Rebuking cowardice
This essay in Britain's Guardian newspaper, on the occasion of the recent attempted murder of Kurt Westergaard, exemplifies the cowardly blame-the-victim mentality with which some weak-willed Westerners condemn any effort to stand up to Islamic bullying and cultural imperialism. Every excuse, evasion, and weasel-phrase of that mentality is represented here -- read it for yourself -- I will not dirty my keyboard by repeating them.
We all remember that, at the time of the original Danish cartoon crisis, the Vatican and other Christian authorities in Europe condemned the cartoons and sided with the tantrum-throwing Muslims. Of course, one would expect them to do that; it would be their natural ideological inclination. But the European secular media stood firm, in many cases even re-printing the cartoons (which few newspapers in the United States did at the time). How unfortunate that the Guardian is now turning its back on that honorable example.
What is really worth a look, though, is the reader comments on the essay. As best I can tell from reading a sample (there are hundreds of them), readers are unanimous in rebuking the essayist's stance, defending free expression, and calling out Islamic thuggery for what it is. Popes and archbishops may call for appeasement, but ordinary Europeans know better.
As for me, I've already posted what I consider the only possible appropriate response to the attack on Westergaard. Blasphemo ergo sum!
Thanks to Mendip for sending the link to the Guardian essay.
We all remember that, at the time of the original Danish cartoon crisis, the Vatican and other Christian authorities in Europe condemned the cartoons and sided with the tantrum-throwing Muslims. Of course, one would expect them to do that; it would be their natural ideological inclination. But the European secular media stood firm, in many cases even re-printing the cartoons (which few newspapers in the United States did at the time). How unfortunate that the Guardian is now turning its back on that honorable example.
What is really worth a look, though, is the reader comments on the essay. As best I can tell from reading a sample (there are hundreds of them), readers are unanimous in rebuking the essayist's stance, defending free expression, and calling out Islamic thuggery for what it is. Popes and archbishops may call for appeasement, but ordinary Europeans know better.
As for me, I've already posted what I consider the only possible appropriate response to the attack on Westergaard. Blasphemo ergo sum!
Thanks to Mendip for sending the link to the Guardian essay.
posted by Infidel753 at 7:49 AM
13 Comments:
I love it when I can agree with someone who does not share my ideology.
All Americans should reject this cowardice as an infringement of our freedoms. (I know it's Europe, but the freedoms we protect with our constitution are universal, even if the constitutions jurisdiction is not.)
These angry Muslims need to learn that they have no freedom to not be offended.
I love God and I love America, yet I watch as people dip a crucifix in urine and burn the flag. It upsets me, but they have that freedom. God can take care of himself and burning a flag doesn't destroy the nation, so ordinary people just get over it. It's a small price to pay for freedom.
BTW, our free speech laws are considered a radical anomaly by most of the rest of the world...
"Rebuking Cowardice" my compliment's Mr.Infidel! (on the title) It's an "unpopular" job .... but by golly ....someone's got to do it! :)
It's sad that an artist has to go through this to begin with ... I mean ... the close encounter of being axed to death over a cartoon. I just posted a piece of a dear old friend, who just passed away last summer, who made a living, not much considering the cost of production and such, but still managed to make money and put food on the table ...off of pretty much just lampooning religion and mainstream popular thought.Thank goodness he wasnt lampooning islam ... he may have died sooner of "un"natural causes. Frankly I will respect these folk's and their religion ....however, because of our vast cultural difference's and understanding of each other ... I am not liberal enough to bring horde's of them here in corporate influenced immigration policies, nor ...to be more frank ...wish to have them even as neighbor's, or to fight their religious war's, or feed them or even to let any of them who attempt to terrorize us that we capture live for that matter. It's nothing personal ... just business and being honest. I realize that some may think this is racist or even nazi-like, but that's just me, and how I am.
Thank You Sir ....
SF & RC: Exactly so. The same freedom of speech which protects my right to criticize religion also protects others' right to criticize atheists or liberals. The proper way to respond to expression you don't agree with is with expression of your own, not with threats or violence.
But it never ends. The person who created that "Learn to speak Teabag" video which I linked to in yesterday's link roundup says he has been receiving death threats (found via Politics Plus).
I can't believe it, I'm also agreeing with Ranch Chimp (great name by the way!).
"Corporate influenced immigration" indeed. I also believe that our cultures are fundamentally incompatible, and for this reason we should not be allowing people from muslim regions to immigrate.
This is not being a nazi, Chimp. It is standing up for Classical Liberalism that built Western Civilization.
viz the death threats: It is unremarkable that in a country of 300 million there are a few stupid people.
As Ranch Chimp will tell you, he's not exactly a leftist; he's hard to classify.
By the way, I'm impressed that you apparently know who Jan Sobieski was.
we should not be allowing people from muslim regions to immigrate
If you mean we should not allow Muslims to immigrate, I mostly agree with you. Some people from Muslim regions are not Muslims, as I'm sure you know (there are Christians in Egypt and Syria, Baha'is and Zoroastrians in Iran, etc.). Such people might in many cases make good immigrants; they're certainly unlikely to harbor illusions about Islam as a benign "religion of peace".
Poland gets such a bad rap and their king once saved Western Civilization...
History is great, too bad we don't teach it any more...
I agree with you about immigration. What you said is what I meant.
I make fun of overzealous, closed minded Christians. I have no problem making fun of the creeps that use Islam as an excuse for their evils.
It would be great irony if the jokers that mad ethese threats in the name of their religion were prosecuted under hate crime laws.
Islam is a hate crime, the way these people practice it.
And I am a zealous Christian who realizes a constitution that protects your right to mock my religion also guarantees my right to practice it.
That is the beauty of America, and those who don't "get it" shouldn't be allowed in.
I would hardly say the Guardian is turning it's back on being "honorable", they were just exemplifying, freedom of the press, freedom to be a coward if you will, and perhaps the editorial staff cringed as you did, when they read it. The Guardian is one of the few thought provoking newspapers left in the English speaking world. No doubt it will get swallowed up by some entity or another, and we will be the worse for it.
Ordinary Europeans do know better than the appeasers, but the appeasers must have their say.
Hate crime laws in Europe have more often been used against those who point out uncomfortable truths about Islam than against Muslims who threaten, but now that the peoples over there are becoming more willing to stand up for themselves, well, the laws are there and can be used.
Yes, the appeasers are free to have their say -- and I (and a few hundred Guardian readers) am free to point out what they're doing.
But the Guardian does not become dishonorable for letting anyone have their say, just because the opinion expressed is disagreeable. Which BTW I think it is.
Thanks Infidel for putting me in a truly epically bad mood. I have never read anything as vile in quite some time.
I'm stealing it for CCinZ!
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