Sunday, February 26, 2006

Islam and Violence

The phenomenon is fuelled by the growth of the Islamic influence in Western societies, the sense of Islamic anger not just at the cartoons but at world events and the precarious nature of relations between the West and the Muslim world.


This post is a little outdated, it has already been reported on ad nauseum and plenty have weighed in on the matter. Nobody seriously disputes (or they shouldn't) the tastelessness and bigotry found in the Mohammed cartoons that were published not long ago. The fact that several European countries proceeded to collectively flip off the Muslim world and reprint these images surely underlines the contempt for Islam found in the west.

But regardless, it is a hard stretch to justify the lunacy that poured out in the streets of Syria, Afghanistan, West Africa and Pakistan (to name a few). At the height of the cartoon row disaster, dozens of people died and the Danish embassy in Beirut, Lebanon was torched. These violent, explosive reactions fog the issues at hand and conversation quickly shifts, conveniently taking the debate elsewhere—to freedom of press in this case.

Such antics has done precious little for Islam or Muslims. In Palestine, they have derailed discussion from the very real encroaching of Israel on another country’s sovereignty, not to mention viability. Instead debate has centered around suicide bombers and other acts of terrorism. Violence has done nothing but impede action from the international community, and justified Western acts of violence.

Of course not all (not even most) Muslims are going out and torching embassies. Plenty are just plain outraged by the cartoons, and disappointed by these extremist reactions. However their voices are mostly muted, and not nearly enough Muslim countries have distanced themselves from these protests. We don't need any more reasons to hate each other.

11 Comments:

Blogger munkey t cat said...

This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

9:10 AM  
Blogger munkey t cat said...

When poor people protest they are fanatics, when rich people protest they are hippies. Also, when protests are peaceful noone covers them, maybe the anitwar rallies would ave been more effective if they had killed a few assholes.

9:13 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

the anti war rallies werent entirelly useless, I don't think.

10:54 AM  
Blogger munkey t cat said...

well, ask the average american and he/she will tell you that the islamic world is full of crazy people that are protesting like "fanatics" and they are all insane.. but ask the same guy about protests in the us and whatever response you get, rest assured that they are thinking in the back of their minds "so what if like a few thousand people protest, thats normal" - to me thats proof that whatever you think about the protests over there the fact is that they worked. why? cause *everyone* in the world knows that they are pissed. here? its just abunch of damn flower power hippies.

2:48 AM  
Blogger Themadi said...

okay, a few points:

-there's a huge difference between the world knowing you are pissed, and the world thinking you are crazy. People died, buildings were torched. How is that a successful protest? It's not. Who is even talking about he cartoons? In fact, all it did was make several publications reprint them. Like I said in my post, violence takes the discussion somewhere else. It's no longer about defaming Mohammed, it's about violence. That's not success.

-Protests arent just about raising awareness, they are also about propeling action. For the longest time, the anti-war rallies in the US were the only groups placing any pressure on the administration. While that's not everything, it'sn ot nothing either.

-How can you dismiss rallies and protests as some hippie, priviledged preoccupation?? It's such an outdated, misinformed misnomer! Rallies can be anywhere from union metro members fighting for health insurance to rich, white kids protesting IMF cuz their friends are doing it. And everything in between! They are the purest form of democracy there is! Something to be valued, not dismissed as inconsequential.

3:49 AM  
Blogger vadakkan.com said...

this is not a war against terrorism. It is a war of Radical Christians and Radical Muslims. I don't like to use the word Radical for these people. I prefer to call them "Brainless". These people have No Doubt about anything in life. Its either right or wrong. Bush, Osama, Hitler, Rumsfeld are examples of these personality types. They appear to be good leaders because they make quick decisions, whereas the more intelligent types have to consider different angles before they come to a conclusion. So whats the solution. I suggest some sort of gene theraphy or may something less innovative but equally powerfull - voting them out of powerfull positions.

4:19 AM  
Blogger munkey t cat said...

i never said the anitwar protesting was inconsequential, only that the results have yet to bear any fruit. the truly naive are the only ones that would classify them as "crazy" for having an opinion and *gasp* being offended enough to act. its absurd to isolate the cartoon protests and say that the incidents are somehow an example of how petty and violent they are.. this didnt happen in a vacuum, are we all forgetting dubya and his strategerie? its also interesting how different the coverage is of the islamic world when a few of them die at each others hands vs when thousnds die from us attacks. apparently they are not allowed to be violent. period. but they sure do make great collateral damage.

4:20 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

okay, u're like missing my point completely. like, whateveahhhh

4:27 AM  
Blogger munkey t cat said...

might as well rename this blog to munkey t cat is always right

4:31 AM  
Anonymous Anonymous said...

Ok, whats the problem with a little blasphemy? Why should we be respectful of anyone's religious scruples? Why does religion get the pass?

My very existence, and certainly my marriage is considered blasphemy by my family and the majority of "religious" people in the world. Sorry, but I'm not going to live my life attempting to not offend anyone. When religious leaders get to demand how we live, it is a sad world (from James Dobson preventing legal recognition of my marriage to the chief imam and rabbi of Moscow successfully preventing the Moscow Pride2006, to so many other things!).

I say, more blasphemy for everyone!

10:52 AM  
Blogger Themadi said...

Hey Brandon: I am not against freedom of speech. But being for freedom of speech doesn't mean that I am for racism, or sexism, or bigotry of any kind. The Mohammed cartoons were, undisputably, bigoted. The Danish had a right to print them, sure. But the Muslim world has every right to show their outrage. That right doesn't extend to taking people's lives and burning down property.

Also I think you would agree that printing bigotry is very different than two people showing their love for each other. We have problems when the world can't tell the difference.

12:30 AM  

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