I mentioned before that the threat posed by radical Islam is, I believe, the number one issue in the world today. By "threat," I don't just mean acts of terrorism, although those acts are certainly enough of a threat on their own. I also mean the rise of radical Islam as a dominant theology, one that is spreading rapidly, thanks to a confluence of two trends: demographics and appeasement. I'll discuss appeasement another time -- probably many times, since there are so many examples of it.

Demographics refers to the fact that Islamic women are having many more children than other women, particularly European women. Forget terrorism -- if current trends continue, and it's hard to see why they won't, Islamists (radical or not) will simply take over European countries by shear force of numbers. This isn't a matter of opinion, it's a fact. The demographics are what they are. For a fact-based, eye-popping treatment of the situation, read the book America Alone, by Mark Steyn.

Here are a few of quickie statistics from the book. Every western woman in the EU is producing a mere 1.4 children, which does not even cover replacement of the father and mother -- the population is actually shrinking. Every Muslim woman in the same countries is producing 3.5 children. The most popular boy's name in Belgium, Amsterdam, and Malmo, Sweden? Mohammad. The trend has been going on for years, along with unchecked immigration. All those Muslim youths are why we see prolonged, violent riots in France periodically.

The European fertility rate is so low it will have amazing consequences. Consider this (quoting from the book now):

"By 2050, 60 percent of Italians will have no brothers, no sisters, no cousins, no aunts, no uncles. The big Italian family, with papa pouring the vino and mama spooning out the pasta down an endless table of grandparents and nieces and nephews, will be gone, no more..."

Years ago, I vaguely recall Turkey being referred to as a moderate Muslim country, a beacon of modernity, a possible member of the European Union. Lately, though, Turkey isn't referred to in those terms very often. The reason? Radical Islam is on the rise. I was delighted to see this story of a push back against that rise by Turkish citizens (and Pakastani too). It's a very rare example of moderate Muslims standing up to their radical counterparts. Hopefully, there's more, much more, where that came from.