(no subject)

[somedaybitch]

and people wonder why i think they're batshit?

While Muslim religious extremists are rioting in the streets of Beirut, Gaza City and Kabul, Scandinavian embassies are being torched and Jordanians are deprived of their Danish feta over cartoons that were never actually published in any legitimate newspaper, the right-wing blogosphere has been staging its own "blogburst": the act of reproducing the offending depictions of the Prophet Muhammad.

i'm sorry. i thought it was defending freedom of speech from murderous religious fanatics. silly me. damn, us right-wingers got nerve.

and the batshit is nicely countered by a fellow canuck here.

and powerline, as always, calls it like it is.

h/t's to Glenn Reynolds

it would be nice if Hollywood, that so-called bastion of all things free and honorable, could weigh in with their support of free speech and against murdering extremism. guess they're too busy bashing the President to find the time. musta been the reason why they didn't speak in outrage when vanGogh was murdered too. well, you know, it's rough bein' so busy. they probably didn't know his agent anyway.

Glenn also shares an email from a reader, and Glenn's thoughts on same, that pretty much sums it all up for me.

And reader Michael McDowell isn't having any of it:

Zerbisias condemns those Westerners who "claim to be morally superior." Well that is absolute horseshit. I am tired of being told not to judge other cultures through my "American lens" because I don’t understand their circumstances. I believe in equal rights without regard to race, religion, color, gender or country or origin. I believe in the freedom of homosexuals to marry and live freely in society. I believe in freedom of expression, and speech, and the free exchange of ideas. I believe in kindness, compassion, consideration, and that dogs make life better. I don’t "claim to be morally superior" to those ass-hat murderers; I am morally superior.

Indeed. You'd expect lefties like Zerbisias to side with people like McDowell, and Zeyad, over a bunch of sexist, homophobic theocrats -- but that would require that they side with America, too. Which is right out.

Comments

[somedaybitch.livejournal.com]

the problem that i have, however, is that it's legitimate criticism, based in fact. my sympathy factor is in the negative numbers. if they want us to treat their beliefs with respect, they need to stop murdering people.

[arthurfrdent.livejournal.com]

if they want us to treat their beliefs with respect, they need to stop murdering people.

that only works if "they" are a monolithic entity. if they are not, then you paint the mild mannered next door neighbor with the same brush as you paint a terrorist on the other side of the earth. you are also asking that neighbor to accept a blasphemous cartoon, and not be upset. This I think is where a moderating influence is needed to explain how the idea of rule of law cuts both ways. I know people here, with the first amendment as a birthright, who still don't get that. How much more difficult will a Muslim immigrant in Denmark have it to understand this whole free speech thing.

I guess the need I see is to, in a well explained way, change the question to be about Freedom of Speech, and not about The Prophet [or religion]. You and I process this difference, but many do not, unless it is explicit. What most people are seeing in The Dane press now is "we piss off everyone equally" instead of "we say what we wish to say, and that is protected for everyone."

The reason I am focusing on the majority of non-radicalized Muslims, is that it is they who either embrace democracy and freedoms, or feel pushed out to become the next wave of radicals...

dunno, perhaps I'm being to fuzzy about this...

[somedaybitch.livejournal.com]

i, honestly, don't care what they're seeing. they, those that follow Sharia, are expecting me [the world at large] to care about images of Mohammed and how they find that offensive when they are actively preaching to their followers to bring about my death? they, can fuck off. my sympathy factor is in the negative numbers and i have no wish to dissemble.

[arthurfrdent.livejournal.com]

my point is that "they" are not preaching to bring about your death, only a very small group of radicals are. Like the aryan nation does not represent my view in any way. Do I have to take responsibility for what they say?
I agree to disagree, fwiw

[somedaybitch.livejournal.com]

yes, and i'm agreeing that it's specifically those following Sharia not every Muslim living.