A man asked himself the following questions in an effort to discover how he felt, where he stood, and, ultimately what he might be prepared to do- or not do- as an outcome. Amazingly (to him at least) it did not take long to reach a final conclusion.

1. I come face to face with an ISIS fighter who holds a knife to my throat and says “convert or die”. Standing next to me is a Muslim who I do not know. Will that Muslim stand with me, against me, or remain silent? Based upon that response what should the next person in line, behind me, ready to be presented the same ultimatum, do?
2. My wife and daughters are suddenly forced to live under Sharia, or just Islamic law. Am I okay with that?
3. I am no longer allowed to freely practice my Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist religions or beliefs and I am also not allowed to be an atheist. Am I okay with that?
4. I somehow wake up living in a small village in the middle of Lebanon. I am an unmarried, Christian woman who uses birth control and has always worked to support myself. I am told that I have nothing to worry about in my new surroundings. Do I believe what I am told?
5. I am an aspiring young Hollywood producer who has chosen to make my new film “Submission Again” in the middle of Saudi Arabia. I am excited about attending the opening at a theatre in Riyadh but should I be nervous about the reaction?
6. I am an American woman who has married a man from Egypt who has settled in the U.S. Unfortunately a history of domestic abuse and violence is established- not unlike at some other homes in America. I decide I want a divorce and custody of our two small children. Would I tell my husband this in person and would I later do anything beyond what is typical to protect myself and my kids?
7. I am a gay man with a great job at a high tech firm in California but, unfortunately, I have been told that due to cutbacks I will need to choose one of three options: 1) be laid off with an okay pension; 2) continue at my current position at our facility in Austin, Texas; 3) continue at my current position at our just recently-opened facility in Tehran. I have only an hour to make my choice- what will it be and why?
8. I am planning an anti-war protest against our current government leaders along with several other fellow students here at the University of Baghdad. What might I expect?
9. I am watching the evening news and see a clip on anti-Western protests in Gaza. There are signs denouncing and calling for the elimination of Israel and the U.S. I ask myself where the counter-protesters are and why, seemingly, the only Muslim voices raised against such protests seem to be in the U.S. and seem to be far and few between. And I answer…?
10. I am a brilliant political satirist and cartoonist. I have just drawn up the most brilliant and influential cartoon of my entire career and need to submit it for publication in ten minutes. It is a cartoon that uses religion as its basis and can convey the point equally well with either Jesus or Mohammed as the key character but neither would be presented in a respectful fashion- in fact, just the opposite. Who do I show in what I submit and why?
11. I speak with the realtor who is selling the house next to mine. Though she is not supposed to discuss such things she says that there are two equal offers on the table- one from an Israeli family and one from an Iranian family, both families recently emigrated to the U.S. I later encounter my neighbor who is torn as to which offer to choose and asks my opinion. What do I tell him?
12. I am this very day called to Washington to a meeting attended by the President and all of the current members of Congress I am told that the U.S. has just been paid back $1 trillion of the debt owed it by the rest of the world for the last 100 years. I am allowed to (only) target that money for either 1) existing and new social programs or 2) the defense of this country. What do I choose?

Like following the progression of any investment, in this case your time, life, future and family, take a look at the world and this country each and every month and decide whether we are getting closer to or moving farther away from a world order that would make these questions less theoretical or more a matter of real probability.

Your free choice in such matters may indeed be more than slowly fading fast away. If we do nothing you may not have to answer these questions as they will either not be asked at all or will be answered for you.

Think about that for a minute and then tell me how you feel.