The terrorists have already won
I was perusing the newspaper this morning, and I saw this story. Then, while I was on-line, I saw this story. This comes on the heels of this story.
They're all the same story. They're all about the caricatures of Muhammad in Danish newspapers. And they are an indication how the terrorists have already won.
In the third story, Bill Clinton comes to the defense of the Muslims:
Former president Bill Clinton warned of rising anti-Islamic prejudice, comparing it to historic anti-Semitism as he condemned the publishing of the cartoons.
"So now what are we going to do? ... Replace the anti-Semitic prejudice with anti-Islamic prejudice?" he said at an economic conference in the Qatari capital of Doha.
"In Europe, most of the struggles we've had in the past 50 years have been to fight prejudices against Jews, to fight against anti-Semitism," he said.
Clinton described the cartoons as "appalling".
"None of us are totally free of stereotypes about people of different races, different ethnic groups, and different religions ... there was this appalling example in northern Europe, in Denmark ... these totally outrageous cartoons against Islam," he said.
Clinton criticized the tendency to generalize negative news of Islam.
"Because people see headlines that they don't like [they will] apply that to a whole religion, a whole faith, a whole region and a whole people?" he asked.
In the first story, the Bush administration comes to the defense of Muslims:
"We find them offensive, and we certainly understand why Muslims would find these images offensive."
Then there's the second story. Muslims in Syria have stormed the Danish and Norwegian embassies, burning parts of them. In the first story, one preacher called for "the severing of the heads of those responsible."
Before you think I'm anti-Muslim, let me say that I have no problem with Muslims being offended by these images. I have no problem if Muslims want to ban depictions of Muhammad in their art, even though it's not in the Quran. I have no problem with Muslims protesting the Danish embassies. I have a problem with people who want tolerance for their religious quirks calling for the death of others, and I have a problem with two presidents siding with the people who have been offended instead of pointing out, quite rightly, that blasphemy isn't illegal and that cartoonists have the absolute right to portray anything they want. Way down in the story from the Republic the State Department spokesman defends the rights of the cartoonists, but it's kind of a weak defense. Basically, Clinton and Bush are saying that we need to stifle any kind of creative expression that offends anyone. I'm not surprised Clinton said this, as he was always kind of a wuss, but that Bush said this despite offending Muslims all over the world by killing thousands of them in an illegal war makes me laugh. Does he think throwing Danish cartoonists to the wolves with make up for that?
Religious folk need to get over themselves. Do devout Muslims really think that it matters one iota if a cartoonist depicts Muhammad in a goofy and offensive way? Last time I checked, he's been dead for 1400 years. Do devout Christians really think their faith is destroyed if someone, I don't know, dips a crucifix in urine? This is just another instance where religious bigotry attempts to destroy freedom and allows the terrorists, who don't like freedom, to win. And it's just such a stupid thing. Hey, Muslims and Christians and Jews who get offended by stupid shit like this: how about you ignore it? I think, just maybe, that your religions will survive.
They're all the same story. They're all about the caricatures of Muhammad in Danish newspapers. And they are an indication how the terrorists have already won.
In the third story, Bill Clinton comes to the defense of the Muslims:
Former president Bill Clinton warned of rising anti-Islamic prejudice, comparing it to historic anti-Semitism as he condemned the publishing of the cartoons.
"So now what are we going to do? ... Replace the anti-Semitic prejudice with anti-Islamic prejudice?" he said at an economic conference in the Qatari capital of Doha.
"In Europe, most of the struggles we've had in the past 50 years have been to fight prejudices against Jews, to fight against anti-Semitism," he said.
Clinton described the cartoons as "appalling".
"None of us are totally free of stereotypes about people of different races, different ethnic groups, and different religions ... there was this appalling example in northern Europe, in Denmark ... these totally outrageous cartoons against Islam," he said.
Clinton criticized the tendency to generalize negative news of Islam.
"Because people see headlines that they don't like [they will] apply that to a whole religion, a whole faith, a whole region and a whole people?" he asked.
In the first story, the Bush administration comes to the defense of Muslims:
"We find them offensive, and we certainly understand why Muslims would find these images offensive."
Then there's the second story. Muslims in Syria have stormed the Danish and Norwegian embassies, burning parts of them. In the first story, one preacher called for "the severing of the heads of those responsible."
Before you think I'm anti-Muslim, let me say that I have no problem with Muslims being offended by these images. I have no problem if Muslims want to ban depictions of Muhammad in their art, even though it's not in the Quran. I have no problem with Muslims protesting the Danish embassies. I have a problem with people who want tolerance for their religious quirks calling for the death of others, and I have a problem with two presidents siding with the people who have been offended instead of pointing out, quite rightly, that blasphemy isn't illegal and that cartoonists have the absolute right to portray anything they want. Way down in the story from the Republic the State Department spokesman defends the rights of the cartoonists, but it's kind of a weak defense. Basically, Clinton and Bush are saying that we need to stifle any kind of creative expression that offends anyone. I'm not surprised Clinton said this, as he was always kind of a wuss, but that Bush said this despite offending Muslims all over the world by killing thousands of them in an illegal war makes me laugh. Does he think throwing Danish cartoonists to the wolves with make up for that?
Religious folk need to get over themselves. Do devout Muslims really think that it matters one iota if a cartoonist depicts Muhammad in a goofy and offensive way? Last time I checked, he's been dead for 1400 years. Do devout Christians really think their faith is destroyed if someone, I don't know, dips a crucifix in urine? This is just another instance where religious bigotry attempts to destroy freedom and allows the terrorists, who don't like freedom, to win. And it's just such a stupid thing. Hey, Muslims and Christians and Jews who get offended by stupid shit like this: how about you ignore it? I think, just maybe, that your religions will survive.
posted by Greg | 12:47 PM
3 Comments:
That's true, Jim. I just find it ironic that it seems the Administration is becoming more like the enemy than they want to admit.
Good point, Burgas...
I had written a snarky rant in the same vein as your post (but then it got killed when blogger went down yesterday!).
My immediate thought is how idiotic it is to BECOME the caricatures they are protesting. After the Paris riots and now this widespread mayhem over a cartoon, I am betting the Europeans will stop singing kumbaya and will start getting the Islamophobia bug that's spread around parts of the US. The situation is going to worsen because a select group of Islamists decided to get violent.
They'll reap what the sow and then some (e.g. peaceful Muslims will get swept into the fray).
Oh, and it's also evident that our administration has been unsuccessful at spreading the notion of freedom (but they have certainly been successful at spreading war) if these violent, Islamist idiots think that the Danish government (and other European governments) CONTROL their press and are demanding apologies from governments. You would think with all the freedom that's being spread around the Middle East, they would understand by now! How are we gonna learn 'em?
!
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