The Danger WIthin

[Ref]

In earlier post I had commented that western civilization doesn't face any outside challenge. While terrorism poses a serious threat to western nations, western civilization can easily tide over it. The more serious challenge to west emanates within.

Related to this Cynical Nerd and Jaffna had posted on tensions within existing European nations.
I do not think even the formation of new nations is any danger to Europe because it doesn't change the nature of civilization.

Simply put the problem the west faces is decay and disintegration of civilization. A civilization is justified by the primary instincts of humanity.These instincts are survival and growth. Therefore even the most fundamental and bedrock principles are to be judged in light of accordance with these instincts.It is here that Europe flounders because it is unanchored from these instincts in a rapidly changing world.

Modern Europe upholds freedom as its value. The notion of freedom is a result of historical period which began with crusades and rediscovering of Greek roots and culminated in enlightenment.

When European philosopher's acclaimed freedom as the most cherished value of a civilization, they meant it as a mean the goal being enlightenment and self realization. The intellectuals believed that a society where one can speak without fear of oppression by authority and in which person could tolerate contrary view points would be a break from a violent history and a man will be able to pursue self –improvement without any dread. Yet freedom was never mean as unlimited license

However Europe has lost sight of it. Freedom has become an end in itself; it has been mistaken to mean permissiveness. Europeans have elevated fascination with individualism to fetish. There is no attempt to evaluate except in terms of keeping the individual unencumbered with social responsibility.As the sense of social identity disappears, so is the culture and with it any ability to even contemplate the expression of civilization.Dismantling of social bonds has meant that family as a social unit, and marriage as social institution are increasingly under strain.

This translates into falling birth rate in Europe. In almost all the European nations the birth rate has fallen below the replacement level. Traditionally children were considered as social safety nets, however welfare state has meant that there is no incentive to start a family.
Further traditional faith has upheld family as an institution. However with the decline of faith, the sanctity of family is gone.

There is another effect, since many decades Europe allowed immigration from Turkey and North Africa. No attempt was meant to provide incentives to immigrants to assimilate within European society, instead ghettos were allowed to form in European cities. Segregation borne out of indifference has meant that as the population of immigrants who are from completely different culture increases, Europeans find their future increasingly uncertain. The tendency to tolerate what is not out of wishy washy utopian idealism and a sense of shallow self indulgence has resulted in rise of radicalism among immigrant community, which challenge traditional European values.

Various incidents in past few years have clearly demonstrated the result of European short sightedness. As demography of Europe change and the prospect of transformation of Europe into Eurabia look more and more real, there is a need for Europe to rediscover their roots and heritage, and insist that immigrants accept those values, this is only path to her redemption.