(March 9, 2011 at 6:36 pm)Minimalist Wrote: More to the point would be an examination of the role Islam plays in preventing assimilation by newcomers.
Islam no doubt played a strong role in hindering assimmulation. But christianity would no doubt play the same role where situation is reversed. Both are religions that rewards the debasement of rationality by inculcating a infantile sense of conceit. Infantile sense of conceit is not condusive to assimulation.
More to the point is whether Islam played any direct role in hindering Muslim from attaining such education and professional competence as to provide an alternative means of offseting some of the consequences of non-integration.
