The Barn Door

When the barn's on fire it helps immeasurably when an alert farmer is able to swing wide the doors and let the frantic horses out into the free, fresh air. But what if the horses set the fire? Perhaps those horses should have been allowed to flee, and then the barn doors shut; at least the barn would have survived the ordeal, and then the horses could be chastised and informed that their incendiary behaviour was not appreciated.

Pretty fanciful stuff, but here's French President Nicolas Sarkozy whose country has been the locus of mass riots and multiplications of vehicle burning as rather a regular event, taking place in the banlieues of the country because of the presence in those enclaves of festering aggrievement against all things Western; of restive 'youth' who express their disenchantment with the state of their world by burning down the barn.

Their muscular and highly destructive message has been received with a Gallic shrug.

That was then. That was when the United States was attempting to entice France to join it in its adventure in Iraq, and France politely declined, mindful of its vast and growing Muslim population, a demographic apart from the indigenous French, living in their dedicated slums where Islam decrees that its followers be fruitful and multiply and they did, indeed. France enjoys a 30% Muslim population.

The country hasn't exactly been successful in integrating a demographic whose religion insists that they keep themselves apart from non-Muslims. A demographic high on the welfare rolls and overburdened with unemployed young men. Who turn both through boredom and predilection to crime. These are citizens of France who eschew being 'French' in societal, political, ideological terms. They represent a seething urban mass of discontent and violence.

Nicolas Sarkozy is no Jacques Chirac. And he, never terribly fond of the prevailing situation where French police fear entering the banlieues, therefore they do not, or they do so in threat of their lives, has decided that something must be done. What? What can be done? The doors were wide, wide open in welcoming those pyromaniac-prone horses. They have faithfully bred, far outstripping French women's desire or propensity to have children.

They have no commitment to the country, only to Islam. They wish to live their lives within Islam. France happens to be a very suitable place for them to do as they wish. Like British Muslims, they will overtake the indigenous population through the sweet stealth of population growth. Doesn't the majority always rule?

Post-riots in Grenoble occasioned by the death of a man of Arab derivation whom the police were after, Mr. Sarkozy has waxed reflectively bitter about the direction France has taken in absorbing what is amounting to a nest of vipers to her equality-liberty-fraternity breast. For although France is anxious to extend those sterling qualities, her large Muslim population rejects them; Islam is not about equality, liberty and fraternity; quite the contrary.

"We are suffering from 50 years of lax immigration regulation which has led to a failure of integration" he agonized. Well yes, that really is the nub of the problem. Want to roll history back fifty years? Good luck in that. Those tough new measures to battle the country's problems of crime, delinquency and illegal immigration may suffice in holding the line for a little while. Trouble is, how to pacify the 'youth' whose idea of a fun night out is torching cars?

They've little else to do, it seems. "French nationality should be stripped from anybody who has threatened the life of a police officer or anybody involved in public policing", the president avers. "Nationality is earned and you have to be worthy of it." Hear, hear. So, what's next? Revoking the citizenship of second- and third-generation citizens of Arab derivation?

Interesting. Particularly since there has been no appreciable reduction of violent crime after widespread riots in 2005 resulted in tougher policing. The alternative is to round up all the criminal miscreants and place them in a hugely concentrated area. Barbed wire. Re-indoctrination. Good luck with all of that. Equality, fraternity, liberty.

Idealism meets Islamism.