Muslims Not 'Free of Being Mocked,' Danish Cartoonist Says

I think they need to come to grips with the fact often what they consider being mocked , is actually someone telling the truth. Live up to your peaceful claims Islam.

At the time of the"mohammed Cartoon crisis", there was a joke going around (not so much humorous as a grea insight...):

Don't day that Muslims arwe terrorists-- or we'll kill you!

Obviouwsly yhe vast majority of the world's Muslims are not violent-- but there is the appearance, off and on, and in so many places-- of those who do have that attitude.

. Win some lose some, get used to it !

Really.

Muslims in general mock every other religion every time they call them "infidels". So if they can't take it they shouldn't dish it out.

Why? What puts Islam, or any other religion, above mockery? What makes religion, or certain religions, immune to criticism? Tell me one thing so special about religion that it should be treated as sacred.

I am for freedom of expression but there are rare exceptions.The Danish cartoonist is wrong.

lol.

Laughing and ducking for cover!!!

Far more rational than threatening executions over a cartoon....

Danish Cartoon is not the only incident of Islamic anger. There has been many other cases around the world.

You write a book show disfavor against Islam, your get a Fawah (death threads). Satanic Versus.

You created a movie documentary, Paint the Veil, about the mistreatment of women in the more harsh forms of Islam Religious beliefs. Death Threats to being murdered.

...true enough Aalaf....

I think my wife (who is Danish) still has a bounty of 10,000 dollars on her head because she's 'Danish". HA! Religion of peace and tolerance my AZZ.......

It's bigger than that. People expect religion to be treated with kids gloves, despite the fact that thousands of people die as a direct result of religion every year.

The Muslims want the right to perform Honor Killings for their daughters who ride in a car with a male, but they don't want to be mocked for it?

American Christians want to legislate their unfounded beliefs on all Americans, but they want immunity from mockery?

The Jews want Israel to be fully-funded and protected by outside interests, but we're not allowed to call their religion and religious claims bull@!$%#?

Religion is nothing more than superstition. Claiming that God/Allah is real is no more valid than claiming that aliens visit Earth to abduct rural people from their farms. We can mock people for believing in trolls and elves, but we can't mock them for believing in the Magic Sky Daddy?

An atheist was rowing at the lake, when suddenly the Loch Ness monster attacked and grabbed him from his boat. He panicked and shouted "God help me!", and suddenly, the monster and everything around him just stopped.

A voice from the heavens boomed "You say you dont believe in me, but now you are asking for my help?"

The atheist looked up and said: Well, ten seconds ago I didnt believe in the Loch Ness Monster either!

-An atheist joke from an atheist. Self mockery is great. If you can't handle a joke at your own expense you're going to find the world a difficult place.

I like this one:

The Atheist and the Bear

An atheist was taking a walk through the woods. 'What majestic trees! What powerful rivers! What beautiful animals!', he said to himself.

As he continued walking alongside the river he heard a rustling in the bushes. Turning to look, he saw a 7 foot grizzly charging towards him.

He ran as fast as he could up the path. Looking over his shoulder he saw that the bear was closing in on him. His heart was pumping frantically and he tried to run even faster.

He tripped and fell on the ground. He rolled over to pick himself up but saw the bear raising his paw to take a swipe at him.

At that instant the atheist cried out: 'Oh my God!...'

Time stopped.
The bear froze.
The forest was silent.

It was then that a bright light shone upon the man and a voice came out of the sky saying:

'You deny my existence for all of these years, teach others I don't exist and even credit creation to a cosmic accident.
Do you expect me to help you out of this predicament? Am I to count you as a believer?'

The atheist looked directly into the light.

'It would be hypocritical of me to suddenly ask you to treat me as a Christian now, but perhaps, could you make the BEAR a Christian?'

'Very well, 'said the voice. The light went out, and the sounds of the forest resumed.

And then the bear lowered his paw, bowed his head and spoke: 'Lord, bless this food which I am about to receive and for which I am truly thankful, Amen.'

Personally, I can't think of an example of Judaism bashers being labelled anti-semitic. However, I do think that some people that bash the Old Testament (Dawkins for example) pretend to only be bashing Christianity.

Dzersim,

Of course there is a double standard, Christians CAN NOT mock muslims for their beliefs. But Muslims CAN mock Christians for theirs, simple isn't it. After all Don't the muslims mock every other religion when they call them "non-believers" or "infidels".

And here is the best part, Some muslims will and believe they are commanded to kill you if you don't believe as they do. Aint it great! They can kill us but we can't mock them. What a bunch of CRAP!

Dzersim,

Of course there is a double standard, Christians CAN NOT mock muslims for their beliefs. But Muslims CAN mock Christians for theirs, simple isn't it. After all Don't the muslims mock every other religion when they call them "non-believers" or "infidels".

And here is the best part, Some muslims will and believe they are commanded to kill you

I believe the difference is due to the differing nature of the 'role models' in the two religions.

Regardless of one's personal religious preferences-- anyone who knows about the two religions must admit that Mohammed was a violent man who preached violence against "non-believers" and others-- but Christ was a man of peace who preached tolerance and love.

Of course all followers of all religions do not follow the examples of the men they idealize-- but so many do.

Haha right on! It reminds me of those silly, uneducated Christians who claim to follwo Christ yet were against universal healthcare (helping the poor) and pushed for war (not very peaceful).

The hypocrisy of believers knows no bounds. I'm glad we agree on this.

