Angela Merkel calls for widespread ban on full veil Islamic coverings

[eissa]

78. The million-dollar question, right?

I guess a number of factors led to their regression. Secular, but brutal, dictators who tried to suppress religious influence only inflamed them more. Western interference (both political and cultural) fed into the fear of their societies being "corrupted" and "dominated" by outside forces. So you have a large population that feels their countries and culture are under attack by foreigners, supported by their puppet leaders, and they just cling even harder to their roots. Obama wasn't far off when he described the same group here who "cling to their guns and religion" when they feel persecuted. In such cases, the majority usually use the weaker group to take out their frustrations. As these are mainly homogeneous societies, the ones who ended up suffering were the Christians (who have fled the region in record numbers), and of course, women, who seem to have taken the brunt of the punishment.

That's my .02, I'm sure there are others who could articulate it better than I have.