a terrorist haven?

The other day I accidentally clicked on instapundit, which somehow has wormed its way onto one of my toolbars. There I was directed to a Daniel Pipes piece arguing that weak, wishy-washy liberal Britain is, according to 'counter-terrorism specialists', a hub of Islamic extremist jihadists, encouraged by Britain's pro-multicultural laws, whereas France is a European centre for counter-terrorist activities, where fewer rights are accorded to terrorism suspects than just about anywhere else in the world. He argues, naturally, that these differences have much to do with France's defence of its heritage, by comparison with the Brits' disinterest in theirs. All a bit tendentious, but where you stand on these matters depends on whether you've ever been, or know someone who's been, subjected to the heavy-handed treatment of security agencies let loose on the community. I just think it's more about getting smarter about the people who perpetrate these atrocities, not nastier. But then, as a wishy washy liberal, I would think that, wouldn't I?