You can respect a religion without honoring its taboos. I eat pork, and I'm not an anti-Semite. As a Catholic, I don't expect atheists to genuflect before an altar. If violating a taboo is necessary to illustrate a political point, then the call is an easy one. Freedom means learning to deal with being offended.
Well... here are my favorites from the cartoons.
9 comments:
While I am not 100% sure what the right Western response is to the violence over the Muhammad cartoons, I am pretty sure that shoving a bunch more in the face of sincere Muslims is NOT the way to go. Remember, "As far as it is up to you, live at peace with all men" from Romans? I tend to agree that the Islamic world needs to learn to live with free expression, even regarding unbelievers picturing their prophet, but you have to let them heal rather than hitting an open wound over and over again.
My opinion is that this post - and the many like it all over the world - is not helping and may be hurting. No offense to you, my friend. But I think it might be the better part of valor to take off the cartoons and bring them back in a month or two, when things are calmer.
Glad for your comment. Read the article.
I like cartoon # 2. I had not seen this one before. And the man could be any Muslim.
I really do not think the article speaks to my comments. He is right in many ways - that the Islamic world needs to learn to embrace free speech - at the same time we need to understand that depictions of M are a bigger deal to Muslims than depictions of Christ are to us. To them, any depiction is specifically an invitation to idolatry. Thus, outrage is not an unreasonable knee-jerk reaction.
Again, this is a discussion that has to happen, but by printing (posting) these cartoons, you are not helping. Just rubbing raw an open wound.
My opinion. Take it or leave it.
I reference you to Andrew Sullivan's site here (http://time.blogs.com/daily_dish/2006/02/two_myths.html on the "depictions of Muhammed are blasphemy" falacy you are buying into.
I posted them because the Muslims are saying I have no right to post such things.
This is a civilization clash. Freedom vs. control. And one form of control is being so afraid of "fanning the flames" that you don't show people what all the fuss is about. That is appeasement. Last time that happened, it ended in a world war. Don't forget, Hitler started by being "outraged" at what the Jews were "doing" to his country.
These cartoons are not even that funny, and certainly aren't something that warrant more than a few "letters to the editor". And so I am protesting, peacefully, back at them by posting the cartoons for all to see.
I would say it is one thing to perform a hunger strike, and another to do so during a famine in Ethiopia. Protest is entirely appropriate on your part. But there is a time and place for all things. This is a debate I'd rather save for a couple of weeks, when people have stopped dying over this. That is completely different from appeasement, which says "If you let them do X, they won't do Y." My thought is "Engage in discussions now. Wait to prick them with more cartoons until you are not drawing fresh blood.
And it is no fallacy that the Koran is very specific about "no images" and the Sharia is more specific about no images. All representational art is banned in most sects of Islam. But I agree it is a myth that we have to honor the Islamic sensitivity over any others.
Oh, well. I seem to be on a roll in being confrontational in blogs this week. Maybe I need more fiber in my diet.
People will never quit dying over things like this. Or *this* in particular. So, with that argument, there would never be a good time to discuss it. Which is what many people thought of Hitler. "Just wait and it'll get better . . . "
Good points, Will.
My own opinion is that without further provocation, this would die down in a week or two. THEN, it makes sense to start the discussion. But I am no Middle East or Arab expert.
I'll drop it for now. But I think the danger in this moment - like the assassination that began World War II - is that most of the folks on the ground don't understand the potential for disaster in this moment. Westerners think, "It is just a cartoon. The Muslims will back down." Islamics think, "It is just a cartoon. The Westerners will back down." But to us, it is about Free Speech, and to them it is about Idolatry. So neither side can back down.
Anyway, I said I'd drop this and I will. I guess I just couldn't avoid a parting shot. I promise not to say more unless Will asks me to.
For the record, it was the assasination that started WWI not WWII.
I think the war already started 4 years ago. This is just an outgrowth of it.
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