"I take complete responsibility for my actions. I acted purely in the name of my religion," murderer Mohammed Bouyeri told a Dutch court. Bouyeri, a Muslim born in the Netherlands, killed filmmaker Theo Van Gogh because Van Gogh had criticized Islam. "I can assure you that one day, should I be set free, I would do exactly the same, exactly the same," admitted Bouyeri.

Does immigration inculcate Western values or does it threaten Western values? Probably a little bit of both. In the Netherlands, second-generation Dutch, such as Bouyeri, can live in a nation within a nation. The same goes for Muslims in Britain (2 million Muslims), France (5 million Muslims), and Germany (3.2 million Muslims). That internal Islamic nation can stand for everything that the surrounding society stands against. Certainly the Islamic fanatic Bouyeri didn't absorb religious intolerance and sectarian violence from Dutch society? But the Netherlands, by its open-borders policy of national suicide, is learning more about religious intolerance and sectarian violence from non-traditional Dutchmen like Bouyeri.

If Muslims don't convert to "democracy," and "freedom" by growing up in liberal European countries, why should we think invading their countries and razing their cities will do the trick?

One might want to find the percentage of Muslims living in the Netherlands who have NOT stabbed film makers to death, and then compare.

What an unimaginably savage act. (Right after I read that story, I saw this one. God...)

"In the Netherlands, second-generation Dutch, such as Bouyeri, can live in a nation within a nation. (...) That internal Islamic nation can stand for everything that the surrounding society stands against."

That's exactly the problem. A good immigration policy would ensure that the immigrants actually want to become members of the society (which I believe most do).

Ben,

Tell that to Californians where Southern Cal is slowly but surely turning into a northern state of Mexico. Problem is they too refuse to assimilate and no one is forcing them to.

Guess our immigration policy needs a good looking into, eh?

asdf,

Another part of the problem is the obsession with bilingual education. It's so funny to me to hear liberals talk about how they really learned French or Japanese, or whatever their second language is, by immersing themselves in France or Japan -- yet these same people would consider it cruel and unusual punishment to have public US classrooms only taught in English.

That’s a good point and part of the problem. People (particularly on the left) forget that the reason we’ve attained the power and prestige that we have as a nation is that there have been rules along the way that sometimes force people to do things that they don’t want to do. And those rules need to be enforced without the touchy-feely, ultra-sensitive political correctness that a lot of our pols have adopted that prevent immigrants from having to learn silly things like our official language.

Don’t know about you, but it pi$$es me off when I have to punch the English or Spanish entry on an ATM. What flippin’ country do they think we’re in anyway!!

Ben,

Tell that to Californians where Southern Cal is slowly but surely turning into a northern state of Mexico. Problem is they too refuse to assimilate and no one is forcing them to.

Guess our immigration policy needs a good looking into, eh?
Posted by asdf at July 13, 2005 10:20 AM

Sure does. Why is that relevant to the comment Eric Wilds made though? That was what I was responding to.

PS: Nevermind I misread you were responding to Ben LITCHMAN. Srry bout that.

One would need to find the number of Muslims living in Europe who believe in the suicidal tenet of liberal tolerance. Chances are it's almost nil.

If one would find the number of Muslims living in Europe actively carrying out attacks against the citizenry, chances are the percentage is lamost nil. At least a vast minority.

But I agree strict immigration practices are necessary in the War on Terro, and the EU's open border policy is basically suicide. Anybody who wants to can come in.

This site is in Spanish when you're not looking.