The West must defeat a far worse enemy than radical Islam

The Monday after the massacre in Paris, I walk into a bank near the Place de la République to deposit a little over 1,000 euros into a friend’s account. After a number of tut-tuts the transaction passes. ‘Why all the fuss?’ I ask, only to be informed of new laws being phased in that will prohibit cash transactions over 1,000 euros, with equivalents in Italy, Belgium and numerous other countries also being enacted. ‘Soon, there won’t be such a thing as cash!’ When I question the logic behind such regulation, excitement turns to bewilderment. Didn’t I see what happened on Friday?! ‘C’est pour votre securité.’ Ah yes. Of course. Such measures are there for all our safety.

The argument put forward by our politicians is that laws like these, and associated varieties including internet surveillance and the reintroduction of border controls within Schengen, represent the appropriate response to the defining threat of our times: a civilisational crisis brought about by the march of radical, jihadist Islam.