Recent Events

The following was orgionally posted on the FNF Boards. Click here to check out the discussion with good input.
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If any of you have been paying the slightest attention to recent news (Like me), you've heard about the recent mess surrounding a Danish cartoon featuring Mohammed. For those of you totally oblivious to the situation, a quick recap: A Danish newspaper editor decided they were cencoring themselves too heavily, so he had a cartoonist draw Muhammed (An ancient Islamic prophet/religious figure). In their religion, it is forbidden to have any illustrated or sculpted representations of this man, to prevent him from being idolized. So, not only is the Muslim population insulted at the comic itself, but they're furious that it is a drawn representation of Mohammed itself. So furious, there have been riots, embassies have been burned, and people killed. They're even calling for a Jihad (The equivelant of a Muslim religious crusade of war).

Now, there are several things that tick me off about this whole ordeal. First off, it's a CARTOON. Since when were they supposed to be taken seriously? Yes it was offensive, yes it was in poor taste. The fact of the matter is that cartoons are used to do do just those things with the aim of getting a few laughs or smirks rather than a violent outlash.

Second, FREE SPEECH. What is wrong with these people? Okay, so maybe they don't have such luxeries where they live, but they have no place to be deciding what the rest of the world thinks, writes, or says.

Third, and most frusterating to me, is that they are imposing their religion on the rest of the world by reacting violently and calling for a Jihad. Don't get me wrong, I beleive that all men have the right to "worship how, where, or what they may". Within reason that they are not harming others who do not worship the same way. By reacting the way they are, it feels like they're trying to get the world to agree with their faith and agree that the cartoon was in the wrong. They impose their faith on every single person that is brough to harm through their actions, as that is the concequence for breaking a rule of their faith.

I just don't get it. If you don't like something, ignore it and get it out of your life. You don't need to go around and get it out of everyone's life, especially when they didn't ask for it. And people wonder why Muslims are painted a violent and zealous people. They're killing and destroying over a freaking CARTOON. And they still want to escilate it to a Jihad. ARGH!

Part of me wants to find the cartoon, and post it on the site with a caption that reads something to the effect of "We support freedom of speech and the right to remain free from Muslim domination". See if we can get it posted all over the internet. A futile effort, but it'd be nice to see that some people care about how this whole mess is being handled, and that we aren't going to give way to a violation of rights for the sake of religion.

Another part of me, though, wants to just give them what they want so that the conflict doesn't escalate. Enough people have died, enough has been destroyed. That part of me is also my religious side talking, as I know what a soft and protective part of my life it is. I like to think and hope that I'd never participate in a riot or hurt someone over something that infringes on my standards but not on those of the other people.

/rant
-Cril

PS- I don't claim to have an in-depth or even half decent understanding of the Islam religion, so my apologies if any of what I said was drastically incorrect or out of place.
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A long, long time ago...
I can still remember
How that music used to make me smile.
And I knew if I had my chance
That I could make those people dance
And, maybe, they’d be happy for a while.

Don McLean - American Pie

Interesting read about the possible interpretation of American Pie found here.