England is the breeding ground of fundamentalist Muslims. Its social logic is to allow all religions to preach openly. But this is illogic, because none of the other religions preach apocalyptic violence. And yet England allows it. Remember, that country was the breeding ground for communism, too. Karl Marx did all his work in libraries there."
Why is Britain the way it is? "This is part of the character of Great Britain," Mr. Soyinka declares. "Colonialism bred an innate arrogance, but when you undertake that sort of imperial adventure, that arrogance gives way to a feeling of accommodativeness. You take pride in your openness." And so it is, he says, that Britain lets everyone preach whatever they want: It confirms a self-image of greatness.
It's not so much the allowing all religions to preach openly part that's the problem. It's the bending-over-backwards-so-as-not-to-offend response that's the problem. One side gets to spew whatever it likes and to demand all kinds of special protections while the other side is either cowering in a corner or threatened with arrest for hate speech.
I'm not too sure about that "self image of greatness" bit, either. The Islamist is convinced of the greatness and the rightness of his cause while the Briton is if anything rather embarrassed by his country's Imperial past.
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