Sunday, February 5

Comix goes bananas update

The crowd chanted: "With our blood and souls we defend you, O Prophet of God," they chanted outside the Danish building, which also houses the Swedish and Chilean missions.
Some removed the Danish flag and replaced it with another reading: "There is no god but God and Muhammad is the messenger of God."
Outside the Norwegian embassy, police fired tear gas to try to disperse the protesters, but some broke in and set it ablaze.

All these discussions about "freedom of speech" in the west, self-imposed parameters of morality, religious respect, cultural recognition are one thing, but it is hard to have a balanced dialog while Arab Muslims trample and burn down other peoples religious symbols - literally! After all, smak in the middle of the Danish flag is a cross.This recaction is not an isolated incident by a few, this is mass hysteria not confined, but spreading like a wild fire over many countries. What does that tell you?

2 comments:

Unknown said...

I think it tells you the fundamental difference between our cultures. The choice to publish the cartoons was in poor taste, but it was the right of the publisher to do it. Most of those Muslim countries restrain free speech, and feel they have the right to do it everywhere else. The fail to understand that what they believe is not believed by the rest of the world. No one would bomb their embassies, for example, if they drew unflattering pictures of Christ.

I am not sure that we can ever do anything to change their views, but they need to recognize that, in that publisher's view, he didn't do anything wrong.

DA said...

no comment