Written by David J. Rusin - IslamistWatch.org
The first goal of Islamists is to silence all who counter their ideology. But while most radical Muslims in the West are content to intimidate anti-Islamists through smears or lawsuits, some do resort to violence, as in the 2004 slaying of Dutch filmmaker Theo van Gogh.
Death threats and attacks against public opponents of Islamism have escalated in recent months. Exhibit A: the New Year's assault by an ax-wielding Somali on the home of Kurt Westergaard, known for drawing the most recognizable of the Danish Muhammad cartoons. Shot by police, the young jihadist faces charges of attempted murder and terrorism - because, in the words of the prosecutor, "trying to kill Kurt Westergaard had a bigger purpose than just killing him."
Other noteworthy examples:
On January 12, feminist playwright and actress Rayhana, who appears in a show that examines the oppression of Algerian women and features "unflattering views of Muslim men," was insulted by two Arabic-speaking males on a Paris street, doused with gasoline, and saved only by their failure to set her aflame using a cigarette. The Independent reports that she was approached in the same area two weeks earlier by men who said, "We know who you are, you miscreant whore. This is a warning."Why such violence? As Ryan Mauro explains, it boils down to the underlying frailty of the Islamist creed: "The fact that this ideology relies upon force ... shows it lacks merit and will not survive the intellectual combat that comes with a free media, freedom of speech, freedom of religion," etc.
So rather than succumbing to intimidation, let us follow the lead of Rayhana, who not only managed to stumble back to the theater, but performed her sold-out play that very night.
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