It should have been a joyous day of frolicking and fun, of pink spun sugar and blue sno-cones and enthusiastic yelps. Instead, the events that began with a young woman’s refusal to comply with safety regulations at a Rye, New York amusement part – and escalated into a confrontation with police – have morphed into a political showdown that highlights chasms in American (and Western) culture first thrust into our consciousness by the attacks of 9/11, and which have since grown only worse.

One of our biggest mistakes in the aftermath of 9/11 was naming our response to the attacks “the war on terror” instead of accurately identifying radical Islamists (and the underlying ideology of radical Islamism) as the target of our campaign.

Reactions to Muslim radicalization in America by Muslim organizations vary.