Michael Barone on cartoon riots and the Gap

Here's the Barone blog post from last week, sent to me by a CentCom USAF reader:

February 22, 2006

Mind the gap

Here is a map showing the location of riots protesting the Danish cartoons. And here's a link to Thomas Barnett's "nonintegrated gap." Notice the similarity? Barnett, as faithful readers of this blog will know...

Here's the full post: http://www.usnews.com/usnews/opinion/baroneblog/home.htm.

I just love this sort of stuff, because it proves the strategic concept is eminently "reproducible".

Comments

[Matt McIntosh]

Interesting that going by the first map, Europe is pretty much in the Gap. Take that for what you will.

[Bolo]

I wouldn't say that Europe is in the Gap... more like, it has Gap-ish areas in it. Mainly, areas heavily populated by immigrant Muslims that are given few opportunities to succeed.

I think a rough analogy could be made with America's handling of its black citizens post-slavery. They're at a similar point in Europe now--a large population from a different culture must be integrated into their own culture. Of course, there are some huge differences... for one, the Muslim populations haven't been enslaved in Europe on the same scale or as recently as Africans in the US were. But the cultural divide still exists. It's an integration of "the Other" with oneself.

I'm hoping Europe will find a better solution to this situation than the US has (so far) found. Our solution is better than most, but it's still a travesty and a source of national shame.

But I'm also not holding my breath for Europe. Boy, I'm optimistic, aren't I? :)

[JRRichard]

We need to get THE MAP in every history & civics classroom in this country.