SC&A's conversation with a moderate Muslim, and today's articles from Maria

Sigmund, Carl and Alfred's conversation with a moderate Muslim is today's must-read:

Iqbal, a student of Whitehead and Bertrand Russell, and the father of Pakistan who was hugely influenced by Nietzsche, said that the solution to the Muslim troubles wasn't further self-negation, but self-affirmation. That's where I get the name for my blog. I am unwilling to negate my self. Because I believe in my self. My belief in my self makes me love life. As such, it makes me the enemy of those who deny life. I am one of the very few who openly declare their love of living. Most believe that such declarations are impossible. That is why I wear hope as a badge. I have to have pride in it so others will have the courage to wear the same badge. I want to be the hope that takes us beyond the need for hope.

Ali, whose entire interview you must read, also blogs at Infidel Bloggers Alliance

At the blogs:
La Lista, una historia de McCarthysmo en Venezuela, by Daniel Duquenal

Today's articles from Maria
Friend-of-Fidel CNN correspondent Lucia Newman has jumped to the new Al-Jazeera International network, which plans to begin operations later this spring. As Maria said, "WHAT A CAREER MOVE INDEED!"

On the Paris riots Letter from Paris: 4 simple rules for firing an employee in France
FRENCH CUFFED
Ralph Peters comments on the Strike of the Absurd

On the illegal alien demonstrators: Read about Who's Behind the Immigration Rallies

The Mexica Movement site

12 million invaders

The America they "know"

The hundreds of thousands of protesters who took to the streets in favor illegal immigration seem to "know" America better than most Americans. Here's some of what they know:
* The rule of law is irrelevant whenever enforcement becomes impractical, burdensome or politically inconvenient. The thousands of marchers, many illegals, had no fear whatsoever of being arrested or detained.

* The English language is "flexible." Thus "illegal alien" becomes "undocumented worker" - as if the two were actually interchangeable.

* We're the world's leading practitioner of moral relativism - free to say that anyone who opposes massive law-breaking or defends the integrity of American culture is "racist" or "xenophobic."

* The will of the American people is of no consequence. Poll after poll shows a substantial majority opposed to amnesty, guest-worker programs, open borders, drivers' licenses for illegals, etc. - but our politicians care more about courting Hispanic votes. Though Congress has passed seven separate amnesties for illegal aliens since 1986, the Senate's getting ready to pass another.

Patriots, Then and Now: With nations as with people, love them or lose them

We are not assimilating our immigrants patriotically now. We are assimilating them culturally. Within a generation their children speak Valley Girl on cell phones. "So I'm like 'no," and he's all 'yeah,' and I'm like, 'In your dreams.' " Whether their parents are from Trinidad, Bosnia, Lebanon or Chile, their children, once Americans, know the same music, the same references, watch the same shows. And to a degree and in a way it will hold them together. But not forever and not in a crunch.

So far we are assimilating our immigrants economically, too. They come here and work. Good.

But we are not communicating love of country. We are not giving them the great legend of our country. We are losing that great legend.

I was saying as much last year

What it comes down to is that the children are superfically acculturated to the media images and the language, but not to the values, of the culture. Call it a pop-culture acculturation

Here's a link to the National Republican Senatorial Committee National Survey on Immigration Policy, and give your opinion.

Update George Will: Guard the Borders -- And Face Facts, Too

Conservatives should favor a policy of encouraging unlimited immigration by educated people with math, engineering, technology or science skills that America's education system is not sufficiently supplying.

And conservatives should favor reducing illegality by putting illegal immigrants on a path out of society's crevices and into citizenship by paying fines and back taxes and learning English. Faux conservatives absurdly call this price tag on legal status "amnesty." Actually, it would prevent the emergence of a sullen, simmering subculture of the permanently marginalized, akin to the Arab ghettos in France. The House-passed bill, making it a felony to be in the country illegally, would make 11 million people permanently ineligible for legal status. To what end?

More articles from Maria:
Eclipse causes fear in Nigeria. Not only in Nigeria, but also in Turkey, where the last total eclipse was followed by a major earthquake a few days later.

Schools urged to prepare for globalization. In spite of the highly alarmistic tone of the article ("Rome is burning!"), the fact is that failing schools fail all of society, not just the students in their districts.

Carnivals this week:
CARNIVAL OF THE CLUELESS #38: THE “HEY DUDE! WHERE’S MY COUNTRY?” EDITION

And from a couple of days ago,
Alfred Hitchblog hosts the Carnival of the New Jersey Bloggers # 45

(technorati tags Islam, France, Immigration, Politics)