You're certainly welcome to speak your mind. If you've been paying any attention to ET over the past five years, you already know this is exactly what we do.

I say "if", however, because frankly, it doesn't look like you've been paying much attention to what we have been discussing here.

I'd hate to be rude on Christmas , but I hope you won't mind if I'm being blunt here.

You know as well as we do that there's no such thing as "the FAQ about how everything is all right": if you've been paying any attention, you know we have never shied away from the issues you listed, quite the opposite.

What we take exception to, is the characterization of an impotent Europe that is lazily letting itself slide into a phantasmagorical "clash of civilization" and other alleged failures to protect our "ethnicities" and cultures, while America, at least is supposedly acting instead of dithering.

This is European extreme right language and is now being regurgitated by the mainstream right in an attempt to stroke their electoral good fortunes. As afew and Jerome said, this is also straight out of the neo-con playbook.

But this is only one minor point: the main point is, and you'll have to read part of my French here, that this is complete bullshit.

And as for the American Exceptionalism schitck, America-is-acting-while-Europe-is-dithering: peuh-leease...

How pray tell has America's action been part of the solution instead of part of the problem? How about stopping digging first?

The standard here is that you demonstrate your allegations; the burden of the proof is squarely on you.

We tend to respect people who know what they are talking about (and this is a reason, BTW, why Jerome has built a loyal following on DK). On the other hand, people who show up and start talking authoritatively about Europe while unwittingly showing how they don't know jack are to expect some pushback.

What I'm trying to say here is that I'm afraid you've really made an ass of yourself. And that's too bad because you've started an interesting discussion. Merry Christmas to you and your family.