnic Chinese woman. Deputy Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak said the incident was a severe blow to Malaysia's image. It follows a number of complaints against police by Chinese tourists. A Malaysian delegation is due to travel to China next week to mend relations between the two countries. The clip, thought to have been filmed on a mobile phone, appears to show the prisoner and a female police officer. The officer, who wears a Muslim headscarf, stands in front of the woman, who is forced to strip naked, grasp her ears and squat repeatedly. The pictures are accompanied by the sound of verses from the Koran being recited, although it is unclear if this would have been audible to the woman. Mr Azmi is due to fly to Beijing next Wednesday to placate the Chinese over the treatment of their tourists in Malaysia. There has been a marked drop in Chinese tourists visiting Malaysia since reports of the alleged abuses surfaced. A number of Chinese women have claimed they were forced to strip in Malaysian police stations while being spied upon. Malaysian immigration officers have also been accused of profiling young female Chinese visitors as would-be prostitutes.

Witness: Prince had royal excuse: Claimed ‘diplomatic immunity’

2005-11-26T23:11:00.000+01:00

Witness: Prince had royal excuse: Claimed ‘diplomatic immunity’

A Saudi prince serving a year on the Vineyard for mowing down a Cambridge father with his SUV while drunk told police he didn’t have to take field sobriety tests because his royal status gave him diplomatic immunity, according to a witness interviewed by the Herald. “He said he can’t be arrested. He didn’t have to do the tests because he had diplomatic immunity,” said Angel Andino, one of three Boston Transportation Department employees who witnessed the 2:40 a.m. accident on Oct. 29, 2002. “He was all cocky about it like he was God or something or he was untouchable,” Andino said of Prince Bader Al-Saud, 23, who was permitted to choose the cushy Dukes County Jail on Martha’s Vineyard for his time. Andino, now a supervisor with the transportation department, said Al-Saud eventually submitted to the field tests on Charles Street. According to the police report, Al-Saud - who did not in fact have diplomatic immunity, or a valid driver’s license - failed two field sobriety tests and recorded a .12 reading on his breath test after striking Orlando Ramos, 37, with his BMW X5. The legal limit is .08.

Japanese Probe Collects First Sample from Asteroid Surface

2005-11-26T22:35:00.000+01:00

The Japanese are bringing back samples from an asteroid, while a former Canadian Minister of Defence worries about the possibilites for intergalactic war. Personally, I think such an intergalactic "war" would be pretty one-sided. The aliens would blast Tokyo, Beijing, Paris and New York with their lasers, and the BBC would warn against racism and alienophobia, and recommend more welfare payments as a cure. Besides, the attacks took place because of years of human oppression and injustice against the planet Hdraka:

Japanese Probe Collects First Sample from Asteroid Surface

A Japanese spacecraft apparently succeeded in landing on an asteroid and collecting surface samples Saturday, part of an unprecedented mission to bring the material back to Earth, Japan's space agency said. The Hayabusa probe touched down for only a few seconds on the faraway asteroid _ long enough to collect powder from its surface _ and lifted off again to transmit data to mission controllers, said Kiyotaka Yashiro, a spokesman for JAXA, Japan's space agency. JAXA won't know if Hayabusa actually collected surface samples until it returns to Earth. It is expected to touch down in the Australian Outback in June 2007.

Former Canadian Minister Of Defence Asks Canadian Parliament Asked To Hold Hearings On Relations With Alien "Et" Civilizations

A former Canadian Minister of Defence and Deputy Prime Minister under Pierre Trudeau has joined forces with three Non-governmental organizations to ask the Parliament of Canada to hold public hearings on Exopolitics -- relations with “ETs.” By “ETs,” Mr. Hellyer and these organizations mean ethical, advanced extraterrestrial civilizations that may now be visiting Earth. Mr. Hellyer went on to say, "I'm so concerned about what the consequences might be of starting an intergalactic war, that I just think I had to say something."

Sweden: Four out of ten Muslim groups threatened

2005-11-26T15:04:00.000+01:00

Tensions are increasing in Sweden, too, as I have predicted before. A major mosque in Malmö, the worst Muslim ghetto in northern Europe, has suffered several arson attacks recently. When will we see open riots in Sweden, just as we do in France now?

Four out of ten Muslim groups threatened

Four out of ten Muslim organisations in Sweden have been threatened, according to an investigation by Swedish Radio's Ekot programme. Three out of ten have been attacked, vandalised and damaged. Ekot interviewed 100 organisations which together represent 80,000 Muslims in Sweden. The abuse ranged from graffiti to attacks with fire bombs. Bejzat Becirov, who runs the Islamic Centre in Malmö, said that the mosque there receives threatening mail "almost every day". One example was a newspaper cutting showing vicitims of the recent earthquake in Pakistan. On it, someone had written "dead Muslims cannot come to Sweden". According to the responses from the 100 organisations, Muslim women who wear veils are particularly likely to be harassed and discriminated against.

Malmö mosque "faces ruin"

An Islamic centre in Malmö says it is threatened with financial ruin after arson attacks earlier this year and in 2003. Now the centre’s insurance company has said it can no longer provide cover because of the risk of further attacks. Bejzat Becirov, the Chief Executive of the centre, has asked Prime Minister Göran Persson to help the mosque. Göran Persson visited the mosque during party rallying earlier this month and gave “half a promise” of financial support. He said the repeated attacks on the mosque show that Sweden “sadly has become a country with European norms”.

Muslims face most racism in Sweden

Muslims are exposed to the most racial harassment in Sweden, according to a new report from the Board of Integration. Seven out of ten reports of ethnic discrimination came from people with a Muslim background, and almost 40% of those questioned in the survey said they had witnessed verbal abuse directed at Muslims. "If you look at the whole period from 1999 to 2004 there has been a significant increase in the number of people who want to close Sweden's borders to immigration, from 35% to 45.5%," said the report's author, José Alberto Diaz.

Hugh Fitzgerald: What is being done about Muslim immigrants?

2005-11-26T14:33:00.000+01:00

Hugh Fitzgerald of Jihad Watch asks what is being done about the immigration policies regarding Muslims in the USA, following the troubles in Europe. Well, not very much, as it seems. Pro-immigration advocates claim that we should let Muslims into the West because they are fleeing poverty and oppression. But as Ali Sina shows, poverty and oppression are caused by Islam and Islamic culture. As long as Muslims bring that culture with them here, we will end up being poor and oppressed, too:

Hugh Fitzgerald: What is being done about Muslim immigrants?

We have a right to know: what is the INS doing about Muslim immigrants? Is it doing anything? Have any policies changed since 9/11/2001? What about since the seizure of the theatre in Moscow or the school in Beslan, with nearly 400 dead children and teachers? Have there been any changes since the killing, in Holland, of Pim Fortuyn? Of Theo van Gogh? Since the threats to kill Ayaan Hirsi Ali and Geert Wilders? What changes have been made in our immigration policies since the threats to the head of a Christian political party in Norway? Since the threats to a newspaper in Denmark? Since the virtual takeover of much of Malmo, Sweden, as a no-go for non-Muslims area? What changes in immigration policy have resulted from plans to bomb the Strasbourg Christmas market, or the Vatican, were foiled? What changes in immigration policy have followed upon the bombing of the subway in Madrid? The underground in London? What changes in immigration policy followed the three weeks of Muslim riots, in which a dozen churches were attacked and set ablaze, and tens of thousands of cars set on fire, and a Frenchman beaten to death, and others critically wounded, and cries of Allahu Akbar were heard all over the land? Any changes? Any?

Ali Sina: Will Muslims Ever wake up?

If as he says, the way to overcome the misery of Muslims is to become even more Islamic, how can he explain the fact that the countries that are not Islamic at all are better than those that are Islamic? At which period in the history, Muslims were prosperous and productive? The only time they were prosperous was when they looted the wealth of other nations. When that loot ended, so did their prosperity. The question “what went wrong” is mute. It implies that there was a time that something was right! At what time anything was right in Islam doctor? Islam was wrong from the beginning. Islam is not sick. It is the sickness itself. You can’t cure Islam. You must overcome it and eradicate it. The cause of the poverty and ignorance of Muslims is Islam. It is the five times prayers, it is the one month fasting, it is the reading of the Quran instead of science, it is the wasting of people's time teaching them the Islamic way of defecation, urination and copulation, and it is observing all those stupid Islamic rituals that has made Muslims backward, lazy and poor.

The Myth of the Scandinavian Model

2005-11-26T02:19:00.000+01:00

The Myth of the Scandinavian Model

Why are the Scandinavian countries doing such a bad job, despite their Protestant work ethic and devotion to duty? The main cause is the essence of the nanny state: its very high tax level. Between 1990 and 2005 the average overall tax burden was 55% in Finland, 58% in Denmark and 61% in Sweden. This is almost one and a half times the OECD average. The difference between the wealth destructive Scandinavian model and the booming Irish alternative is obvious for all to see. Strangely enough, however, the French and German governments do not seem to notice. Those in Belgium do not, either. The Belgian government recently proposed a new policy plan inspired by the Danish model. The tax level is not reduced, the fiscal burden is not being shifted from production to consumption, but instead from one production factor (labour) to another (capital) which is already overburdened. 2004 witnessed a record world economic growth of 5%. China and India are booming, the US and Japan are recovering. Gwartney’s findings explain why continental West European countries, such as Belgium, did not see their economies grow. The Belgian tax burden is 9% higher than the OECD average and 15% higher than the tax level in the US and Japan. If continental Western Europe does not change its policies, its relative impoverishment today will soon turn into absolute pauperization.

Attacks Threaten Religious Harmony in Southeast Asia

2005-11-25T17:27:00.000+01:00

Via Replikk:

Attacks Threaten Religious Harmony in Southeast Asia

Buddhist monks are being murdered, Christian schoolchildren beheaded and dissenters blown up. Southeast Asia's peaceful co-existence among religions is under siege, from Bangkok to Jakarta. Meanwhile, politicians and military leaders are using Islamic fervor to boost their own power. More than 1,000 people have been killed in southern Thailand in the past two years in clashes involving the military, Muslims and Buddhist settlers. But the slaughtering of monks by Muslim holy warriors -- that was a first. It brings with it an unmistakable message: that dedicated jihadists who have been committing acts of terror in Southeast Asia for years have now set their sights on this primarily Buddhist country. The region's image of peaceful co-existence among more than 200 million Muslims, Christians, Buddhists and Hindus -- a peaceful co-existence among vastly different religions from Indonesia to Burma, which has made Southeast Asia a model of tolerance -- now exists only in tourism ads. Terror is everywhere.

