A clash of visions

The latest "outrage" over cartoon depictions of Islam is little more than the latest skirmish in a battle of visions.
Not a battle of civilizations. Not a battle of cultures, even. A battle of visions.
The vision of the fascists who have, for all intents and purposes, hijacked the Islamic faith is a clear one -- world domination... the Caliphate resurrected, as it were, run by those who are calling the shots in the current war on the West. It is a long-term vision of the future.
What countervailing vision does the West have to offer, have to defend?
It's not clear, at least not to far too many in the Western world.
The Islamofascists bring an evangelical fervor to their quest, which is only fitting, since they claim to be preaching their faith to an unclean world. Yet they do it not through the powers of intellectual persuasion, but by violence... a stance virtually all other religions have abandoned as going against the tenets of their faiths.
The Islamofascists also have taken the stance that they and they alone determine what is and what is not offensive to the faith, and by so doing seek to inflame passions against the West. The cartoon kerfluffle was deliberately manipulated into the major cause celebre it has become by the Islamofascists, period, exclamation point.
They have played their cards quite well to this point, especially in the face of a West that has little confidence in itself, set up perfectly to play the role of the dhimmi to the dominant Islamofascists.
Too many in the Western world have no vision beyond their noses. This includes leaders of many nations now under siege by Islamofascism within their borders (France, anyone?). "Let's just get through the present with what we've got. It's pretty good, so just leave us alone," seems to be the guiding principle. There's no vision to pass to future generations, only an obsessive desire to preserve the here and now. This is not a recipe for success against a determined foe -- and make no mistake, the Islamofascists are determined.
The contemporary liberal mantra of tolerance is a feather in a hurricane to the Islamofascists. It has been extended beyond its logical conclusion. The Western liberal mind of today would rather serve in dhimmitude than be accused of being prejudiced against anything or of being intolerant.
Dammit, that's insane. It's a recipe for self-destruction.
Would you be tolerant of criminals hanging around your children? I would hope not. Would you be prejudiced against those who would murder you? I would certainly hope so.
It's also mind-boggling that many of those who are virtually volunteering for dhimmitude should be among the most vociferous of their denunciation of the Islamofascist movement. In many parts of the Islamofascist world, the only rights gays have is to hang at the end of a noose. Women don't even have that right in some sectors. Yet the politicized gay and women's movements are largely silent on these atrocities. Is it because the relatively few leaders who are standing up and willing to confront Islamofascism are their internal political foes? That's the only conclusion that can be drawn. That comes back to the lack of a clear vision of the future.
Islamofascism is applying tactics similar to those of the neighborhood bully, though on a much grander scale. Non-resistance does not and will not pacify the beast; it will only embolden it.
We are again in an age where we are being called on to stand up for our beliefs for the future, for our children's children's children (to borrow a title from a Moody Blues album). It is not so much our future that is at risk at the hands of the Islamofascists; it is theirs. How will they look at us 75 years from now? Will they be able to look at us in the same way we can look back at the "greatest generation," which expunged the evils of Nazism from the world? Will they be able to look at us with the same respect with which we can look back?
The choice is ours in the West -- all of us.
We cannot cop out on our responsibilities to defend our way of life against the Islamofascists.
That vision alone should be sufficient motivation.
Sadly, to too many, it is not.