It has to be said ...
By Michael Coren

THERE ARE things you are not supposed to say. Things that people pretend are not true. Things that get you into all sorts of trouble because we live in a dishonest world. Here goes...


Not supposed to say that the Crusades were not some vile Christian slaughter, but a response by Europe to the military expansion of Islam. Muslim armies had invaded Christian lands and would continue to do so for hundreds of years. They moved into Spain and reached the gates of Vienna.

The idea that Christians became Muslim with smiles on their faces is ludicrous. Countless people died and the very birthplace of Christianity was soaked in blood. The Crusaders did not always act morally -- though they often did -- but they were merely reacting to aggressive conquest.

Today the Roman Catholic Church condemns the Crusades as being wrong. Yet few if any Muslim leaders will condemn the rape of so many Christian countries by their own ancestors. On the contrary, some Muslims speak of these countries as being somehow Islamic by nature and sometimes refer to the re-conquest of Spain.

Muslim democracy?


Not supposed to say that the United States, Europe, Israel, Jews and Christians have little to do with the fact that there is no democracy in the Muslim world. Of course many of these countries were colonized and exploited, but then most of the world suffered such a fate.

India is composed of a billion people speaking various languages. The Hindu religion and culture of this magnificent nation has achieved the largest democracy in the world. People vote, honestly, fairly and peacefully. Violence is rare and political corruption isolated. All this in spite of poverty, partial rural illiteracy and centuries of imperial dominance.


Not supposed to say that Israel has become the new international whipping boy. Its people are broadly divided into Ashkenazi and Sephardi. Ashkenazi Jews were perhaps the most persecuted people in history. The colonization of Arab nations by the West is nothing compared to the pogroms and Holocaust.

Sephardic Jews were mostly to be found in Muslim states, where they were always at the bottom of the social ladder. Sometimes they were treated fairly well, sometimes very badly. But never were they complete equals. Even in Ethiopia, with all of its problems, a way was found to treat Jews worse than anybody else.

Yet whatever one wants to say about Israel -- and people will say everything about Israel, whether it's true or not -- the country enjoys a flourishing democracy. The million Arab citizens of Israel are not always first-class citizens. But they have the vote. More democratic rights than their Arab relatives across the border in Egypt or Jordan.


Not supposed to say that although the war in Iraq was, in my opinion, wrong and foolish, many Iraqis are acting like brutal and irrational thugs. Saddam Hussein kept his country in order by ruling as a murderous tyrant yet faced very little opposition. Where were these brave Islamic militants then?

The Americans have often acted thoughtlessly and have caused much suffering. But this can't justify blowing up churches, killing innocent Iraqi people and beheading foreign truck drivers. I'm tired of various so-called "holy" cities, holy men and holy ideas. None seem very holy or capable of giving people a life of dignity and safety.

Routine torture?


Not supposed to say that while the humiliation of Iraqi prisoners by American soldiers was bad, it was nothing compared to the routine torture that takes place in most of the Muslim world. Yes, most. Egypt, Iran, Syria, Jordan and the rest. It was still wrong. Yet look at the reaction.

A free American press criticized its government. That government launched an inquiry. People were charged. Endless media coverage and national lamenting. As you read this another Muslim is being beaten, tortured or killed by other Muslims. No free press can write about it, no free people can protest about it.


Not supposed to say that many of the excuses and explanations offered by woolly thinkers to explain world events are invalid and fatuous. Not supposed to say that some beliefs are ethically and intellectually superior to others. Not supposed to say we should think outside of the boxes of both left and right.

Not supposed to -- but will.