Photos of Ayaan Hirsi Ali in Copenhagen, Denmark

2005-11-25T13:28:00.000+01:00

Ayaan Hirsi Ali visited Copenhagen, Denmark, this week, to meet with members of the Danish Free Press Society. Here she is seen with Danish Islam-critics Lars Hedegaard (left) and Helle Merete Brix, authors of several books and countless articles about Islam in Europe, and participants in the Internet Magazine Sappho as well as other websites such as Sharia.dk.

The photos have been provided, with kind permission, from Steen from the excellent blog Danske øjne på svenske forhold.

Film about Muhammed Welcome in Denmark

2005-11-25T12:34:00.000+01:00

The following text is an English translation of an article from the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten. The translation has been provided by Sappho, the magazine of the Danish Free Press Society:

Film about Muhammed Welcome in Denmark

The Danish film industry is not afraid of supporting or producing a controversial film about the prophet Muhammed with a manuscript by Ayaan Hirsi Ali. All it takes is a specific project.

By Jesper Stein Larsen and Gerd Laugesen

Neither The Danish Film Institute nor the film producer Zentropa [which is behind many notable films such as the ones directed by Lars von Trier] would have any problems supporting or producing a controversial film about the prophet Muhammed based on a manuscript by the Dutch politician and author Ayaan Hirsi Ali.

The Somalian-born Ayaan Hirsi Ali has told the Internet magazine Sappho that she is prepared to produce an Islamic version of the famous Monty Python film "The Life of Brian" -- with Muhammed as the main character instead of Jesus -- in Denmark, and that she could finish a script very quickly.

....

The Director of The Danish Film Institute, Henning Camre, does not anticipate any problems allocating public money for a film with this content.

"I have only read about it in Jyllands-Posten, but if she writes a manuscript and finds a Danish producer, we will treat her application just like any other. We have no limitations on freedom of speech in Denmark. ... So far, however, it appears to be rather offhand and unspecified. For example, what language would be used? And would it be interesting from a Danish perspective if it was not made in Danish? This raises some questions, but as a starting point we would have no problems investing money in it from a free speech point of view," says Henning Camre.

Nor is Peter Aalbæk Jensen, CEO of Zentropa, frightened by the thought of producing a critical film about the prophet Muhammed.

"We make all kinds of films from the far left to the far right. It is our film directors who decide the contents, and we have no other position than that there is room for everything. If a director wants to make a film that praises Osama bin Laden, we will make that too," says Peter Aalbæk Jensen.

-- If Hirsi Ali comes to you with a manuscript for a controversial Muhammed film, would you make it?

"Yes, if we could find a willing director. ..."

Screen writer and teacher at The Danish Film School, Mogens Rukov [the man behind many internationally successful Danish films], thinks that the film ought to be made.

"... My position is that there is nothing that cannot be done because some people feel offended. The entire middle class is obsessed with fear and polite deference to all kinds of fascism, but we should not let ourselves be influenced by that. ..."

France: Sarkozy Joins the Blogosphere Debate?

2005-11-24T14:01:00.000+01:00

Via the excellent blog EU Referendum: It seems as if France's Minister of the Interior, and possible future president, Nicolas Sarkozy, has joined the debate in the blogosphere:

Nom d'un nom d'un nom

A great deal of excitement has been generated on the French blogosphere, both in English and in French. It seems that Nicolas Sarkozy, Minister of the Interior and President-in-Waiting-if-that-dastardly-Villepin-does-not-beat-him has become involved in a blog discussion with the Kassowitz, a cinéaste. This, as our French colleagues point out, is going beyond the sort of silly self-promotion that the fragrant Margot is indulging in. This is the beginnings of a serious political debate. Will our politicians learn to to do the same?

Turkish ruling party cracks down on alcohol

2005-11-24T13:56:00.000+01:00

Turkish ruling party cracks down on alcohol

Turkey's Islamist-rooted governing party has begun a crackdown on alcohol in the local districts it controls, in a move which has sparked heavy criticism in the majority Muslim, though strictly secular, EU candidate country. Justice and Development Party (AKP) mayors in Ankara, the capital and symbol of the Turkish secular republic, have banned alcohol from local government cafes and restaurants citing a need to protect family values. They are also refusing to issue new sales licences, while extensions to existing permits are getting bogged down in interminable bureaucratic delays. Istanbul saw the beginnings of a similar ban in local government establishments some 10 years ago, when the current Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan was elected as mayor of the country's largest city. In government since 2003, Erdogan now disowns his Islamist past and has embraced Turkey's bid to join the European Union. Pro-secular groups and the liberal press have condemned the mayors' anti-alcohol drive as incompatible with the values of the Turkish secular state and of those of the EU, in particular after the opening last month of official membership negotiations with the bloc. The main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) said it believed the ban would spread quickly throughout Turkey and said it went against individual liberties espoused in the EU project, so dear to the Turkish government. "This is a creeping ban and it will spread throughout the country," the CHP's Sefik Zengin told parliament

Eurabian Union Wants More Action Against Islamophobia

2005-11-24T13:31:00.000+01:00

A new report from the EU's racism watchdog says Europe must do more to combat racism. The problem is, "Islamophobia" has been included as a form of racism in the EU. New anti-discrimination laws to combat Islamophobia are to be enacted, and already have been in Norway, where Norwegians need to mount proof of their own innocence if Muslim immigrants accuse them of discrimination in any form, including discriminatory speech:

EU must do more to combat racism: report

Europe must do more to combat racism and xenophobia and work to end discrimination in employment, housing and education, the EU's racism watchdog said on Wednesday. In a report presented to the European Parliament in Brussels, the European Monitoring Centre on Racism and Xenophobia (EUMC) said that Roma gypsies and Muslims were especially targeted. "Muslim groups face particularly challenging conditions in many member states," said the report, which assessed developments in 2004 across the 25 EU member states. The authors recommend the full implementation of EU anti-discrimination laws, national employment strategies to target minorities, more equitable access to education and housing and a crackdown on racist incidents.

Ali Sina: The Fall of Europe

Anti-Islamism has been included in the text as a “dangerous inclination” that has to be fought against upon the insistence of Turkey at the summit that 46 Council members attended. The 3rd Council of Europe summit has for the first time mentioned "Islamophobia" in the 9th paragraph of the Warsaw Declaration that was accepted on Tuesday, May 17. The Council has reached the following decisions regarding the issue: Condemnation of any kind of intolerance and discrimination based on gender, race and religious beliefs in particular, including Islamophobia and anti-Semitism, the fight against these within the framework of the Council of Europe and the use of effective mechanisms and rules to combat these problems. Thus, anti-Islamism as well as anti-Semitism will be dealt with within the framework of legal proceedings. The Council reports will include anti-Islamist movements. The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) will closely monitor these movements.

The Norwegian Inquisition - Sunset in the Land of the Midnight Sun

Stortinget, the Norwegian parliament, in 2005 passed a new Discrimination Act. The act says in pretty clear words that in cases of suspected direct or indirect discrimination due to religion or ethnicity, Norwegians are guilty until proven otherwise. The act was passed in April with the approval of all parties in parliament, more than 80 % of MPs, with the sole exception of the right-wing Progress Party. Immigration spokesman for the Progress Party, Per Sandberg, is deeply disappointed and fears the consequences of the new legislation. "This law will jeopardize the rights of ordinary, law-abiding Norwegian citizens. The principle of reverse burden of proof means that Norwegians are guilty of discrimination unless they can prove otherwise. It will lead to many convictions of innocent people. Reverse burden of proof is also combined with liability to pay compensation, which means that innocent persons risk having to pay huge sums for things they didn't do." "Anti-racist" organizations are given a significant role in the new law. There is a new, state-sponsored Equality Ombudsman who will be responsible for enforcing it, and coerce all employers who refuse to abide by it. A multicultural Inquisition, in other words. Cabinet minister Erna Solberg, who has earlier called for the establishment of a sharia council in Norway, proposed the new act.

This law could open the floodgates for all kinds of unreasonable demands from Muslim immigrants in particular, who will be given a licence for extortion of employers, courtesy of the Norwegian parliament. For instance, it is likely that they can now claim that it is “discrimination” if they don’t have a special prayer room provided. Already, Muslim taxi drivers demand a separate prayer room at Oslo Airport, where they can pray during working hours, but have received a negative answer. The leader of the Somali Taxi Association, Ali Hassan, finds this discriminating and unacceptable, and is planning a law suit over the matter: "We think we have a right to pray during working hours. We demand to get a room where we can perform prayers, without losing our spot in the taxi queue." At the same time as this is going on, blind people with their guide dogs are finding it increasingly difficult to get a taxi ride in the Oslo region, where Muslims make up a high percentage of cab drivers.

The 2005 Weblog Awards

2005-11-24T01:44:00.000+01:00

Gates of Vienna reminds us that Kevin Aylward’s annual Wizbang contest has begun. Everyone should go over to the 2005 Weblog Awards and make sure their favorites get put onto the different ballots.

The list of nominees for best Norwegian blog is also clear, and people can start voting. Bjørn Stærk is nominated, the others are in Norwegian. My vote goes to Vampus and Hjorthen, but my Norwegian readers can choose who to vote for at Dagbladets Gullbloggen.

Sweden: Feminist Alternative

2005-11-24T01:31:00.000+01:00

Viking Observer posts a translation of a song made by the women in Sweden's feminist party, which I have been blogging about several times before. These charming women are also in favor of the current immigration policies in Sweden, which means they are voting to let in the anti-female Islamic culture. I must admit that it's tempting to let them sort out the ensuing problems on their own. I will repeat my claim that should Western women indeed lose their freedom, they bear a significant part of the responsibility for this themselves.

