FUNNY HOW WE ALL GET CAUGHT UP IN THE PAST: Muslims will be receiving a 'symbolic gesture' that is 4 centuries in the making:

A call for descendents of Muslims expelled from Spain in the seventeenth century to be given preferential terms for Spanish citizenship has highlighted the country's uneasy relationship with its Islamic heritage.

Of course, our history with Spain goes back even further--5 centuries:

Sephardic Jews, whose ancestors were expelled from Spain in 1492, already have a special right to obtain Spanish citizenship after two years legal residence in Spain, a privilege also available to citizens of Spain's former colonies.

But when it comes to having a historical memory, it could be that the Spanish has both Jews and Muslims beat:

Former Prime Minister Jose Maria Aznar, a member of the conservative Popular Party, last year called for Muslims to apologise for invading Spain in the eighth century.

Islamists may find that Spain is not the pushover they think it is.
Now if only the rest of the West could develop a sense of history.

Technorati Tag: Spain and Jose Maria Aznar.