Acontinent that not so long ago thought its modernity eternally secure now finds precious liberties under siege. In France, the attack by Islamist extremists on the offices of the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo marked an assault on the pivotal Enlightenment value of freedom of expression. Elsewhere — most recently in Germany — Islamophobic extremists are challenging the tolerance on which Europe has built its peace. This is an unholy alliance against democracy.
不久前還自認(rèn)為其現(xiàn)代性永久穩(wěn)固的歐洲大陸,如今發(fā)現(xiàn)其所珍視的自由受到了圍攻。發(fā)生在法國(guó)的伊斯蘭極端分子對(duì)諷刺雜志《查理周刊》(Charlie Hebdo)辦公樓的襲擊,標(biāo)志著一次對(duì)啟蒙運(yùn)動(dòng)核心價(jià)值觀——言論自由的攻擊。在其他地方(最新的例子是德國(guó)),具有伊斯蘭恐懼癥的極端分子正在挑戰(zhàn)社會(huì)寬容,而歐洲和平正是基于寬容而建立起來(lái)的。這是一個(gè)反民主的邪惡聯(lián)盟。