PS: Can anybody imagine a group of male politicians making a song like this, and bragging about it in public? What would the reactions be? If this is what feminism is about, then we don't need it:

Sweden: Feminist Alternative

The following is the text to one of the songs sung at the tv-transmitted kongress of the new Swedish party Feminist Alternative (source: Federley):

Old, dirty man, accursed man
Destroys our world without any shame
Rapes, wages wars, fights and destroys
Get that you cant and shouldnt
Grab my pussy when you get horny
Or grab my breasts when you lust
I hate you, you accursed man
You think you know, You think you can
All about women, all about our lives
But you know nothing, so take a f*cking step
To the side, to the edge, place yourself at the edge
Fall over it, I dont give a f*ck
´Cause now its our turn
This is our revenge
We will show you
Now we take our chance
You gave yourself the role of god, so f*cking pathetic,
Yes, so you have a d*ck, is that reason enough to force an ideal upon me
For your own benefit and own f*cking pleasure
I´ll show you that I can, better than you
Even though I am a "small, weird girl"
Old, dirty man, accursed man
Better start jumping
Because here you see a woman
That hates you so much
We will tear you apart

The party, according to the polls I have seen, may attain 6-10% of the vote at the next Swedish elections.

Ayaan Hirsi Ali Wants to Make a Muslim "Life of Brian" - in Denmark

2005-11-23T21:15:00.000+01:00

With thanks to Steen from Danske øjne på svenske forhold:

It's Your Life or Your Thoughts

Disturbing questions about the massive muslim presence in Europe are becoming more urgent by the day: It it possible to integrate muslims to become part of Europe? Will we have a liberal version of islam? And if not, what is there to look forward to? Civil war? Dissolution? An islamic take-over? If your head is full of such nagging thoughts, it is a solace to meet Ayaan Hirsi Ali, the liberal Dutch politician and originally muslim immigrant from Somalia. Since the murder of Dutch film maker Theo van Gogh, for whose strongly islam-critical film "Submission I" Ms. Ali wrote the script, Hirsi Ali between the two journalists Lars Hedegaard and Helle Merete Brix she has been under constant police protection. That was also the case when Sappho.dk interviewed her during her recent visit to Copenhagen.

But in spite of death threats and constant vilification the slender woman has by no means lost heart. She still waxes eloquent when she talks about the issue that concerns her the most: The defence of European civil rights and particularly freedom of expression. Ayaan Hirsi Ali comes across as a genuinely European intellectual of the kind that is becoming increasingly rare as our home-grown cultural personalities and opinion leaders are buzily discarding our intellectual heritage.

- You have said that you would like to make a muslim "Life of Brian".
"Yes, Muhammed is a much more colourful personality than Jesus. Such a film could be a learning instrument for muslims. There are some islamic films but they don't show the image of Muhammed and they are not really about him. They are more about how islam was established. I would really like to make a critical film about him. I could write a script very quickly."

- Would you make it in Denmark? We have a Film Institute financed by the state which would probably be prepared to fund an exciting and controversial film.
"All they have to do is to give me ring, and I'll come."

Denmark: Immigrant suffrage at risk

2005-11-23T14:23:00.000+01:00

The heading at the Copenhagen Post is misleading: We are not dealing with immigrants, but with non-citizens. In Denmark, and in Scandinavia in general, non-citizens are allowed to vote in local/municipal (but not national) elections after living in the country for about three years. I find this practice profoundly undemocratic, and it is starting to become a real problem in major Scandinavian cities. In Pakistan, "floor switching" is very common, meaning that you are elected as candidate for one party, and then switch party after the election if somebody else gives you "a better deal". A nice term for corruption:

Immigrant suffrage at risk

Anger over an immigrant politician's decision to switch parties right after last week's local election has the Liberal Party, Denmark's largest party and the party of Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen, considering ways to exclude non-citizens from local elections, regional daily Fyens Stiftstidene reported on Wednesday. The party has previously been a supporter of the rule allowing foreign citizens living in Denmark to vote and run in municipal elections after three years of residence. 'We've got some very permissive regulations in this area, and we should consider whether we should demand Danish citizenship in order to participate in local elections, just as it is in national elections,' said Liberal spokesman for municipal issues, Leif Mikkelsen. The sudden change of attitude comes on the heels of revelations that a Liberal city counsellor in Copenhagen, Wallait Khan, had simultaneously run for election in Copenhagen and in his native country of Pakistan. In addition to running - and losing - the race for vice mayor, Khan has also drawn attention to himself by switching parties immediately after the 15 November municipal elections in Denmark. Khan's switch was crucial in determining the make up of the leadership of the council. Khan pointed out that he was not the only Danish resident running for office in Pakistan.

The revelation failed to sit well with a number of political parties, and some are nearing the position taken by the right-wing Danish People's Party, which has been the only party to support a rule change to exclude non-citizens from local elections. Supporters of non-citizen voting rights have called them a good tool for foreigners to learn about Denmark's democratic traditions. Social Liberal Party municipal affairs spokesman Ole Glahn said he was shaken by the Liberals' new stance. 'Using a single instance like this one to exclude all non-citizens from municipal elections is too much. This says a lot about how much the Liberals have come under the influence of the Danish People's Party,' Glahn said, referring to the alliance between the minority coalition government and the Danish People's Party. The Liberals' governing partner, the Conservatives, was also against preventing non-citizens from voting. 'We've already made it more difficult to become a citizen. Should we also take away immigrants' ability to influence local issues like schools and nursing homes?' asked Conservative municipal issues spokesman Christian Wedell-Neergaard.

Councillor's Pakistani campaign criticised

Wallait Khan, a renegade councillor whose defection from the Liberal Party secured left-of-centre parties a dominating position in Copenhagen after last week's local elections, has raised eyebrows for pursuing a political career in Pakistan as well as Denmark. Khan was elected councillor for the Liberal Party in Copenhagen on Tuesday, only to defect two days later to join the Socialist People's Party. His decision allowed Social Democratic mayor-to-be Ritt Bjerregaard to form a coalition with the Socialists. "We Pakistanis in Europe have a competition between ourselves,' he said. 'We in Denmark compete with Pakistanis living in Norway and England about who holds most mayor posts."

Supporter of the Liberal Party, the Danish People's Party, has earlier called for the same thing:

Danish People's Party demands non-citizens' vote rights revoked

Foreigners should be Danish citizens to be allowed to vote in the local elections this autumn, The Danish People's Party (DF) said on Tuesday. The party's proposal would block up to 200,000 immigrant votes. In this way, the party hopes to stop the advancement of the Radical Liberal Party, which almost doubled its mandates in the parliamentary elections last February, according to daily newspaper Jyllands-Posten. 'Let's be honest. The Radicals are not just café latte-sipping people from the creative class. To a large degree, it is also largely composed of immigrants, and one could fear the result of the upcoming local elections in large cities, where there are large concentrations of immigrants that the Social Liberals pander to,' said DF leader Pia Kjærsgaard. Immigrants from outside the EU and the Nordic countries gain voter rights in local elections after living in Denmark for three years.

East Asia allies doubt U.S. could win war with China

2005-11-23T13:34:00.000+01:00

Yes, I do know that Ishihara is a nationalist, not to mention one of the most racist politicians I know of anywhere. But his views here are shared by quite a few in Asia. Some think that China's war against the USA has already begun, mainly through proxies such as North Korea and, increasingly, Iran, and quietly watching while Islamic terrorists wear down American military strength and resolve. Not to mention that they have huge stakes in the US economy, but that goes both ways, of course:

East Asia allies doubt U.S. could win war with China

The overwhelming assessment by Asian officials, diplomats and analysts is that the U.S. military simply cannot defeat China. It has been an assessment relayed to U.S. government officials over the past few months by countries such as Australia, Japan and South Korea. Most Asian officials have expressed their views privately. Tokyo Governor Shintaro Ishihara has gone public, warning that the United States would lose any war with China. "In any case, if tension between the United States and China heightens, if each side pulls the trigger, though it may not be stretched to nuclear weapons, and the wider hostilities expand, I believe America cannot win as it has a civic society that must adhere to the value of respecting lives," Mr. Ishihara said. "Therefore, we need to consider other means to counter China," he said. "The step we should be taking against China, I believe, is economic containment." Asian allies of the United States are quietly preparing to bolster their militaries independent of Washington. So far, the Bush administration has been strongly opposed to an indigenous Japanese defense capability, fearing it would lead to the expulsion of the U.S. military presence from that country.

Japan ends 60-year military exclusion

JAPAN will once again have a "military" in name 60 years after the United States stripped it of the right to keep armed forces. It is the first revision of the post-World War II constitution. The draft, which has already been made public, was formally presented at the Liberal Democratic Party's 50th anniversary event yesterday. The move may raise tensions with neighbouring countries, which accuse Japan of not atoning for past aggression. Other than in name, Japan already has one of the world's best funded "militaries," devoting close to $60 billion to defence a year.

Cheap, Cheerful and Chinese?

China's overwhelming ambition is to become an economic superpower. Everything takes second place to this goal, not least the well-being of the people laboring toward it. Yet waves of willing workers continue to deluge the country's industrial regions. Here, in China, the corporations of the world have found a bottomless reservoir of cheap workers. Here they can operate largely unfettered by all those niggling social benefits: high wages, well-paid overtime, occupational health and safety regulations, maternity leave, free trade unions, and the right to strike. About 800 million Chinese live out in the rural areas, and an estimated one-sixth do not have work. That's why they bow to the fate of wage slavery for a few years -- in hopes of a brighter future. Few of them have electricity or running water in their villages back home. The abundance of cheap goods "Made in China" may well quicken the pulses of Western bargain hunters. But few consumers are aware of the price they will pay for this windfall: the loss of their own prosperity and, increasingly, of their own jobs.

'Second Wives' Are Back

A top prosecutor in Henan province was recently stripped of his post and Communist Party membership after investigators alleged that he embezzled $2 million to support his lavish lifestyle — and seven mistresses. "Everyone is saying, 'Behind every corrupt official, there must be at least one mistress,' " says Li Xinde, an anti-corruption activist. China's economic boom has led to a revival of the 2-millennium-old tradition of "golden canaries," so called because, like the showcase birds, mistresses here are often pampered, housed in love nests and taken out at the pleasure of their "masters." Concubines were status symbols in imperial China. After the Communists took power, they sought to root out such bourgeois evils, even as Chairman Mao Tse-tung reportedly kept a harem of peasant women into his old age. Now, mistresses have become a must-have for party officials, bureaucrats and businessmen. "We are in a commodity economy," says retired Shanghai University sociologist Liu Dalin. "Work, technology, love, beauty, power — it's all tradable."

