Canaries

There's a aphorism that relates to population and culture: "Demographics is destiny."

The current population of a specific group within a country, coupled with the birthrate of that group, compared to the population and birthrate of other indigenous groups leads to a relatively simple outcome. High birthrate will lead to a larger group that will grow in population geometrically, if that birthrate remains high. And if the birthrate of other groups is low, the high birthrate group inexorably takes over—in population, in voters, in culture.

Of course, this isn't a problem when different groups have shared values, are tolerant of one another, and have no intention of forcing less fecund groups to "submit." But when members of the high birthrate group are intolerant, want to instantiate a set of laws that is closer to the 7th century than the 21st century, and will only tolerate others if they submit—a country has a very serious problem.

That brings us to France—a country that yesterday suffered a mass murder terror attack conducted by Islamic men who were offended by satirical cartoons depicting Mohammed. France's destiny is tied to its demographics, and the outlook for the country is troubling. Muslims are reproducing at a rate that is significantly higher than other French people. They will, in time, take over politics, and slowly install a set of laws that that may be less than ideal for French people who decide they do not want to become Muslims.

The mass murder attack was conducted by three Muslim men who, virtually every left-leaning news outlet assures us, are outliers—not in the least representative of the larger Muslim population that is today about 8 percent of all French people. It is undoubtedly true that the larger French Muslim population are not mass murderers, and it's equally true that a substantial percentage simply want to live their lives peacefully.

But the issue is deeper than that. What percentage of the French Muslims tacitly approve of Muslim domination of the West—the primacy of the Quran? What percent are in favor of Sharia Law? What percentage are generally intolerant of Western values, and what values are they intolerant of? Women's freedom? Gay rights? Religious freedom? Freedom of the press including the freedom to mock Islam in a satirical way? What percentage would actively resist any attempt by Muslim extremists to impose their intolerance on non-Muslims? What percentage are unashamedly anti-Semitic?

The last question is instructive. Looking back at history, it does seem that Jews are the proverbial 'canary in the coal mine.' When the Nazis began their efforts to exterminate the Jews in the 1930s, few became concerned over what seemed like random anti-Semitic acts. It was just a few "radicals" or "extremists," argued outlets like The New York Times. But it wasn't ... and the carnage that resulted left tens of millions dead, most of whom were not Jews. The canary was a warning, and most chose to look the other way

On the matter of anti-Semitism in France, Ryan Girdusky reports:

Attacks on Jews [in France] have risen since the early 2000s, with well-publicized assaults beginning in 2003 when a popular Jewish French DJ was slain by members of a Muslim youth organization. Since then, attacks on French Jews have rapidly increased, including the 2012 murder by a Muslim extremist of a rabbi and three children. Last year, Jews were targets in high-profile hate crimes including when four Arab men beat a Jewish man on at a Paris Metro station. Several other incidents occurred last year, including a pro-Palestinian protest attacking Jewish owned stores in Paris, with chants of “gas the Jews” and “kill the Jews.”

As an aside, French Jews are leaving France in record numbers (20,000 in the last three years), afraid that diversity and political correctness just might get them killed. They're giving up their homeland, their livelihoods, and their friends because they no longer feel safe in a country that insists that "only a few" Muslims are creating all the problems.

The Jews who have fled France are the canaries that have wisely chosen to leave the cage. But their message to all of us is no less important.