If you want a clear illustration of the vast cultural chasm between Islam and the West, look no further than the way each society treats its canine population.
 
We Americans cherish our pets. We spend over $50 billion a year on them. A figure that, despite tough economic times, is actually increasing. From USA Today last October:

Spending in the pet economy has increased every year since 2001 and only once by less than 5 percent annually in that time.
Pet ownership is at an all-time high of 72.9 million households — about two out of every three. About 78 million dogs and 86.4 million cats in the United States represent a 2.1 percent increase from 2010.

On the other hand, for Muslims, “man’s best friend” is considered unclean – an offense. In parts of Europe, Islamists are aggressively engaged in an ongoing campaign against dogs (and their owners) as this article from the Stonegate Institute reports: Muslims Declare Jihad on Dogs in Europe ~
 
In the Netherlands, a Dutch Muslim politician recently called for an outright ban on the animals ~

This latest canine controversy — which the Dutch public has greeted with a mix of amusement and outrage — follows dozens of other Muslim-vs-dog-related incidents in Europe. Critics say it reflects the growing assertiveness of Muslims in Europe as they attempt to impose Islamic legal and religious norms on European society.

This Muslim anti-dog behavior has been going in Britain for years and is now spreading to other countries as the Islamification of Europe continues. Not only do the Religion of Peace practitioners detest dogs, they have no compassion for the disabled, many of whom depend on their aid-dogs for safety and mobility. Stonegate links to numerous anti-dog incidents:
 
• In Reading, one pensioner, a cancer sufferer, was repeatedly confronted by drivers and asked to get off the bus because of his guide dog. He also faced hostility at a hospital and in a supermarket over the animal.
 
• In Stafford, a Muslim taxi driver refused to carry an elderly blind couple from a grocery store because they were accompanied by their seeing-eye dog.
 
• In London, a bus driver prevented a woman from boarding a bus with her dog because there was a Muslim lady on the bus who “might be upset by the dog.” As the woman attempted to complain, the doors closed and the bus drove away. When a second bus arrived, she again tried to embark, but was stopped again, this time because the driver said he was Muslim.
 
• Also in Britain, police sniffer dogs trained to spot terrorists at train stations may no longer come into contact with Muslim passengers, following complaints that it was offensive to their religion. [Isn’t that convenient?!]

 
Then there was this heart-wrenching story out of Afghanistan last year: The Life of Wylie: Canine Cruelty By Our “Afghan Allies.” (At least the tale had a happy ending; our Australian allies rescued Wylie from a life of torture, abuse and certain death.)
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Where does this irrational aversion come from? Who knows – maybe Muhammad was bitten by a dog as a child. Whatever. There’s something profoundly disturbing about a culture that seemingly rejects the very qualities western civilization values in their dogs; companionship, loyalty, unconditional love.
 
I recently came across this bit of wisdom from a six year old, pondering the all-too-short lifespan of dogs:
”People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life — like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right? ‘Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don’t have to stay as long.”
 

Related:
 
Check out the laudable efforts of our military and volunteers to bring “battle buddies” safely home from Iraq: No Dog Left Behind.