WHERE IS ISLAM GROWING?

Everywhere. In case you haven't been paying attention, the Muslim world has been growing by leaps and bounds simply through immigration and obnoxious birth rates. The Catholic Church recently admitted the number of Muslims has surpassed their own numbers. It has been reported there are now over 9 million Muslims in the European Union alone which will likely double by 2020. In the United States it is estimated there are now approximately 8 million Muslims, which is up substantially since 2000 when there was just 1.5 million reported. Such an influx would normally go unnoticed, but due to the War on Terror and the role played by Islamic extremists, alarms have been sounded and there is growing concern about the impact of the expanding Muslim world.

I am normally a very tolerant person when it comes to religion. Back in the 1990's I conducted an extended consulting assignment in Saudi Arabia. I cannot say I was mistreated, nor was I considered an infidel. In fact, I was warmly received and frequently engaged in long discussions about politics and religion, among other things. There was considerable interest in what was going on in the rest of the world. The only subject which seemed taboo was Saudi/Israeli relations which they dismissed out of hand. Other than that, we openly talked about everything else. It was a very enlightening experience for me and I hope for them as well.

Many believe Muslims are fanatics. This was not my experience. They respected my religion and I respected theirs. Regardless, the belief in the western world is that all followers of Islam are extremists commanded to kill all nonbelievers. It's no small wonder why Westerners cast a suspicious eye on those devoted to Islam.

If the Muslims conquer the world it will likely be through infiltration as opposed to violence. Western governments are alarmed by their growing Islamic citizenry, and frankly are at a loss as to what to do about it. This presents an interesting conundrum for the west, particularly the United States who believes in freedom of speech and religion. It is not at all unreasonable to assume the Muslims will eventually surpass the Christian majority and take over state governments, both houses of Congress, the Presidency, and finally the Supreme Court. For a moment, let's assume they are successful under this scenario. Now the question becomes, would they abrogate the American Constitution? Obviously, this would mean a change to the America we know today.

Currently, America is most definitely not a religious state. It respects and allows all religions assuming they conform to the laws of the land, e.g., no sacrifices or polygamy. However, the followers of Islam believe their's is the only true religion and therein lies the rub. Would a U.S. government dominated by Muslims uphold the Constitution or change it thereby aligning their loyalties to their religion? If they did, one has to wonder who would then be establishing policy for the country, ourselves or someone from the Middle East. If the latter, this would be viewed as an intolerable situation and the Christian minority would revolt (assuming they were still in possession of their weapons). As an aside, this is a key reason why the framers of the Constitution gave the citizens the right to bear arms, for just such an occasion.

For now, Muslims understand public opinion is against them and their chances of gaining any substantial control over the government is unlikely. They're not worried though and are just biding their time. If left unchecked, their numbers will grow and will eventually gain political influence. In all likelihood, this will not happen in my lifetime, but 2050 isn't that far away, the date when their numbers will have finally risen to a point where they can exercise political clout. Let's hope cooler heads prevail before then.

This is why our mission in Iraq is so important. It is very strategic we plant the seeds of democracy and freedom in the Middle East now because it will not be allowed to happen later when the Muslims have taken over in this country. If freedom and democracy takes hold, this will undoubtedly influence other Islamic countries who may very well want to follow suit.

Keep the Faith!

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Tim Bryce is a writer and the Managing Director of M. Bryce & Associates (MBA) of Palm Harbor, Florida and has over 30 years of experience in the management consulting field. He can be reached at timb001@phmainstreet.com

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