In the midst if another round of beheadings and similar Muslim atrocities, we continue to receive the typical government response focusing on jobs and improving the lives of young Muslim men as the primary solution to terrorism. State Department spokesperson Marie Harf said recently, “Where there's a lack of governance, you've had young men attracted to this terrorist cause where there aren't other opportunities.” Certainly both the Bush and Obama administrations have been reluctant to refer to “Islamic” extremism, choosing instead to separate the violent Islamists from what George Bush called “the religion of peace.” Each had their reasons which may not be exactly the same. But there is a deeper problem: It is the reluctance of secular elites to ascribe to any religion the cause of anything. For American historians, this shows up in assertions that Columbus was driven by greed not God and that the founding fathers were consumed...(Read Full Article)