Ugly Images of Asian Rivals Become Best Sellers in Japan

2005-11-23T13:21:00.000+01:00

East Asia is a region full of love, isn't it? China wants to invade Taiwan, North Korea wants to nuke pretty much everybody, Japanese don't like Chinese or South Koreans, South Koreans hate Japanese, Chinese hate South Koreans, Vietnamese, Vietnamese don't like Chinese. Everyone hates the Japanese. And second to the West, this is the most important economic region on the planet. Who knows, with their economic rivalries and their fierce nationalism, which remind me of Europe pre-WW1, maybe they can manage to stage a major war entirely without the help of Muslims? If so, will they destroy each other, the way Europeans did?

Ugly Images of Asian Rivals Become Best Sellers in Japan

A young Japanese woman in the comic book "Hating the Korean Wave" exclaims, "It's not an exaggeration to say that Japan built the South Korea of today!" In another passage the book states that "there is nothing at all in Korean culture to be proud of." In another comic book, "Introduction to China," which portrays the Chinese as a depraved people obsessed with cannibalism, a woman of Japanese origin says: "Take the China of today, its principles, thought, literature, art, science, institutions. There's nothing attractive." The two comic books, portraying Chinese and Koreans as base peoples and advocating confrontation with them, have become runaway best sellers in Japan in the last four months. In their graphic and unflattering drawings of Japan's fellow Asians and in the unapologetic, often offensive contents of their speech bubbles, the books reveal some of the sentiments underlying Japan's worsening relations with the rest of Asia. Today, China and South Korea's rise to challenge Japan's position as Asia's economic, diplomatic and cultural leader is inspiring renewed xenophobia against them here. The comic book, perhaps inadvertently, also betrays Japan's conflicted identity, its longstanding feelings of superiority toward Asia and of inferiority toward the West. The Japanese characters in the book are drawn with big eyes, blond hair and Caucasian features; the Koreans are drawn with black hair, narrow eyes and very Asian features. That peculiar aesthetic, so entrenched in pop culture that most Japanese are unaware of it, has its roots in the Meiji Restoration of the late 19th century, when Japanese leaders decided that the best way to stop Western imperialists from reaching here was to emulate them.

Swedish girls design anti-rape belt

2005-11-22T21:45:00.000+01:00

Remember: There is no rape wave in Scandinavia. It's just something that Fjordman, the right-wing nutcase, has made up:

Swedish girls design anti-rape belt

A group of Swedish teenage girls has designed a belt that requires two hands to remove and which they hope will deter would-be rapists, one of the creators told AFP on Tuesday. "It's like a reverse chastity belt," one of the creators, 19-year-old Nadja Björk, told AFP, meaning that the wearer is in control, instead of being controlled. The military-style buckle has a latch that the wearer has to move through a labyrinth into the correct position in order to unlock the belt. "You need two hands to open it, so the rapist can't hold you down and open it at the same time. It takes a while to figure it out if you don't know what you're doing," she said. The product was designed as part of a high school project in entrepreneurship and the girls have already sold 300 of the belts in Sweden, priced at 150 kronor. Björk and one of her partners now plan to start a business to mass produce the belts and are currently in negotiations with potential partners. "But I'm not doing this for the money," she said. "I'm really passionate about stopping rape. I think it's terrible." The Swedish media have in recent months given wide and descriptive coverage to rape attacks, though experts' opinions vary on whether there has been an actual rise in the number of such crimes.

Murder believed to be 'honour killing'

Swedish prosecutors on Tuesday requested that a couple and their two teenage children be remanded in custody on suspicion of murdering a man who wanted to marry their daughter, in what is believed to be an honour killing. The mother, father, 17-year-old son and 16-year-old daughter in the family of Afghan origin who live in Högsby, southern Sweden, "are all suspected" of participating in the murder of the daughter's boyfriend Abbas Rezai, prosecutor Kjell Yngvesson told AFP. He said the girl's brother had confessed to the crime, but that he was still requesting that all four family members be remanded in custody. "For the time being they are all suspects," he said, adding that it was possible the boy had confessed to shield his family. According to media reports, the 16-year-old girl, whose identity was not revealed, was secretly engaged to Rezai, a 20-year-old student also of Afghan origin, but her family had wanted her to marry a cousin living in Denmark. She reportedly ran away from home when she learned of her parents' wedding plans for her, but after a month the young couple was lured back to the family home in southern Sweden last week with promises that they would be permitted to marry. Rezai was found stabbed to death in the family home last Friday. Yngvesson would not confirm outright that the four were suspected of an honour killing, but said "it is not impossible".

Muslim Terrorists Swimming in Saudi Money

2005-11-22T17:13:00.000+01:00

It's a good thing that the Saudis are our friends. Imagine what they would do if they were our enemies:

Muslim Terrorists Swimming in Saudi Money

The Saudi infiltration of American Islam has been as frighteningly quiet as it has been pervasive. Virtually every imam at an American mosque is a Wahhabi -- Saudi trained, funded, and vetted -- a religious leader who promotes a virulent brand of fundamentalist Islam with the ultimate aim of imposing Shari'a law upon the non-Moslem world. Even more frightening, our prison system is staffed by Moslem chaplains who are products of Saudi training. As a consequence, anti-American Islamofascist ideology is being taught to some of the most dangerous, unstable, and violent members of American society. Meanwhile, the mosques continue to beat the drums for anti-Israeli causes including fundraising for groups like Hamas, Hezbollah, Islamic Jihad, and other terror outfits.

Egypt Copts sound alarm over Islamist advance

Egypt's Christian Coptic minority voiced concern over the rise of the Muslim Brotherhood Monday, after the still illegal Islamist opposition group made impressive gains in parliamentary elections. "I am sounding the bell to warn Egyptians that if the Muslim Brothers come to power, Egypt will be an Islamic state, like Iran or Sudan," said prominent Coptic thinker Milad Hanna. The Brotherhood claimed it had won another 13 seats in the second phase of the three-stage elections, adding to the record 34 seats they won in the first, and stood to win more seats in second-round run-offs. "Had these elections been fair and transparent, maybe the Muslim Brothers would have won a majority," Hanna said, in reference to reports of widespread fraud, voter intimidation and violence from ruling party thugs. The domination by President Hosni Mubarak's National Democratic Party is not at risk but it will for the first time have to face a substantial challenge in the People's Assembly if the Muslim Brothers make further gains.

"I was always friendly with the Muslim Brothers," said Hanna, 81. "My aim was to prevent conflicts, notably in small villages, so that Coptic minorities are not wiped out. Now I sense that the political map is changing. "The day the Muslim Brothers win more than 50 percent, the rich Copts will leave the country and the poorer Copts will stay, maybe some of them will be converted... I hope I will die before this happens." So far only one Copt, NDP heavyweight and finance minister Yusef Butros-Ghali, has won a seat. The Copts claim to account for around 10 percent of Egypt's population of 73 million and have consistently complained of under-representation and marginalisation.

US Reaching Out to Muslim Brotherhood: Report

The State Department believes that Washington can contain the group and its ilk through dialogue. The memo, according to the Western diplomatic sources, maintains that it is about time that the administration looked differently at religious groups and avoided any further clash with them, because this would only fan hatred and incite more attacks against US interests. They added that the State Department has asked the US Embassy in Cairo to reach out to the Muslim Brotherhood's leaders as a preliminary step for an organized dialogue. The memo recommends that after reaching common understandings with the Muslim Brotherhood, Washington should pressure the Egyptian government to let the group members speak out their minds freely and play a role on the country's political landscape.

Draw your own conclusion

2005-11-22T15:17:00.000+01:00

Draw your own conclusion, by Rod Liddle

Why bother to draw Mohammed at all if it offends people and doesn’t really reveal very much? The Danes are mulling this over at the moment. Their largest circulation daily newspaper, Jyllands-Posten, invited a bunch of cartoonists to depict Mohammed and went ahead and published their efforts. One of the cartoons showed the Prophet with a bomb under his coat, which I suppose one might deem provocative. But this wasn’t what led to riots in Aarhus, protests outside the Danish Parliament, demands for an apology from the Prime Minister and a whole bunch of Islamic countries lodging protests through their embassies and even threatening to withdraw diplomatic relations. It was the mere act of depicting Mohammed at all, bomb or no bomb.

The paper insists that it did not want to cause trouble. Its journalistic editor, Joern Mikkelson, told me that he was ‘sad’ that people were offended. They decided to commission the cartoons when it was revealed that a book critical of Islam and due to be published in Denmark had trouble finding a translator, and even more trouble finding an illustrator: people were too scared to do it. ‘We felt the need to bring this to public discussion,’ said Mr Mikkelson, ‘and this is what we did. We didn’t want to annoy anybody.’ Really? I don’t believe that. Or, at least, I suspect that they knew full well it would annoy Denmark’s 200,000 Muslims but decided to go ahead and publish anyway. The intention may not have been to offend, but they knew it would offend, none the less. And, you have to ask, why shouldn’t they?

British newspapers and broadcasters have reported this story, but they have done so without replicating any of the cartoons which the Danish newspaper published. In other words, they censored the crucial bit of the story. They didn’t show us what it was that so offended Denmark’s Muslims. Was this out of sensitivity to our own Muslim population, or merely because of utter cowardice? Or a bit of both?

Far more than in France, the controversy in Denmark epitomises the problem of Western, liberal countries that have a growing and increasingly confident and, you might argue, vociferous, conservative Muslim population. There is no easy consensus between the two sides, no matter how loudly government ministers and (largely) self-appointed Muslim community leaders insist otherwise. We believe in profoundly different things and you can paper over the cracks only for so long; there is a gulf, and it is widening. Sooner or later one side will have to give ground, a lot of ground.

The recent government proposals for a law against blasphemy, an edict against ridiculing the beliefs of other people, leads me to suspect that over here, at least, it will be the secular democrats who cede territory. Which is why you have that inept drawing of someone who might be, and might not be, Mohammed peeking out at you from the pages of The Spectator. Hope you enjoyed it.

