Sign posted outside last Friday's panel discussion at UCLA

I like that sign. It shows that we have free speech in this country, and anybody who doesn't want to participate in the discussion has no right to disrupt it.

Last Friday there was a panel at UCLA, discussing the Mohammed cartoons. The panel was sponsored by the UCLA chapter of L.O.G.I.C., an organization based on the philosophy of Ayn Rand.

The discussion was excellent. The one part of it I want to discuss in this post was the final remarks made by Dr. Khaleel Mohammed, Professor of Religion at the Center for Islamic and Arabic Studies at San Diego State University.

I have to give Dr. Mohammed credit for having the guts to be the lone person on the panel representing the point of view of those opposed to the cartoons. He tried to support the argument that free speech has to be subordinate to whatever offends Muslims; his view, of course, would destroy freedom of speech and of religion in this country if it were adopted.

But Dr. Mohammed's concluding words were surprising. He made two remarks. First, that many Muslim scholars are reaching out to moderate Muslims in the West in an effort to reform Islam. He said that the reform of Islam will come from the U.S.

Second, he said that -- quoting from memory here -- "Islam will reform when Muslims get their ass kicked. Sorry for my language -- I'm from the streets."

This was startling, to say the least. It matches up well with what Victor Davis Hanson says, that wars continue until one side loses decisively.

And to hear a Muslim scholar say this, was strong evidence that it is indeed what is necessary.

It seems to me that, as regards this country, one thing that might include could be, identifying mosques where treason is being preached, and expelling their imams and those involved in spreading their preaching.