Barbarism — our base instinct as humans — always survives in the shadows

Jacques Réattu : Barbarism - our base instinct as humans - always survives in the shadows.

The painful experiences of the twentieth century make you wonder how thick the veneer of civilization actually is, he says.

Every child born into this world is, in other words, a Stone Age child. It falls to us as parents (and caregivers) to introduce modern man as a fellow human being.

In search of credible traces of civilization outside the West , you look in vain throughout the Muslim world, writes Peter Bergen .

Bergen: Islam has been an intolerant, aggressive warrior religion constantly striving for expansion and dominance.

He says Western society denies its own traditions, including Christian spirituality, and has opened itself to the peoples of the world.