Radical Islam Surrenders to Progressivism

2005-11-22T12:50:00.000+01:00

Radical Islam Surrenders to Progressivism

The War on Terror has entered a new successful stage once the US field commanders began to force the enemy units to comply with the same government-imposed rules and restrictions that the US Army increasingly faces on a daily basis. One man, identified only as a "Soldier for Allah" explained, "We were led into a classroom and had to sit in circles for what they called 'Collective Self-Attaining Support Sessions' where they lectured us on matters such as "Gender Awareness." "Multicultural Identity." and "Environmental Racism." For the love of Allah (peace be upon him and his messenger, the Prophet Muhammad), even in Saddam's prisons, I was never accused so often of being guilty!" Trembling, he continued. "We had...had...gender role-playing. We had...had...non-dairy vegan diets. We had...had," at which point he broke down and cried, "You win, America! I had to write a 17-page memo explaining why my unit did not have an Hispanic presence! Please, you win!"

Saudi Arabia to tackle Racism

2005-11-22T01:24:00.000+01:00

Here's a good post from The Religious Policeman, one of the best Arab blogs, by a Saudi in exile. Slavery was formally abolished in Saudi Arabia as late as the 1960s, after intense international pressure. Of course, slavery is perfectly allowed according to sharia, which is what good Muslims should follow anyway, not the laws of the infidels. The treatment of many foreign workers, servants and maids in SA can still be very close to what civilized people would call slavery:

Saudi Arabia to tackle Racism

The Intergovernmental Group of Experts (IGGE) of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC), which is chaired by Saudi Arabia, is drafting an Islamic covenant on combating racial discrimination. That's good, because up until now, we've been one of the most rabidly racist countries in the world, and totally unconcerned about it. Walk down any Saudi street and ask anybody who looks as though they come from points East, how do the Saudis regard and treat you? Ask the Pakistani taxi driver. Ask the Bangladeshi street-cleaner, in his orange jump-suit, sweeping up the tissues and fast-food boxes that we thoughtfully throw out of our car window as we pass. Best of all, if you get the chance, ask our Indonesian housemaids. We import Indonesian housemaids in 747-sized containers. Why? Because Saudis often find themselves in a quandary when cleaning issues arise or a meal needs to be cooked because they have never done either. To many the simple task of mopping a floor or even making a pot of tea can present a major challenge. Many Saudis never do a single household chore, and some would not be able to tell you where to find the cleaning detergents and cleaning equipment in their own homes. The responsibility for household chores is left to a family’s domestic helper.

Now good help is hard to get, and even harder to keep. So one way of keeping them is to lock them up in the bathroom. An isolated instance? No, this sort of thing is being reported all the time. Often the risk they face is sexual, from the father of the household, or the son(s), or both.
This abuse has reached such proportions, that there is a network of "safe houses" for maids who run away. Often they are pregnant, and it is the safe house that protects them from legal proceedings for adultery. And we all know the Shariah penalty for adultery, don't we? The situation got so bad, that the Indonesian government suspended the "export" of maids for 5 months.

Two Arrested in Al-Darb for Rape Attempt

Police in Riyadh arrested three young Saudis for kidnapping a runaway Indonesian maid, Al-Madinah reported. The young men forced the woman into their car and drove to an isolated area outside the city where they planned to rape her. A witness alerted the police who pursued them and arrested the men. The woman was sent back to her employer.

Oh, hang on, I misread the original article. I was getting carried away again. What the original article says, is: "...that bigotry and racial discrimination against Muslims were still rife and were now and then fuelled by attempts to defame the religion. There were double standards in international relations, foreign occupations, arbitrary economic measures and embargoes against certain countries, and exploitation of technology to disseminate Islamophobia." Silly me! I should have known better! It's like apologies; when we say that an apology is called for, we mean that you must apologize, not us. Same thing here. We are not talking about our racial discrimination against others. No, we are talking about your racial discrimination against us.

Maids, Slaves, and Prisoners: To be employed in a Saudi home - forced servitude of women in Saudi Arabia and in homes of Saudis in US

One night in 1998, "Saida," a young Filipina, was carried bloody and unconscious into a hospital emergency room. The Saudi man who took her there was not a Good Samaritan; he was her rapist. He was also a good friend of the Saudi couple who employed her as a domestic servant. When her employers learned of the rape, they rushed to the hospital-not to help her, but to whisk her out before she could incriminate their friend. They took her back into their abusive custody, where she was to see the rapist again.

Saudi Arabia: Foreign Workers Abused, Torture, Unfair Trials and Forced Confinement Pervasive

Human Rights Watch documented how foreigners detained in Saudi Arabia have been denied consular visits and forced to sign confessions that they could not read. The report includes cases of beheading in which the embassies and families of the condemned men were not informed of the executions until after they were carried out. "We found men and women in conditions resembling slavery," said Whitson. "Case after case demonstrates that the Saudis are turning a blind eye to systematic abuses against foreign workers." In one case, some 300 women from India, Sri Lanka and the Philippines worked 12-hour shifts, six days a week, cleaning hospitals in Jeddah. At the end of each work day, they were returned to crowded, dormitory-style housing, with 14 women sharing one small room lined with bunk beds. The doors to the rooms were locked from the outside, denying the women any freedom of movement for the two or three years of their contracts. The report includes four cases of women who were victims of forced confinement and sexual abuse, including rape. In all four cases, the perpetrators, three of whom were alleged rapists, did not face criminal investigation or prosecution. The report also has information about women whom Human Rights Watch found in a prison in Riyadh who were serving sentences for "illegal pregnancies."

"Slavery is a part of Islam. Slavery is part of jihad"

“Slavery is a part of Islam,” says a leading Saudi government cleric. “Slavery is part of jihad, and jihad will remain as long there is Islam.” And he is the author of textbooks that are used to teach Muslim students in Saudi Arabia and the United States. The Sheikh has little use for the apologetic arguments of Muslim moderates. "Al-Fawzan refuted the mainstream Muslim interpretation that Islam worked to abolish slavery by introducing equality between the races. 'They are ignorant, not scholars,' he said of people who express such opinions. 'They are merely writers. Whoever says such things is an infidel.'"

Denmark: Prayer injuries a rising problem

2005-11-21T15:20:00.000+01:00

Prayer injuries a rising problem

Five times a day Amtul Jamil must kneel down and touch her forhead to the ground as a part of Muslim prayer. Two years ago, however, she began feeling smarts of pain running through her body like an electric current every time she placed her knees on the ground. Despite Jamil's 61 years and a diagnosis of degenerative arthritis, her general practicioner could not explain her pain. She first realised what was happening to her when her son, who is a doctor, pointed out to her the correlation between her pain and her prayer posture. Daily newspaper Jyllands-Posten reported that knee and back injuries caused or enhanced by Muslim prayer are relatively unknown in Denmark. Physical therapist Teddy Jacobsen said, however, that neither doctors nor Muslims themselves were aware of the correlation. 'Some injuries in the back and knee are directly linked to the prayer posture, while others are not allowed to heal because they are strained five times a day during prayer,' Jacobsen said, adding that on the positive side, prostrating yourself five times a day in prayer could in part substitute physical exercise. Jacobsen's interest in prayer injury was sparked in Dubai, where he worked for a year, meeting more than 50 patients suffering from physical pain made worse during prayer. Since returning home, he has met a number of Muslims suffering from similar pains. 'It's especially older people who get injuried from resting the weight of their bodies on their knees while they pray,' he said. Imran Rashid, doctor at the Herlev Hospital, said he agreed. 'Just like carpenters and tailors can get joint injuries from repeating the same movement throughout the day, Muslims can hurt themselves by repeatedly placing weight on the same joints,' he said. Amtul Jamid, along with five other women in her Mosque, now prays sitting in a chair to keep the pain at bay.

Councillor's Pakistani campaign criticised

Wallait Khan, a renegade councillor whose defection from the Liberal Party secured left-of-centre parties a dominating position in Copenhagen after last week's local elections, has raised eyebrows for pursuing a political career in Pakistan as well as Denmark. Khan was elected councillor for the Liberal Party in Copenhagen on Tuesday, only to defect two days later to join the Socialist People's Party. His decision allowed Social Democratic mayor-to-be Ritt Bjerregaard to form a coalition with the Socialists, the Red-Green Coalition Party, and the Social Liberal Party, leaving the Liberals and Conservatives out in the cold. But daily newspaper Politiken reported that not only had Khan been politically active in the Danish capital, but he had also been on the campaign trail in his old homeland, Pakistan, where he had spent a large part of the year trying to become mayor of a town there. 'We all wondered where he was. When we finally got into contact with him and asked him, he told us he was running for mayor in Pakistan,' said Liberal councillor Jesper Schou Hansen. 'We were a bit surprised.' Khan said the Liberal Party was attempting to avenge for his desertion with a smear campaign, but said it was true that he had been running for deputy mayor in a Pakistani town, but failed. 'If I had been elected there, I would of course have left the Copenhagen City Council,' Khan said. Khan, who is a Pakistani citizen but has resided long enough in Denmark to comply with laws allowing non-Danish residents to vote and run in local elections, said six people had been elected in Pakistan despite their Danish residencies. Khan named cabbies, slaughterhouse workers, and pizza chefs in Denmark who had been elected mayors and councillors in Pakistan. He, however, seems to be the only one running for office in both countries at once. 'We Pakistanis in Europe have a competition between ourselves,' he said. 'We in Denmark compete with Pakistanis living in Norway and England about who holds most mayor posts. I am proud every time a Danish one gets elected.'

Police suspect more honour slayings

Police have launched secret investigations into the fate of two young immigrant women, fearing that their relatives might have killed them for disobeying them and harming their families' honour. Daily newspaper BT reported that the police feared for the lives of two women who had disappeared without a trace. Their families had reported them missing, but told the police they had probably gone home to their countries of origin. Police spokesman, detective Kurt Kragh, said the explanation had aroused the police's suspicion. Earlier this fall, an 18-year-old Pakistani girl named Ghazala Abbas was murdered in broad daylight by her older brother a day after she married a young Afghani man, whom her family did not approve of. Many of the girl's relatives have been arrested for ordering, planning, and assisting in her slaying in order to protect the family's honour. 'We know from earlier cases that when girls like Ghazala ignore their families and run away from home because they fell in love with a man, there is a big risk in some families that the girl is tracked down and either sent to her country of origin to an uncertain fate or killed here in Denmark,' Kragh said.

