The Moment of Truth for "Root Cause" Politics

As we limber up to deal with the Islamist threat, writes Emanuele Ottolenghi, we need to deal with the problem right at the heart of our Enlightenment project.

On the one hand we have the benign belief in “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” in the context of an eternal optimism. But there is also the dark side, of the French Terror of 1793,

of the tyranny of ideas over the liberty of men, of the totalitarian regimes that sprang out of Enlightenment philosophy no less than liberal democracies did.

Over the years our lefty friends have learned to deflect attention from the bloody side of the Enlightenment. They excuse it with their “root cause” analysis. Violence is a product of oppression and unmet grievances.

Grievances arising from the troubled Middle East feed into terror. Solve them, and there will be no terror.

But why should the specific grievances of Muslims deserve any special privilege?

Should anger at high taxes, inefficient health care, poor environmental standards, or disagreeable op-eds solicit “understandable” similar responses?

Should the lefty Guardian change its editorial policy to appease the rage of right-wingers who are enraged by the opinions of its lefty pundits?

The “root-cause” argument boils down to excusing the inexcusable.
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As for those who have “unaddressed grievances,” one thing should be made clear: as children of the Enlightenment, we believe that some values are universal, both rights and duties. Therefore, we believe in reciprocity. Those who renege on this social compact and choose not to play by the rules are beyond the pale. They must be treated accordingly.

The dirty little secret of the last century is that our lefty friends have often used the “root-cause” argument in their naked grab for power. They excuse the threats made by their violent supporters but exoriate “hate speech” in right-wingers.

But now the game is up. In the rise of Islamist fascism we have arrived at the moment of truth for “root-cause” politics and its excuses for the inexcusable.

We believe that the lefties are wrong. We believe in the West that we have a process that is adequate for addressing grievances. It is called the rule of law and the democratic process. We believe that people with grievances who resort to violence “must be treated accordingly” as thugs and fascists.

The problem we have right now is that our lefty friends are not yet willing to admit this. The result is that millions of people will be killed.

And that is an outrage.