Religion, Freedom and Blindness

I find it interesting that Western European governments (and our own administration as well) seem to have been completely blindsided by the tumult that has spread throughout the Muslim states of the Middle East and North Africa. Blinded by their own secular worldview, the Europeans see these nations solely in political and economic terms and ignore the impact of both the religious faith of the people and their hopes for freedom. Because religion has little or no influence among Europe's elites today, they find it hard to imagine it having much influence anywhere. As a result they underestimate the resolve of the Jihadists who are engaged in a battle not only against the secular West, but also against the aspirations of much of the Muslim world. And so the West finds itself faced by a region that seems to have dissolved into chaos, and it doesn't have a clue as to the likely outcome. Very few saw this coming because very few recognized the growing signs of real discontent among the youth, women, and the many persecuted minorities, a discontent that has exploded in recent weeks.

The current conflict

Some of us have been listening to observers such as Walid Phares who have written extensively on what we should expect in the near future. Indeed, Phares' book, The Coming Revolution: Struggle for Freedom in the Middle East, anticipated much that is currently happening. The outcome, however, will likely be determined by how we in the West respond. If we continue as we have the outlook is not particularly bright.