Change of Seasons

     "One has, for some time, seen this coming, as inevitably as the change of seasons . . . ."

* * *

     "We are presented with a moral dilemma of some niceness. On the one hand, it is our duty to our race and culture to liquidate the Children, for it is clear that if we do not we shall, at best, be completely dominated by them, and that their culture, whatever it may turn out to be, will extinguish ours.
     "On the other hand, it is our culture that gives us scruples about the ruthless liquidation of unarmed minorities, not to mention the practical obstacles to such a solution."

* * *

"In a quandary where every course is immoral there remains the ability to act for the greatest good of the greatest number. Ergo, the Children ought to be eliminated at the least possible cost, with the least possible delay . . . . It is the right step . . . . But, of course, our authorities will not be able to bring themselves to take it . . . . Humanitarianism will triumph over biological duty--is that probity, would you say? Or is it decadence? But so the evil day will be put off--for how long, I wonder?"

* * *

Today, Islamic terrorists attacked soft targets in Brussels, killing more than two dozen people. This morning, in the first article I read about the attacks, Reuters shrank from using the words Islam, Islamist, or Muslim except for in the proper noun Islamic State. The author of the article also referred to the attackers as militants rather than terrorists. You can't blame Reuters too much--all of Europe and much of America is also afraid to name the enemy. If we can't name him, how do we expect to defeat him? We can't, of course, but defeating him doesn't seem to be part of the plan. John Wyndham, about whom I wrote recently, saw that more than half a century ago in The Midwich Cuckoos, from which the opening quotes are taken.* His words demonstrate Wyndham's prescience, but I doubt that he foresaw that it would be Islam to arrive within the gates of Europe, threatening its destruction. That doesn't really matter, for if it were not Islam, it would be something else. The key passage, I think, is the question: Is it humanitarian probity or is it decadence that keeps us from defending ourselves? In true Irish fashion, I'll answer a question with a question: if you are filled with self-loathing and loathe what you have come from, why should you defend yourself, your culture, or your civilization? Shouldn't you actually invite your own destruction? John Wyndham foresaw the dilemma in which we find ourselves. He foresaw also that "our authorities will not be able to bring themselves to take" the steps necessary to defend us from outside threats. What he did not foresee, however, is that we would wish ourselves to be destroyed--call it suicide by jihad--or that those same authorities would actually throw open the gates to the people who will gladly oblige us in that desire.

*The Midwich Cuckoos (New York: Ballantine Books, 1973), pp. 180-181

The Midwich Cuckoos by John Wyndham (1973 edition), with cover art, once again, by Mati Klarwein (1932-2002).

Text copyright 2016, 2023 Terence E. Hanley