Tariq Ramadan discovers his inner flower child

Originally published at The American Thinker, May 15, 2011. Also posted at Campus Watch, Middle East Forum, and either re-posted or linked to at an amazing 157 other places, according to a quick Google search.

In the first of what would become a series of open-ended, philosophical questions, Ramadan began by asking the audience how to find meaning in the relatively short time they are given on earth. “What is the meaning [of all this]?” he asked rhetorically. After pausing for a moment, he added an unexpectedly blunt and morbid caveat: “One day you will not be able to pose that question — because you are all going to die.” The audience responded with nervous laughter.