By Andrew L. Jaffee

Is Europe already finished, fiddling while the continent is burned by Muslims, or are Europeans finally starting to wake up to the threat posed by not insisting that Muslims assimilate? Germany’s interior minister, while couching his words in politically correct language, made some refreshingly honest points about requiring Muslims to leave the Stone Age if they are to find homes in Europe:

He [Wolfgang Schaeuble] compared parts of the Islamic world to pre-Enlightenment Europe, and criticised both the burka veil and traditional Muslim attitudes to women.

He pledged to use his country’s EU presidency to promote integration.

He wanted training for imams that could “strengthen those who can live with the European rule of law, universal rights and the achievements of the Enlightenment”, he said, referring to the 17th Century European movement that put reason and universal rights ahead of tradition.

“There are still parts of the Muslim world where historical enlightenment still needs to be implemented,” he told Brussels-based journalists on Thursday.

“We should not be arrogant but only helpful. After all, Christianity waged terrible conflicts for a few centuries until the process of Enlightenment took root.”

He echoed senior British politician Jack Straw when he said he thought the all-over burka worn by some Muslim women was “an element that hinders communication”.

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Related: Islam, War Against Islamo-fascism, Europe, Society

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