"The UK had the Tube bombings, faced a second round, and now has this latest group of willing Suicide Bombers. The USA has not.
The question remains....simply.... Why so?"
Ignoring John Walker Lindh, Adam Gadahn, Jose Padilla et al, I'd say it is because you don't have a large, unassimilated, unintegrated Muslim population that is resident in, but not part of, your society, and that does not see itself as being 'American'.
The contrast between our West Indian immigrants and the Asian community is instructive. Jamaicans, Trinidadians and those from Barbados may be at the bottom of the heap in UK Society (in income, jobs and educational attainment) but they are a vigorous part of that society, and one that is integrating and assimilating rapidly, and that is inter-breeding with wider society. Its youth are not packed off back to Kingston for religious instruction, and are not expected to marry boys/girls from back home. Black British athletes see themselves as British, and are proud to be so, and wrap themselves in the Union Jack when they win. Our sports teams are full of black faces.
The same cannot be said for British Asians, who have succeeded better when it comes to income, jobs and educational attainment, but who remain largely apart from UK society, with separate schooling (madness) and with little integration. Even the most 'British' British Asian athletes (and there are few of them in our national sports) tend to be like Amir Khan - who fights under two flags - that of Pakistan and that of Great Britain.
And finally there is the real concern that it may be in the nature of Islam that an extremist interpretation is possible, and that that 'variant' of the religion is particularly dangerous to us.
The spectre of fundamentalist Rastafarians or Baptists does not terrify me quite so much. What are they going to do, overwhelm me with marijuana smoke, or deafen me with gospel singing?
Last edited by Jackonicko; 12th Aug 2006 at 10:14.