[lit-ideas] Re: Guardian Unlimited: Denmark's new values
- From: Omar Kusturica <omarkusto@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Wed, 15 Feb 2006 10:02:25 -0800 (PST)
L.H.:
What is happening in Europe hasn't surprised those of
us who have been
closely following Islamism.
*This assertion strikes me as self-important. Frankly,
anyone who has been reading the newspapers or just
watching the TV for some time is not surprised by
almost anything any more.
Islamism is essentially Fascist and in Europe
as elsewhere Islamists believe in Islam uber alles.
If they are Islamists
then they don't believe in integrating into a European
culture.
*I object to your generalizations about Islamists.
There are very different opinions among Islamists
including liberal, Marxist, conservative, radical,
pro-Western, anti-Western etc, democratic,
authoritatian etc. I don't know of any branch of
Islamism that thoroughly subscribes to Nazi or Fascist
ideas on the European model, but some have been
influenced by them.
I am sorry that your extensive reading about Islamism
has not apparently given you any greater
sophistication about the subject.
They retain
practices normative for Islamists. This would apply
to Islamists who
immigrated to Europe (and since they are regularly
being chased from Middle
Eastern nations they antagonize, there are plenty of
them looking for new
homes) and those who convert to Islamism while in
Europe.
*There are also Muslims born in Europe, Lawrence. I
count myself among them. I also consider myself an
Islamist, but I don't find that your characterizations
of Islamists are applicable to me.
The liberal idea that we can all be just one big happy
multicultural hymn to
joy was never achievable. The Islamists think they
have the better culture,
better laws, better ideals, and they are firmly
convinced that they have
free passes to paradise while the atheistic European
infidel is destined for
hell.
*The same of course applies to their counter-parts in
the West. Frankly I don't think that the conflict is
about culture, it's really about political ideas and
interests. Islamism is not even a coherent political
ideology, still less is it tied to a particular
culture. (Remainder: Bosnia, Turkey, Egypt, Iran and
Indonesia have very different cultures.)
O.K.
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