An Opposing View on the Eurabian Future

Ralph Peters, a retired Army officer and columnist, has written a piece challenging the notion that European demographic, political, and cultural trends will inevitably lead to "Eurabia," a continent dominated by its Muslim immigrants. Here's the gist of his argument:

THE historical patterns are clear: When Europeans feel sufficiently threatened - even when the threat's concocted nonsense - they don't just react, they over-react with stunning ferocity. One of their more-humane (and frequently employed) techniques has been ethnic cleansing.

[...]

Sound impossible? Have the Europeans become too soft for that sort of thing? Has narcotic socialism destroyed their ability to hate? Is their atheism a prelude to total surrender to faith-intoxicated Muslim jihadis?

The answer to all of the above questions is a booming "No!" The Europeans have enjoyed a comfy ride for the last 60 years - but the very fact that they don't want it to stop increases their rage and sense of being besieged by Muslim minorities they've long refused to assimilate (and which no longer want to assimilate).

Well, I suppose this alternate future is possible. But at the root of the Eurabian scenario is a very ahistorical trend: Europeans just aren't having any more babies. In all of recorded history, we've never seen an entire culture commit demographic suicide. In light of such a severe break with history -- not to mention human nature -- I'm not sure how compelling appeals to European history are.

Via National Review's Corner.

Celebrity Jeopardy: U.S. Education Secretary Loses to Spinal Tap Front Man

Yes, it's true.

Education Secretary Margaret Spellings was defeated by David St. Hubbins on a recent "Celebrity Jeopardy":

Spellings finishes 2nd on 'Jeopardy'

Education Secretary Margaret Spellings says she studied hard to prepare for Tuesday night's airing of "Celebrity Jeopardy!" "I didn't want to be the education secretary who didn't know how to spell potato," Spellings joked, describing how she read books and sought advice from a former show contender and her daughters.

In the end, Spellings said she thinks the effort was worth it. She came in second behind the actor Michael McKean, best known for his role as 'Lenny' on the television show "Laverne and Shirley" and for the movie "This Is Spinal Tap." Placing third was actor Hill Harper, from the television show "CSI: NY."

"I think I held my own," Spellings said in an interview Tuesday, hours before the show aired. She noted McKean had an edge, having been on the show before. Spellings was the first Cabinet secretary ever to appear on the popular quiz show. She said she'd like to return for another try. She said she didn't realize how much skill went into hitting the buzzer at just the right moment after host Alex Trebek read a clue. She said she often hit it too early and as a result didn't get picked to tackle a category.

Fox Network Developing Conservative "Daily Show"

I Spy this in today's "The Fix," Salon's gossip column:

Fox is collaborating with "24" co-creator Joel Surnow to develop a satirical news show geared to appeal to the political right, an as-yet unnamed show that Surnow describes as "the Daily Show' for conservatives." (Variety)

Why don't they just give Dennis Miller a good time slot? He's anti-PC enough to qualify as "from the right," plus he's a known talent.

Anyway, if this happens, I'll certainly tune in, but I have my doubts. TV comedies are like new businesses, "most fail," yada yada, plus they'll be trying to pull off something new.

And, most importantly: note the impulse to produce a "conservative" version of something already successful. Alas, so common. I would be more interested if they were striking out in different formats and directions -- first developing their comedy -- rather than starting with a duplicate format and then pouring their right-wingetry in.

Google Puts Aside $200 Mil for SueTube

Eyeball War update:

Google finished its acquisition of YouTube by putting a chunk of change away for the inevitable copyright lawsuits (news story below).

Question: are we now living in the "golden age" of YouTube and MySpace, both of which are still rather Wild Wild West with the bits and the bytes? I wonder what those sites will be like after NewsCorp (which bought MySpace for what, $650 million or so) and Yahoo have had a year or so to deal with legal challenges while getting the word out: there's a new Sheriff in town. I'm guessing the townspeople will likely be rather hostile.

Does the pirated material move overnight to some other site with enough server capacity?

11/15 wire story:

"Google set aside more than $200 million to cover any losses or damages stemming from the acquisition of video-sharing site YouTube.

Google completed the $1.65 billion deal, which called for Google to issue more than 3.66 million shares of its prized stock, the company said Tuesday. But 12.5 percent of the equity will be placed in escrow for one year "to secure certain indemnification obligations," Google said in a statement.

Indemnification is used to protect against losses or damages. The amount set aside means less for YouTube owners and founders Chad Hurley and Steve Chen. Google did not provide a reason for the indemnification, but it's likely related to YouTube's use of copyrighted video uploaded by registered users without permission. YouTube has a policy of removing content at the request of copyright holders, but the fact that protected material can be easily found on the site leaves it open to potential lawsuits, experts said.

To limit the possibility of a crippling suit, YouTube has also signed revenue-sharing deals with major media companies, and has promised to provide online tools that copyright holders can use to find unauthorized content and remove it."