The Second Fall of Rome

2005-11-21T11:26:00.000+01:00

I read from time to time that the European Union is compared to the Roman Empire. Most of these comparisons are not very apt, but here is one that I find intriguing. Julius Caesar was assassinated because he wanted to crown himself king, and openly threatened and challenged the established order in the Roman Republic. Not a popular move among the powerful elite in the Senate, who reminded Caesar that Rome had become a Republic precisely because they had rebelled against the "tyrant" kings of old.

His successor Octavian, better known today as Caesar Augustus, had seen what happened to Julius Caesar. Although no less ambitious, he was smarter than Caesar. He understood that openly overthrowing the old order would trigger a lot of resistance from the established power elites. He is considered the first and one of the most important Roman Emperors (27 BC to AD 14), but he downplayed his own position by preferring the traditionally oligarchic title of princeps, usually translated as "first citizen". He also preserved the outward form of the Roman Republic. He thus paid lip service to the old elite of the Republic, and veiled the changes to make them seem less threatening and upsetting to the public. He was king, but did not call himself king.

Some might see a parallel to present-day EU. Up to 80 per cent of national laws come from Brussels, and many of them are made in secret, as in dictatorships such as North Korea and Cuba. What is then the point of holding national elections, and is Western Europe still truly democratic? Just as in Octavian's Rome, the real power has been moved elsewhere, but the old order is retained as a democratic fig leaf in order not to upset the public too much.

Of course, this is where the similarities end. Octavian's rule marked the beginning of the most powerful and dynamic period in Roman history. That is hardly the case with the EU today. The Jihad-riots in France look more like the fall of the Roman Empire several centuries later, when the barbarians immigrated in huge numbers and caused the now weakened civilization to collapse in large parts of Western Europe. The population movements we are witnessing now are the largest and fastest in human history. In Europe, they can only be compared to the period often referred to as the Great Migrations, following the disintegration of the Roman Empire. However, during the 4th and 5th centuries, the total human population of the world was in the order of 200 million. Today, it is 30 times larger than that, and still growing fast. We also have communications that can transport people anywhere on earth within hours, and media that show ordinary people how much better life is in other countries. On top of that, the Romans didn't have human rights lawyers advocating that millions of barbarians be let into their lands. Is it a coincidence that the last time we had migrations like this was when large parts of the European continent suffered a complete civilizational breakdown? Is that what we are witnessing now? The second fall of Rome?

The situation becomes even worse when we enter another factor: Islam. The Islamic world is at war with pretty much everybody, everywhere. Both Thailand and the Philippines, countries where the Muslim population is not much larger than it is in some Western European countries, are facing war. Countries such as France, Holland and Sweden could soon reach a point where the Muslim population will create something akin to civil war, as it already has in the above mentioned nations. Even though this conflict may start out as civil wars in a handful of countries, it could spiral out of control and spread to much of the continent, dragging in foreign fighters from the Arab world. The Islamic world is now at war with most of the major powers on the planet at the same time, from the USA to India and from Russia to Western Europe. It is a real possibility that we will get a full-blown world war because of these events. If so, I don’t think this will happen 50 years from now, but within the coming generation.

As Mark Steyn points out, the Jihad in the streets of France looks increasingly like the early skirmishes of an impending Eurabian civil war, brought on by massive Muslim immigration and multicultural stupidity. And it is by no means limited to France. Law and order is slowly breaking down in major and even minor cities across the European continent, and the streets are ruled by aggressive gangs of Muslim youngsters. At the same time, Europeans pay some of the highest tax rates in the world. We should remind our authorities that the most important task of the state - some would even claim it should be the only task of the state - is to uphold the rule of law. Since it is becoming pretty obvious that this is no longer the case in Eurabia, we have to question whether these taxes are legitimate anymore, or whether they are simply disguised Jizya paid in the form of welfare to Muslims and our new Eurocrat aristocracy. Although not exactly the Boston Tea Party, perhaps the time now has come for a pan-European tax rebellion: We will no longer pay taxes until our authorities restore law and order and close the borders for Muslim immigration.

Historian Bat Ye'or, who first coined the term "Eurabia", thinks that Europe's ties with the Arab-Islamic world are now so firmly entrenched and established that Eurabia is an irreversible fact. Europe will cease to be a Western, democratic continent, and will become an appendix to the Arab world, a civilization of dhimmitude employed to spread Jihad and further the cause of Islam on a global basis, while the original, non-Muslim population are held hostage in their own countries out of fear of Muslim violence.

I must admit there are certain parts of Europe that do seem to be beyond hope, or very close to it. ALL of the largest Dutch cities are projected to have a Muslim majority within a generation, as will several English, French, Belgian, Scandinavian and Spanish cities. I foresee several possible scenarios:

1. Eurabia.

The EU continues its transformation into a continent-wide organization with clear totalitarian leanings, and a very pro-Islamic stance. Europe's fate is sealed when Turkey is allowed into the Union, and becomes its largest member. Freedom of speech will be shut down, and any criticism of Islam banned. Eurabia will become a global center for Jihad activities, as the dhimmi taxpayers and infidel Western technology give a boost to the Ummah. For this reason, the Americans, the Israelis, the Indians, the Russians and maybe even the Chinese will have to crush Eurabia by brute force, as it will represent a grave security threat to them.

Muslims will be heavily concentrated in the major cities, and the dhimmi native population will retreat into the countryside. I believe something similar took place in the Balkans during Ottoman Turkish rule. The old nation states will thus slowly die, as their major cities, which constitute the brain and "head" of its culture, are cut off from the rest of the body. Europe's decline into Eurabia will be speeded up by the fact that millions of educated natives with the means to it will move to the USA or other nations. This trickle of Eurabian refugees will eventually be slowed down by the authorities in the now totalitarian Europe, as it will erode the tax base. Native Europeans will simply be banned from leaving. There will be no war in Western Europe, as its civilization is already dead and very few will bother fighting for it. Islam isn't destroying Europe, Europe has destroyed itself. Just as a patient with AIDS may formally die from flu or even a common cold, the real cause is the long, slow decay of his immune system. It resembles euthanasia on an entire civilization: Europe is tired of living. Islam just puts it out of its misery.

The only violence will be sporadic Islamic terror attacks to induce fear, and occasional Muslim mob assaults in European streets to remind the dhimmis who is boss. It is conceivable that the center of European civilization will move from Western Europe to Eastern Europe, but even Eastern Europe will be put under severe pressure from Muslims, both in the Middle East and in the West. Islam is nonsense and a failure at producing a stable and civilized society, but it is a highly successful warrior creed, specialized at plundering others. The basic rule is that the areas Muslims have taken into possession remain in Islamic hands, while the native population and culture is slowly eradicated. If this holds true for us today, then parts of Western Europe are already lost, and will indeed become Eurabia as Bat Ye'or predicts. There are not too many instances I know of where areas once under the sway of Islam have been reclaimed by infidels. The most obvious is of course Spain and the Iberian Peninsula, where the Reconquista took quite a few centuries. I know the Sikhs have kicked Muslims out of Punjab, India. Parts of present-day Israel could be counted, although Arabs and Muslims are trying very hard to wipe Israel off the map. And maybe some of China's Western provinces could be included. Islam has not been eradicated there, but it is visibly retreating as Chinese authorities are suppressing any signs of rebellion and sending in large numbers of Han Chinese immigrants into the area.

What these examples have in common is that both the Christians in Spain, the Sikhs in India and the Jews in Israel were fighting Islam with powerful religious convictions of their own. The Chinese are not usually very religious, but they have an equally strong, even ruthless nationalism and belief in their own civilization. If history is any guide, today's decadent, bored, post-religious and post-nationalist Europe will be no match for Islam, unless it rediscovers a belief in its own culture and a will to defend it. This will have to happen soon, or the Islamic demographic conquest of much of the continent will be an irreversible fact, anyway. The result of this will then either be Eurabia or a Pakistanization of Europe, the way we have already seen for generations in the Balkans. This is not paranoia, just a basic understanding of what Islam is and a careful reading of history.

2. War.

Personally, I think this alternative is at least as likely as the above "Eurabia" scenario. It also contains several sub-scenarios, partly depending upon when the eventual war starts, and partly on whether there is still some Western pride and resistance left in Europe underneath the self-loathing and Multiculturalism:

The Pakistanization of Europe.

Muslims aren't numerous enough to control the entire continent. In the event of war, there will be mutual ethnic cleansing and Muslims will seize parts of Western Europe. For instance, a belt stretching from parts of Germany via Belgium and Holland to France, but maybe even regions within certain nation states. All of Europe will not be lost, but some parts will, and many others will be deeply damaged by the fighting. Many of our cultural treasures will burn. How things will go from there is difficult to predict. Perhaps this new "Pakistan" in the heart of Europe will be the source of constant instability and the staging ground for Jihad incursions into infidel areas, just as Pakistan is to India now. Perhaps we will see a slow reconquest of this area, possibly taking generations or even centuries.

Of course, it could be more than one Muslim region. Kosovo and in part Bosnia are functioning as Islamic bridgeheads in Europe at this moment. From British India there were 2 Pakistans created West Pakistan (present Pakistan) and East Pakistan (present Bangladesh). There was also an attempt to create a South Pakistan (present Andhra Pradesh state - then called Hyderabad state) but it was put down militarily. There could be several mini-Pakistans created all over the place. In fact present day Kosovo walks, talks and looks like a mini-Pakistan. The "zones" in France sound suspiciously like Muslim "mohallas" in India although the situation is not as bad as in France. Half a million Kashmiri Hindus live in refugee camps in New Delhi near the centers of the government and everybody ignores them. The votes of 150 million Muslims are more important than half a million Kashmiri Hindu refugees who have no political power. You might see similar situations in Europe - for example the French living in refugee camps in Paris near the city centre and the French leader go around spouting Arabic/Urdu poetry - and the regular people in France ignore them because it is too unpleasant to face reality.

