Posted on 09/27/2001 6:40:15 AM PDT by Merovingian
Row over Berlusconi Islam jibe
Mr Berlusconi: 'eccentric and dangerous' speech Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has caused a domestic political storm with comments about the superiority of Western civilisation.
During a visit to Germany Mr Berlusconi said the West guaranteed respect for human rights and religion - something he said did not exist in the Islamic world.
One prominent member of Italy's centre-left opposition, Giovanni Berlinguer, accused Mr Berlusconi of launching into eccentric and dangerous calls for conflict between civilisations.
But Mr Berlusconi's spokesman, Paolo Bonaiuti, said his critics were taking his words out of context.
Mr Berlusconi's comments come at a time when Western leaders have been at pains to reassure the Islamic world that the campaign against terrorism was not a fight against Islam in general.
A statement by US President George W Bush in which he inadvertently used the word "crusade" - a term recalling the medieval clash between Christianity and Islam - was seen as causing potential offence.
'Superiority'
After talks in Berlin with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder and Russian President Vladimir Putin on the crisis, Mr Berlusconi said:
"We must be aware of the superiority of our civilisation, a system that has guaranteed well-being, respect for human rights and - in contrast with Islamic countries - respect for religious and political rights, a system that has as its value understanding of diversity and tolerance."
He was then quoted as comparing Islamic terrorism to the anti-globalisation movement, saying that while the former had tried to provoke a violent reaction from the West the latter had tried to make it feel guilty for its economic policy.
'Unstatesmanlike'
Centre-left opposition politicians seized on the comments. Mr Berlinguer said:
"Silvio Berlusconi has gone abroad and launched into eccentric and dangerous calls for conflict between civilisations... using terms that no statesman worthy of the name has used in these recent terrible weeks for humanity."
Communists compared Mr Berlusconi to the prime suspect for the 11 September attacks in New York and Washington.
"The billionaire [Osama] Bin Laden and the billionaire Berlusconi are cut from the same anti-communist cloth," party spokesman Alfio Nicotra said.
"They both represent fundamentalism - one of the markets, the other of religion."
The word that dare not be spoken in American discourse, although it applies just as much to our University Professors as it does to one of the largest parties in Italy.
Will the Berlinguer family please stop reproducing Communists (FYI: Errico Berlinguer was the father of "Eurocommunism" ie. tying communism to a "third way").
Anyone disagree strongly with this in principle? I mean, you can't carry it too far, but broadly speaking this is exactly what I believe.
He has merely stated the obvious. Why the big deal over this statement?
"A statement by US President George W Bush in which he inadvertently used the word "crusade" - a term recalling the medieval clash between Christianity and Islam - was seen as causing potential offence."
As it appears, this is a apt term. What Islamic powers have unconditionally opposed this terrorism and unconditionally supported U.S. action against the terrorists? None.
There is nothing wrong with the term "Crusade". The Crusades were launched by Europe in reponse to the take-over of Palestine and the Holy Sites by another group of Islamic Fundamentalists - the Seljuk Turks, who oppressed Christian pilgrims.
By the way, as I stated before, Islam attacked Christianity FIRST, not the other way around. The non-Arabic Middle-East - Anatolia, present day Jordan, Palestine, Syria, and Egypt were originally Christian parts of the old Byzantine Empire. Islamic armies marched in from Arabia and forcibly conquered the areas and converted most of the occupants to Islam under threat of the sword. Ditto North Africa. In the 700's Islam attacked Europe by invading the Iberian Penninsula and France. Shortly later they invaded Sicily and southern Italy. All were Christian countries. In 1453 they captured Constantinople in an orgy of blood-letting, massacre, rape and ensalvement of Christians and moved on into the Balkans as far as Vienna which they besieged.
Whatever they received from a better-armed Europe in the 1800's and 1900's was richly merited.
Crusade on!
Do you really wonder? It is, of course, because he has done the unspeakable; he has directly challenged the dogma of the multiculturalist, relativist, communist psuedo-intelligentsia that no other prominent world leader has dared challenge.
Well I am not up for that
I could never give up bacon
Or alcohol
Or scantily clad women
I am tired of these people who find offense in every word, every phrase and every person.
If you want to live in the dark ages, fine, but don't press your views on me, and don't fly planes into innocent buildings killing thousands. (grrr)
Not only technology. The "flowering" Muslim civilisation in Middle East, North Africa and Spain was happening thanks the the conquered and enslaved Christian population. When number of Christians declined (or revolted sucesfully like in Spain) the "high" Muslim civilization went down.
The problem is that our civilisation is in danger of similar decline since the religion on which it is based is suffering similar reduction and marginalisation as under Muslim yoke.
Not necessarily in that order
But how's that for a combination a BLT and a tall draft beer brought to me by a scantily clad woman....(sigh)
What's that smell? Oh, bacon, bacon, bacon...
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