The fact that most governments and citizens in the west supported the cause of democracy and human rights in the countries of the Arab Spring shows that there is a growing clash of extremists rather than a clash of civilizations. There is a urgent need for leaders in the U.S., Canada and the west to demonstrate to the moderate majorities in all their countries that the extremists in their midst should not be allowed to speak for them.
Where the pushers of Occupy Wall Street have erred so grievously is in comparing their struggle to that of the brave Arab Spring protesters who, even today, continue to bare their chests to real bullets. Protest-envy and the desire to suffer and to "win" like they did in the Arab Spring is couched in psuedo-militaristic terminology like "occupy" and "rebellion."