Reconquista - The Second Expulsion of the Moors

Muslims strike too early, before they are ready to seize control over major chunks of Europe. It is possible to view the Jihad riots in France in this light. They overestimate their own power, and underestimate the strength that, despite everything, is still left in Europe. It will start, as these things always do, before anyone is ready. Everyone, the Islamists, the proto-dhimmis, the neo-nationalists, the sleepwalking middle class, thinks they have more time than they do. It may start more or less by accident, like WWI, through the act of a fringe player unaware of the forces involved or the stakes of the game. As WWI began with the assassination of Franz Ferdinand, this war (which will be just as important and culturally destructive) may begin with the murder of a symbolic but politically unimportant figure. Or a reverse scenario is possible. A nationalist or rightist murders a prominent Islamic figure, sparking a wave of Islamic terror across Europe. Another possibility is a mega-attack, a chemical weapon or simply a massive suicide bomb or wave of bombs that succeed beyond the bombers plans and kills thousands and/or destroys symbolically important targets, a cathedral, a museum, the Channel. The fearful public then demands harsh government action. Some governments act; others are paralyzed and are incapable of taking action causing citizens to defend themselves. The Islamists are not centralized. They cannot always control the actions of their diverse cells or lone fanatics. Sooner or later someone will go too far.

Once a full-blown civil war starts in one country, it can, and probably will, spread to other countries. We are now witnessing an example of this, as smaller "sympathy riots" have been staged by Muslims in Belgium, Holland, Germany and Denmark following the unrest in France. Given the European Union's borderless nature, it is unlikely that war will be limited to one nation only. This will create a domino effect, and Muslims will be expelled from Europe yet again, after major bloodshed and millions of dead across the continent. It will start out as a Yugoslavia scenario with several cities becoming large Sarajevos. Muslims will find themselves, as in Serbia, victims of nationalism and revived Fascism. Perhaps some areas will be completely cleansed of Europeans and run along Taliban-like codes but these will not survive long amid a Continent gripped by the fury of war and national/religious passions. They will lack the economic base to wage an effective war. Their lines of supply from Islamic countries will be tenuous at best. This will result in the collapse of the EU and perhaps the UN as well. The Arab world will support the Muslims and will prolong the war, but they won't win it. Turkey may wage war against several European nations and/or Russia, but they will lose, too.

This situation could trigger the rise of neo-Fascism and neo-nationalism, and maybe the downfall of European democracy. The strengths that allow Islamofascism to succeed in its struggle with brittle, liberal democracies will prove of little use against a resurgent European nationalism. This is, of course, bad news for those of us who grew up in and care for liberal democracy and enjoy the freedom and prosperity it provides. European neo-nationalism will most likely be hostile to US interests and downright anti-Semitic. None of this will be pretty. The violence will be up-close and quite personal. Europe’s neo-nationalist future will be one filled with paranoia and fanaticism and blind, desperate struggle. Much of value will be lost.

Global Civil War

Europe has been the primary staging ground for one cold and two hot world wars. It could become a major battlefield in an Islamic world war, too. Or perhaps we could call it the Multicultural world war, just as WW2 was a Fascist war and the Cold War was a Communist war. A world war is already simmering, with Muslims clashes against Russia, Europe, Israel, China, India, the USA and Southeast Asia. Once the fighting starts in Europe, it could spread outside the continent and ignite a world war. This is the scenario of "global civil war". It would become the worst and most destructive war in human history, involving nuclear weapons on both sides. It could completely destroy the Middle East and North Africa, deeply damage Europe, the Indian continent, and parts of Southeast Asia, and inflict serious casualties on the USA, Australia and Africa. Its secondary and economic ripples will be felt on all corners of the planet, including the ones least involved in the actual fighting, such as Latin America and East Asia.

What we are seeing in the West are the opening salvoes of the continuation of the Jihad against Christendom that was brought to a close at Vienna in 1683. The new onset has come about as a direct consequence of allowing Muslim immigration to the West. Muslims are mandated to the Jihad and it is foolish of us to expect that they will refrain from doing so. It is our foolishness that gave them the opportunity to do so from within. Muslims and their religion are not yet ready to accept pluralism, democracy and free thinking. Democracy is in fact incompatible with Islam, as many Muslim imams have openly stated. That is their interpretation of the Koran. It should therefore come as no surprise to us, that Muslims in the West are waging Jihad against us. In their eyes, if we didn't realise that this would happen, the fault lies with us and not them. And they're right.

I do not think our societies, geared as they are to free and open thought, can continue with this continuous assault on freedom. If this assault is not brought to a halt soon, then free society will start to perish, and with that the economy. It may not be evident immediately, but perish it will in the fullness of time. If the current trend of increasing conflict continues, then we are irrevocably headed in the direction of a major armed conflict with the Islamic world. This is also going to lead to a civil war within Europe of unimaginable proportions. Europe's civil wars (WW 1 and 2) have not exactly been powder-puff affairs. Each day brings news of events that seem to bring us to that inevitable reckoning. We do not wish to fight for religion but we are being engaged in a religious conflict, quite against our will. Our politicians find it difficult to imagine that we are in a religious conflict. So passé - that sort of thing went out of fashion in the Middle Ages. It is all so pointless and avoidable. Time is short, and we need to act now to avert a human tragedy.

As poster DP111 says, we will easily win a full scale war with the Islam. What worries me is that in the event of a nuclear event in the West, we will rapidly go for the THIRD CONJECTURE option. Over the last two years I have stated on LittleGreenFootballs and Jihad/Dhimmi Watch that our inevitable large scale nuclear response, will also shatter the foundations of our own civilisation. Our Judeo-Christian civilisation has a built-in guilt complex, and we will not be able to sustain the shock of our victory bought at such expense. That is why the war option is not really a good one unless, unless we can re-define what this war is about. However, if we do NOT carry the war to the enemy with a correctly defined moral and political purpose, we will not be able to have public backing for the war. The Jihad in the meantime will continue, for in the eyes of the Jihadis and the Muslim world, they have a clear moral and religious purpose, and divinely sanctioned to boot.

3. A Second Renaissance - Western Rebirth in Europe

Although I must admit that I find this scenario to be the least likely at this point, we should discuss the possibility of whether the Islamic threat will force the West to rethink its values and regain its strength. Can this be done, and how would this take place? Is it possible to avoid both major war and Eurabia or is this wishful thinking by now? The growth of Eurabia is closely tied to the growth of the EU. Perhaps we could derail Eurabia by dismantling the EU? Is there something we can do to avoid the breakdown of European democracy, either to an increasingly totalitarian Eurabia or to a resurgence of neo-Fascism?

The Jihadis have a clear moral purpose, and thus we, too, have to define an even more powerful moral argument as to why our cause is more just, more moral and better - not just to our public, whose unwavering support we need, but to many Muslims around the world. Hugh Fitzgerald from Jihad Watch recommends the containment option: Islam cannot be reconciled with Western ways, which means that we need physical separation as much as possible. Separation recognises, that at this moment in time, Islam and democracy are irreconcilable. Thus a separation leaves hope for the future for everybody. A war, which is where we are headed, will stop their progress, as well as cause a split within humanity that will be hard to patch up. The basic impulse of Islam is to expand into Infidel territory. Unable to do so, it will collapse quite quickly in historic terms, and thus release the 1.2 billion souls in its enslavement and bring about true freedom for them. What more can one ask for. To regain our moral purpose, we can thus cast our struggle against Islam as the emancipation of a billion slaves from a Fascist ideology. Which is indeed what it is.

“Eurabia” Defined, by Andrew G. Bostom

This political agenda has been reinforced by (and now mirrors) the deliberate cultural transformation of Europe. Euro-Arab Dialogue Symposia conducted 20 to 25 years ago, i.e., in Venice (1977) and Hamburg (1983), included recommendations, below, that have been successfully implemented, accompanied by a deliberate, privileged influx of Arab and other Muslim immigrants, in enormous numbers:

• Coordination of the efforts made by the Arab countries to spread the Arabic language and culture in Europe and to find the appropriate form of cooperation among the Arab institutions that operate in this field. • Creation of joint Euro-Arab Cultural Centers in European capitals which will undertake the diffusion of the Arabic language and culture. • Encouragement of European institutions either at University level or other levels that are concerned with the teaching of the Arabic language and the diffusion of Arabic and Islamic culture. • Support of joint projects for cooperation between European and Arab institutions in the field of linguistic research and the teaching of the Arabic language to Europeans. • Necessity of supplying European institutions and universities with Arab teachers specialized in teaching Arabic to Europeans. • Necessity, when teaching Arabic, of emphasizing Arab-Islamic culture and contemporary Arab issues. • Necessity of cooperation between European and Arab specialists in order to present an objective picture of Arab-Islamic civilization and contemporary Arab issues to students and to the educated public in Europe which could attract Europeans to Arabic studies.

In the wake of the continuing French intifada, Bat Ye’or’s analyses have profound implications for Western Europe - which may be incapable of altering its Eurabian trajectory; her research may be even more important for the United States if it wishes to avoid Europe’s fate:

Th[e] Eurabian ethos operates at all levels of European society. Its countless functionaries, like the Christian [devshirme]-janissary slave soldiers of past Islamic regimes, advance a jihadist world strategy. Eurabia cannot change direction; it can only use deception to mask its emergence, its bias and its inevitable trajectory. Eurabia’s destiny was sealed when it decided, willingly, to become a covert partner with the Arab global jihad against America and Israel. Americans must discuss the tragic development of Eurabia, and its profound implications for the United States, particularly in terms of its resultant foreign policy realities. Americans should consider the despair and confusion of many Europeans, prisoners of a Eurabian totalitarianism that foments a culture of deadly lies about Western civilization. Americans should know that this self-destructive calamity did not just happen, rather it was the result of deliberate policies, executed and monitored by ostensibly responsible people. Finally, Americans should understand that Eurabia’s contemporary anti-Zionism and anti-Americanism are the spiritual heirs of 1930s Nazism and anti-Semitism, triumphally resurgent.

Hvorfor Tyrkia ikke hører hjemme i Europa

2005-11-21T00:39:00.000+01:00

Den tyrkiske statsministeren ønsker at anti-islamisme skal regnes som en "forbrytelse mot menneskeheten":

Addressing the sixth meeting of the Eurasian Islamic Council meeting in Istanbul Monday, September 5, Erdogan said his government has added an article to the declaration in the European Council regarding Islamophobia stipulating that anti-Islamism be accepted as a crime against humanity.

