Seminal issue my arse

'Today in Malaysia, representatives from the West and the Muslim world will meet to discuss what many consider the seminal issue of global concern – the supposed “Clash of Civilizations”.'
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2096913/%27A-clash-of-perceptions%2C-not-civilisations%27.html

I am reminded of Henry Kissingers withering remark about Latin America. Somebody suggested to him that the US didn't take Latin America seriously enough. He replied 'Latin America is the dagger pointed at the heart of Antarctica'. The Muslim world thinks that because its bloody daggers have chopped away at the Western democracies a little that they are now centre stage in world affairs. How sadly deluded. The GDP of the WHOLE Muslim world combined does not equal that of the United States. The combined forces of the Arab states couldn't defeat the Israeli Defense Forces. The combined jihadis of the whole world couldn't budge the US out of Iraq. Since toppling the World Trade Centre towers, Al Qaeda have managed exactly zero follow up attacks in the US. Despite earning enormous quantities of money from Oil, the Saudis were still paralysed with fear of Saddam Hussein- their co-religionist.

Oil is the only geo-strategic card in Islams hands- a hand which they are currently weilding with dexterity of a prop-forward. Sky-high oil prices make people want to 1) drill their own oil and 2) find something other than oil to use. Especially number two will mean Islam has no card to play at all- other than perhaps a one-off mass suicide bombing. Sure, killing innocent people all over the world has raised Islams profile- but at the cost of people really loathing it. Were it not for the 10 kid families beloved of Muslims, Islam would almost certainly be in sharp decline around the world. After all, a religion that comes across as a wacky death cult is not going to play well in countries not already smitten with the Pervy Prophet.

This author is right at least in one respect- there is no clash of civilisations, just a clash between civilisation and barbarity.