In the wake of the arrest of the Toronto Seventeen many thoughtful Canadians, who had lately thought themselves immune to the dangers faced by our civilization, are reassessing their position. Canada is not invulnerable. We have enemies. Those little Canadian flags that tourists wear on their backpacks will avail you of nothing in the face of an Islamist. Many Canadians, who had previously mocked the very idea of a threat will now come to realize that the peril is real and may someday come to pass.

Of course, one of the problems in figuring out how to respond to the T-17 is that, unlike the 9-11 hijackers, they are from here with many of them seemingly Canadian born and raised. We can’t go over there to fight them before they come here because they are already here and, in a legal sense, they have as much of a right to be here as any other citizen.

For the moment, the biggest problem in dealing with and talking about the T-17 is the seeming unwillingness of the Canadian media – and large portions of the political – establishment to face up to the reality of what the existence of this terrorist cell means. Ordinary middle-class Moslem youth – of whom there are tens and perhaps hundreds of thousands in this country – are being radicalized and turned into terrorists right here. On our streets. In Canada. I am not making this up.

Well, perhaps I am making up the last part – the “radicalized” part. Perhaps they were already radical to begin with. Perhaps, as part of their existence as Moslems, they are by definition radical. Where, in the past, they kept to themselves, now the present state of the world encourages them to strike.

Look around the world for a moment. In India-Pakistan you’ve got Moslems versus Hindus. In Thailand you’ve got Moslems versus Buddhists. In Sudan you’ve got Moslems versus followers of African tribal religions and Christians. In Israel you’ve got Moslems versus Jews. In Europe and (to a lesser extent) America, Russia, Canada, and Australia you’ve got Moslems versus secularists and Christians. In Nigeria, Indonesia, the Philippines, and elsewhere you’ve got Moslems versus Christians. Notice the common factor?

It is certainly not politically correct to say it – but it is perhaps necessary all the same: the world has an Moslem problem. When, more than a decade ago, Samuel Huntington wrote about “Islam’s bloody borders” it was a largely theoretical concern for the majority. Now, increasingly, it is an obsession. With each passing day, across the whole of the Globe, Islam grows stronger and its opponents grow weaker. With each new atrocity Islam’s ardour increases and our resolve fades. I am reminded of WB Yeats’ The Second Coming, “the best lack all conviction, while the worst are filled with passionate intensity.”

As the Grandson of Japanese internees, I am quite conscious of the problems associated with deeming one group of people a threat and considering measures against them. But, as well, I am aware of the differences between that situation and the one which we now face.

No Japanese had been convicted – or even reliably accused – of any crime. All Japanese, regardless of their status (meaning including women and children) were interned without any consideration of individual cases. Moreover, they were interned indefinitely without charge or cause – and they had their property stripped from them. That was wrong. But the fact that actions taken in that situation were wrong does not automatically mean that any action which considers an individual’s connection to our enemies to be a cause for suspicion is wrong.

We have a real problem here – it cries out for strong leadership to respond to it.

To begin with, we’ve got to deal with the T-17 themselves. This is extremely problematic in view of the fact that they appear to be largely citizens and that many of them are young offenders.

Being blunt: we can’t trust these people to our court system. Most of these people will be back out on the streets within a few years. The young offenders could get out even sooner – and have their identities protected. This is insane. All of these people need to be put to death. Even if that it’s feasible (which, admittedly it isn’t, as gratifying as it would be to see all of them shoved into a Macrowave* and their supporters forced to clean up the mess) they can’t possibly be let out anytime soon. And, in all probability, these are just the beginning of many.

There are some sensible steps that we can take.

First, even though it doesn’t apply in these cases, we ought to cut off all immigration from Islamic nations. We have a bleeding wound here – the last thing we need to do is tear at it.

Second, we need to consider some kind of new law which will consider the true realities of this war. These people we’ve arrested are essentially soldiers in the Moslem army. To release them while the war is ongoing would be insanity – let alone to release some of them according to the terms of the Youth Criminal Justice Act.

What we need is a law which will provide for indefinite detentions of those people – not in prison, but in a specialized prison camp, like Guantanamo Bay. Perhaps Hans Island would suit this purpose.

I’m serious. Think about it. We can’t possibly let these people out while the war’s still one without trailing them twenty-four hours a day – something which would unacceptably strain our resources. We need to lock them up and keep them locked up.

Such an act might be ruled unconstitutional but, unlike the United States, Canada has an escape hatch in the form of the Notwithstanding Clause: and we should use it if we have to. Such a move would, of course, cause the Liberals to flip – but the public would be on the government’s side.

Now is the time to face reality. Islam isn’t a “religion of peace.” It’s a threat to all of our lives. Those bombs could just as easily have been planned for Vancouver as for Toronto. I don’t want to die because we were afraid to face up to the truth and so instead sailed ignorantly along a politically-correct sea.

* Meaning a human-sized Microwave.