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The other day a good friend of mine asked if I felt the world was going to hell in a hand basket. I gave it a moment of thought and then told him that no, I did not. Since that conversation, I have given the question more thought. While every generation is painfully aware of the shortcomings of the world and humanity in general, I do feel that we are on a collision course with a major global event that will not play out in anyone’s favor…

The same friend that posed this question to me recently gave me the Sam Harris book ‘The End of Faith’ as a gift. While this friend and I sometimes disagree on certain issues (probably one of the qualities that makes him a good friend), when it comes to religion we see eye to eye. Having finished that book and the second installment from Harris ‘Letter to a Christian Nation’, I feel more comfortable saying that “You know, the world may be heading down the toilet”. When I use the word world, I am more specifically referencing humanity. After all, I would not blame mother nature for the atrocity that is occurring in Darfur.

Both of Harris’ books, in my opinion, should be translated into every language on the planet and read by everyone that can read or read to those that cannot. For example, women in Muslim dominated societies that are forbidden from attending school. While I can certainly convey the opinion of Harris here, I feel that quoting him would do a much better job. It is the following that has cast a dark shadow over what the future holds for this world.

Let us briefly consider where our discordant religious certainties are leading us on a global scale. The earth is now home to 1.4 billion Muslims, many of whom believe that one day you and I will either convert to Islam, live in subjugation to a Muslim caliphate, or be put to death for our unbelief. Islam is now the fastest-growing religion in Europe. The birth-rate among European Muslims is three times that of their non-Muslim neighbors. If current trends continue, France will be a majority-Muslim country in twenty-five years–and that is if immigration were to stop tomorrow. Throughout Europe, Muslim communities often show little inclination to acquire the secular and civil values of their host countries, and yet they exploit these values to the utmost, demanding tolerance for their misogyny, their anti-Semitism, and the religious hatred that is regularly preached in their mosques. Forced marriages, honor killings, punitive gang rapes, and a homicidal loathing of homosexuals are now features of an otherwise secular Europe, courtesy of Islam.”
Excerpt from Letter to a Christian Nation - Sam Harris