Europarådet har etter press fra Tyrkia akseptert at anti-islamister skal overvåkes og eventuelt rettsforfølges som rasister:

The Fall of Europe

Anti-Islamism has been included in the text as a “dangerous inclination” that has to be fought against upon the insistence of Turkey at the summit that 46 Council members attended. The conclusion draft of the summit included the notion of "Islamophobia". The inclusion of this notion in the European organizations' documents for the first time is described as the success of Turkey. anti-Islamism as well as anti-Semitism will be dealt with within the framework of legal proceedings. The Council reports will include anti-Islamist movements. The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance (ECRI) will closely monitor these movements. The Commission will record in which country anti-Islamism increases or how it is reflected.

Samtidig følger Norge nesten blindt Europarådets anbefalinger. Betyr det ikke at islam-kritikk nå vil regnes som rasisme og forbys i Norge, slik diskrimineringsloven går langt i retning av?

Situasjonen for nasjonale minoriteter i Norge

Norge fikk stort sett god omtale av Europarådet etter den første rapporten i 2001. Men det kom også flere merknader som regjeringen har søkt å følge opp, sier hun. - Dette vil nok bli påpekt i rapporter som vi har oppfordret de nasjonale organisasjonene å sende direkte til Europarådet. Deres engasjement og synspunkter er viktige i politikkutviklingen, understreker Erna Solberg. - Vi har redegjort for den nye diskrimineringsloven og ombudsmannsloven, eksempler på viktige saker som er gjennomført siden forrige rapport, sier Erna Solberg.

Dette er ikke det eneste forvarselet om hva det vil bety for vår frihet dersom Tyrkia blir medlem av EU. Den europeiske menneskerettighetsdomstolen i Strasbourg vedtok nylig en dom, igjen etter påtrykk fra Tyrkia, som slo fast at Koranen skal stå over ytringsfriheten:

Dom fastslår: Forbudt at skrive injurierende om Muhammed og bespotte Koranen

Menneskeretsdomstolen skønner, at nok var den tyrkiske dom et indgreb i forlæggerens ytringsfrihed, men indgrebet var berettiget, fordi novellen var injurierende over for profeten Muhammed og bespottede Koranen.

Religionsfrihed overtrumfer ytringsfrihed

15. september 2005

Det er vigtigere at hindre blasfemi end at sikre ytringsfriheden, fremgår det af en opsigtsvækkende dom fra Den europæiske Menneskerets-domstol.

Hvorfor må vi lese om dette i danske medier, ikke i norske? Kan det hende at Danmark rett og slett er et friere land, med en offentlighet som fortsatt fungerer? Den tyrkiske regjeringen er blant de mange muslimske landene som nå presser Danmark og Jyllands-Posten over tegningene av Muhammed. Ønsker vi virkelig at dette landet, som allerede aggressivt jobber for å avskaffe ytringsfriheten i islamske spørsmål i Europa, skal bli EUs største land?

Tyrkias statsminister stod mer eller mindre og truet europeere med voldelige represalier dersom de ikke ble tatt opp i medlemskapsforhandlinger:

Turkish leader warns of terror wave if EU rejects membership

RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN, the Turkish Prime Minister, has told European Union leaders that they will pay a heavy price in continued and escalating violence from Islamic extremists if the EU rejects Turkey as a member and confirms itself as a Christian club.

Den britiske utenriksministeren har tydeligvis tatt til seg disse truslene:

British Foreign Secretary: let the Turks into the EU, or someone may get hurt

The Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, warned in a hard-hitting speech that snubbing Ankara's hopes would give ammunition to Islamic extremists, while welcoming it into the EU would help avert a "clash of civilisations" between the Muslim world and the West. Failure to start EU membership negotiations on 3 October as scheduled could lead Europe into a "crisis on our own doorstep," Mr Straw said.

Men er Tyrkia egentlig et "sekulært" land?

Sekularisering på tyrkisk

Det måske kommende EU-land Tyrkiet er et sekulært land, hører vi igen og igen. Men hvadbetyder sekulært? Ordet har i hvert fald en anden betydning i den muslimske verden end i Europa.På den tyrkiske ambassades hjemmeside opfordres man til at prøve lykken i islam, og de tyrkiskeskole- og religionsmyndigheder ser det som deres opgave at etablere moralsk religiøsitet. Religionsundervisning i skolen er obligatorisk ifølge forfatningens § 24. Børn fra de andre religiøse mindretal (syrisk-kristne, katolikker, protestanter, baha'i) eller ateister kan ikke blive fritaget. Undervisningen er forkyndende, og børnene skal lære at være »praktiserende«, altså at udføre bøn, rituelle afvaskninger etc. Det gælder som sagt også for børn, der ikke er muslimer selv. Der undervises i den officielle sunni-islam, hvilket forklarer klagerne til diverse menneskerettighedsorganisationer fra alevi-muslimerne. Disse beretter rutinemæssigt om, hvordan deres liberale Koran-fortolkning er tabu i den obligatoriske islamundervisning.

Mens tyrkerne advarer EU mot å definere seg som en kristen klubb, viste en undersøkelse i 17 land at Tyrkia hadde den mest anti-kristne befolkningen av alle, og det kommer stadige beskrivelser av hvordan kristne trakasseres den dag i dag i landet. Det er vanskelig for kristne å bygge eller til og med vedlikeholde kirker i Tyrkia. Faktisk hevder tyrkerne at det var de som var ofre for massakrer fra de kristne armenerne, ikke omvendt. Det er forbudt å undervise om folkemordet på armenerne. Samtidig ligger Adolf Hitlers selvbiografi "Mein Kampf" meget høyt på bestselgerlistene i Tyrkia. I tillegg til dette kommer de finansielle omkostningene ved et eventuelt medlemskap, samt faren for økt illegal innvandring ved at EUs grenser flyttes til Syria og Irak. En intern EU-rapport hevdet at et tyrkisk medlemskap ville koste 28 milliarder Euro hvert år. Tyrkia er allerede aktivt delaktig i at muslimer kommer seg illegalt inn i EU via tyrkiske nord-Kypros.

Kan noen seriøst tenke seg et kristent land på størrelse med Tyskland, der Adolf Hitler var kjempepopulær og der Holocaust denial var en del av pensum på skolene - og så skulle hele vår politiske elite hylle dem som et eksempel på moderasjon? Dersom Tyrkia er det beste og mest demokratiske landet i den islamske verden står det dårlig til. Likevel bestemmer EU-eliten, på tross av til dels sterk folkelig motstand, at løsningen på de problemene vi nå ser med muslimer i Europa er å femdoble deres antall. Kanskje dilemmaet med om Tyrkia skal eller ikke skal bli medlem av EU løses ved at EU legges ned?

The EU Constitution Lives!

2005-11-20T18:04:00.000+01:00

The EU Constitution Lives!

The EU is a piece of bureaucratic imperialism that has built up an unstoppable head of steam over thirty years. It has never bothered with democratic procedures. After the No vote, not a thing really changed. In fact, the voters’ disapproval of the Constitution just freed up the bureaucrats to do what they wanted to anyway.

“Children as young as eight are being taught that the controversial European Constitution is up and running –even though it has been rejected by voters. More than 100,000 copies of a textbook claiming the constitution will help the EU run “like clockwork” have been distributed to primary school children on the continent. The teaching material, entitled ‘Europe, My Home,’ features two children, Lea and Thomas, who are guided through the complexities of the EU by a character called Good Father Houpette. “You will be astonished by what I will tell you,” Father Houpette tells them. “You will see that the EU is a necessity.” [snip] There is no mention of the fact that the constitution was rejected by French and Dutch voters. “Some people might argue that the constitution is dead,” said Willy Helin, head of the (EU) commission’s embassy to Belgium. “But it is still on the table. The only thing that has been decided is that there will be a period of reflection.”“

Last weeks of Fjordman

2005-11-20T15:29:00.000+01:00

I have announced several times my departure from the blogosphere, but never any specific date. I have already continued almost a month longer than I first had in mind. At the very latest, the last post here will be December 10th, 20 days from now. But it could be sooner. I will continue with a handful of online workshops, and post the conclusions I have reached in collaboration with my readers as essays here before I leave. Others will be most welcome to continue where I have left off, but right now, I have neither the time nor the possibility to write.

Predicting the Future of Eurabia

2005-11-20T14:42:00.000+01:00

In the comments to my online workshop part 2: "Can Eurabia Still be Averted?", Bjørn Stærk as usual criticised my writings and claimed that little can be predicted about the future. That's not quite true, Bjørn. Some things can be predicted with some probability. Islam is nonsense and a failure at producing a stable and civilized society, but it is a highly successful warrior creed, specialized at plundering others. The basic rule is that the areas Muslims have taken into possession remain in Islamic hands, while the native population and culture is slowly eradicated. If this holds true for us today, then parts of Western Europe are already lost, and will indeed become Eurabia as Bat Ye'or predicts. There are not too many instances I know of where areas once under the sway of Islam have been reclaimed by infidels. The most obvious is of course Spain and the Iberian Peninsula, where the Reconquista took quite a few centuries. I know the Sikhs have kicked Muslims out of Punjab, India. Parts of present-day Israel could be counted, although Arabs and Muslims are trying very hard to wipe Israel off the map. And maybe some of China's Western provinces could be included. Islam has not been eradicated there, but it is visibly retreating as Chinese authorities are suppressing any signs of rebellion and sending in large numbers of Han Chinese immigrants into the area. My readers can perhaps add other instances that I haven't mentioned.

What these examples have in common is that both the Christians in Spain, the Sikhs in India and the Jews in Israel were fighting Islam with powerful religious convictions of their own. The Chinese are not usually very religious, but they have an equally strong, even ruthless nationalism and belief in their own civilization. If history is any guide, today's decadent, bored, post-religious and post-nationalist Europe will be no match for Islam, unless it rediscovers a belief in its own culture and a will to defend it. This will have to happen soon, or the Islamic demographic conquest of much of the continent will be an irreversible fact, anyway. The result of this will then either be Eurabia or a Pakistanization of Europe, the way we have already seen for generations in the Balkans.

This is not paranoia, just a basic understanding of what Islam is and a careful reading of history.

The EU and Lessons from Rome

2005-11-20T12:56:00.000+01:00