Great thought-provoking piece by David Warren. What if Islam itself is irreconcilable with the West, with modernity?

That's the real elephant in the room. We're coming face-to-face with some hard realities. As Warren notes, the Bush doctrine is built on a conceit that the mass of the Islamic world seeks peaceful coexistence with the West. If we could only remove those tyrannies and let the inherent love of freedom that exists in all of us take root, the thinking goes,we could all live together in harmony.

It is, I suggest, a generous, profoundly hopeful worldview that is at the same time hopelessly Christian, Euro-centric and American. It is for those reasons that I believe we should stick to it.

I believe that a worldview can have the power to shape destiny. I choose to believe that the desire for freedom beats in every heart because I choose to believe that life has meaning and value. If I believe that life has meaning and value, then in a very real way, it does. My belief system animates my reality.

Belief systems control the way we think and behave. Thus the central role of faith in religion.

Freedom is the antidote to extremism. Would a man who believes in the value and meaning of his own life blow himself up?

What we believe matters. Is Islam irreconcilable with freedom? I don't know. But I do know one thing. I am irreconcilable with Islam if it isn't.