Fear of Islam has reached the schools and cultural
institutions of Europe. Jewish-French intellectuals accused
French authorities of refusing to protect a philosophy
teacher who fled his home and went into hiding after
receiving death threats from the Algerian branch of al-
Qaida.
The philosopher, Robert Redeker, published an article in
Le Figaro on the danger Islamic dictatorship poses to
Europe and defended the Pope's recent remarks on Mohammed.
The next day his home address was posted on the Internet with
a call to 300 million Muslims to murder him. The police
refused to provide protection and PM de Villepin came close
to justifying the death threat in their criticism of the
article.
Jewish intellectuals say the authorities are too frightened
"to wage a campaign against Islamic fascism, which seeks to
impose itself and change, through the threat of terrorism,
the libertarian values in Europe." Writer Bernard Henri Levy
charged the French Education Minister of abandoning Redeker
and submitting to terrorism.
In Germany a controversy over Islamic threats is also raging.
The director of the Deutsche Opera in Berlin cancelled
several performances of an opera that included a scene in
which a character has the heads of various leaders of world
religions, including Mohammed. The heads were not included in
the original directions of Mozart for his opera, but were
added in a modern staging that was last performed about two
years ago and was scheduled to be performed in Berlin this
November. The performance was deemed dangerously offensive to
Islam and to pose an "incalculable security risk," although
there is no chance of any Muslim stepping foot in the lavish
opera palace. The opera house expressed concern about
"endangering its audience and employees."
Instead of showing appreciation for the cancellation, which
invariably saved human lives, a heated controversy developed
in Germany over the undermining of freedom of expression.
Even Chancellor Angela Merkel issued a statement condemning
the censorship. "Art and the media have the task of setting
out contradictions and arguments that are going on within
society," said her culture advisor. Another German leader
described the affair before the Bundestag as "a cowardly
reaction to cultural blackmail." But instead of preparing for
a military, political and ideological struggle against
Islamic violence and blackmail, Europe continues to sink into
decline and allow itself to get trampled underfoot.
The West is trying to pit "freedom of expression," which
permits anything to be said regardless of the repercussions,
against the dictatorship of Islamic terror. One French
philosopher described this state of affairs as "Islamic
nihilism" vs. "Western nihilism." The respective European
governments are willing to surrender to Islam's political
blackmail, but will not forego the mocking, meaningless
performances that so aggravate Muslims, who are trying to
take control over the Western way of life from within. Two
Danish writers wrote that the superficiality of the European
response reinforces their values and attracts youths to their
ranks.
Meanwhile in Frankfurt plays offensive to Jews, primarily the
fruits of left-wing Israeli playwrights, are staged
freely.
The atrocities of Islamic terror are also having an impact on
European literature and art. Books and events reenact scenes
of Islamic executions posted on the Arab media network Al
Jazeera.
