The famous Danish cartoon
I’ve not see the cartoons everyone is talking about, nor do I want to see them. Just as you can insult someone by writing funny things about him, you can do the same with a cartoon. And it is apparent that this cartoon insulted millions of people. But on the other side, can I tell you how stupid I think it is to burn embacies and to attack people because someone in their country has drawn an insulting cartoon of a religious figure?
This hole thing has grown out of proportion; in part because of those who republished it everywhere both as “news” and “free speech”, in other part by those who helped and organized violence to help “defend” Islam. These cartoons didn’t deserve all the fame they now have and making them famous just add more to the insult.
I’m tired of seeing so much people trying to polarize the world and make people to hate each other; this happen on both “sides”. People must learn to respect each other more than that.
I’ll conclude with an irony: There are those who try to divide people, and there are the ones who try to unite people. From witch group am I?
Comments
I’ve seen the cartoons and they don’t even “say” anything except what the Muslim would call blasphemy. They aren’t even drawn well. Quite a marked difference from political cartoons you see in Canadian papers.
The Daily Show with Jon Stewart commented upon the knee-jerk violence, of course.
I’m sure peaceful and non-extremist Muslims are just horrified.
I think this article from Times Online is right-on: “These cartoons don’t defend free speech, they threaten it”.
The problem is a cultural one: something you may consider pretty normal may be insulting to some other people. From what I’ve heard, the authors of the cartoon (first published back in september) have apologized for some time. I’m pretty sure they didn’t intent to insult anyone; I’m not blaming them.
What I’m criticizing here is mostly the republishing-everywhere of this cartoon and all the publicity it got. I do not contest that they have, and should have, the right to publish them. But at the same time I think it was a stupid thing to do because they probably wrote alongside that these cartoons insulted some Muslims. How different is it from saying: “Look, these people insulted you, they drew this…”
I like your Times article Mary :-)
i am kurdish muslimin my identity card and i dont belive in islam because i think me and my nation one of the victums of islam and i think that muhammad is more dirty than these cartoons and he deserves more insulting .