Robert makes a thoughtful point below about the wearing of the veil in our public schools as being something in keeping with the First Amendment guarantee of freedom of religion. But we know that freedom of religion is not without limits and qualifications, just as is freedom of speech. We know we have to curb some religious practices; Mormons were not permitted polygamy, for example, because it violated the cultural norms that are fundamental to our Constitution and way of life.

There are many Islamic practices and customs that we should legally prohibit and prosecute, such as female genital mutilation. Others should be handled through the assimilative processes that the immigration enthusiasts tell us are ever working and robust in our country.

We now have public schools and colleges in which female students attend in full, head-to-toe Islamic dress. In no way is this something to be proud of. It represents simple weakness on the part of our country, hiding behind the supposedly greater openness and tolerance of American life. If the engines of assimilation were working as the immigration enthusiasts constantly proclaim, we simply wouldn’t be seeing this in university and other public settings. Even when Islamic practices are hugely disruptive, such as with the footwashing, authorities say nothing about it, but instead seek to accommodate it, thus proving my charge of servility and weakness.