Roger Scruton

Roger Scruton is a conservative English writer and philosopher who has written numerous books, including The West and the Rest: Globalization and the Terrorist Threat. In the following viewpoint he argues that Islam promotes values that conflict with those of Western societies. He contrasts Islam with Christianity, arguing that Western societies under Christianity have developed the idea that government is a human endeavor that should be kept apart from religion. Islam, by contrast, places all political authority in the writings of the Koran, its holy book. Islam also dictates that all people should submit to Islamic teachings. The result, Scruton concludes, is that many Muslims have rejected modernity and believe that Islam is not just incompatible with, but is fundamentally opposed to, the basic values of Western nations.

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