Me too, Matt...the hypocrasy is blinding is it not? I just read an article about muslims defending their religion as one of peace, understanding, harmony and all that flowery crap. Doesn't quite fit with the , "you mocked us and now you must die" being hurled at a 74 year old cartoonist.

Well, we can't really pretend to be surprised when religious people are being hypocrtical, that's kind of the way they do things. Religious beliefs are just excuses to justify your own shortcomings, and condemn others for theirs.

Like I said before, mock them all, treat them all like the children they behave like.

It has been a long time since anything really surprised me. Particularly political and religious agendas.

Sort of like those wingnut rightwing xtianist preachers praying for Obama to die, isn't it?

The hypocrisy of believers knows no bounds. I'm glad we agree on this.

Generalize much?

Well-- some believers are indeed -- others not so.

And-- I've known plenty of atheists who are hypocrites as well (and some who are not...)

Jack,

100% correct. Christianity is used to express hatred just as much as Islam is, but the Christians want to pretend to be the good guys. It's a damn joke.

Krishna, good thing I didn't say "all believers" huh? I left room for exceptions, as I'm not 3 years old and do understand that not all Christians/Muslims/Republicans/homosexuals/Americans are the same.

In my opinion, there are fewer actual Christians and Muslim than there are pseudo-Christians and pseudo-Muslims.

Hider5000...

Reminds me of a joke...

A man was depressed thinking about the economy, the wars, jobs, savings, social security, retirement funds etc..

He calls the suicide lifeline.

These calls get answered in Pakistan.

He tells them that he is suicidal.

They get all excited and ask him, "do you know how to drive a truck?"

LOOOOOOVE IT Sheila!!! hahahaha

I agree. Who doesn't though? Well, I guess fundamentalist muslims; to be fair though these are the same people who strap bombs to their chests to so they can get a harem of young virgins in the sky.

Can anyone identify this cartoon?

A man was depressed thinking about the economy, the wars, jobs, savings, social security, retirement funds etc..

He calls the suicide lifeline.

These calls get answered in Pakistan.

He tells them that he is suicidal.

They get all excited and ask him, "do you know how to drive a truck?"

I shouldn't be laughing, but I am. Long and loud enough to wake up my roommate.

Krishna; good cartoon. Got any about Jewish people?

Krishna; good cartoon. Got any about Jewish people?

Heck-- I can do better than a mere cartoon-- how about an entire video that many Jews (as well as other, non-Jewish, Holocaust survivors) might find offensive? Check out the video I linked to in comment #16.2)

Good one Sheila. I honestly LOL'd.

Krishna; good cartoon. Got any about Jewish people?

Well...since you asked ...the one I linked to in comment #16.2 may not be offensive enough-- so please see the video I linked to here in comment #16.3. Definitely offensive-- and "anti-Jewish"-- you shouild enjoy it! :)

So-- why did I link to it? Well, because it is highly relevant in this dicussion. And-- if people just watch the video they may miss the relevance to this discussion-- so if you really want to know what's going on, see the other link in 16.3:

The answer is quite revealing...

They get all excited and ask him, "do you know how to drive a truck?"

Btw, in case anyone missed the reference to the "truck": that is a reference to the van used in the first terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. Yup-- way back in 1993 (at the linked page, scroll down to where it says "The Attack"):

Ramzi Yousef and a Jordanian friend, Eyad Ismoil, drove a yellow Ryder van into Lower Manhattan, and pulled into the public parking garage beneath the World Trade Center around noon. Yousef ignited the 20-foot fuse, and fled. Twelve minutes later, at 12:17:37 pm, the bomb exploded in the underground garage, generating an estimated pressure of 150,000 psi.^[8] The bomb opened a 30-m (98 ft) wide hole through four sublevels of concrete. The detonation velocity of this bomb was about 15,000 ft/s (4.5 km/s).

Altogether, six people were killed and 1,042 others were injured, most during the evacuation that followed the blast.^[12] The towers did not collapse, according to Yousef's plan, but the explosion did damage the garage badly. Nevertheless, had the van been parked closer to the WTC's poured concrete foundations, Yousef's plan might have succeeded.^[13] Yousef escaped to Pakistan several hours later after the bombing.

More (re: the 1993 terror attack on the WTC and the importance of the van):

Lessons unlearned

After the attack, much of the US was stunned.

New York State Governor Mario Cuomo summed up the mood, saying: "Until now we were invulnerable."

But there was a limit to what could be learned directly - ironically because the group that carried out the attack had been so easy to track down.

"We encountered probably the dumbest terrorists we've ever encountered," recalls Neil Livingstone, one of the top terrorism experts in the US.

Mohammed Salameh appeared in court only a week later, charged with the bombing after he tried to collect the deposit on the rental van used in the attack.

Three other men were arrested soon after.

But Mr Livingstone added that terrorists had learned a wider lesson - that the US was not invincible.

...1993...

I'm Jewish (secular, though). I lost several members of my extended family in various Nazi camps. I find nothing offensive in the video provided by krishna-167929. Mel Brooks is one funny guy, never mind what's the butt of his jokes. If you should happen to look for another distinguishing characteristic between Muslims and Jews, in general, it's that we have a great sense of humor, especially if the jokes are self-depreciating!

e.g. Peter Sellers, Jon Stewart, Woody Allen, George Burns, Rodney Dangerfield, Don Rickles, Billy Crystal, Robin Williams, Jackie Mason, Sarah Silverman, Robert Smigel (the guy behind Triumph the Insult Comic Dog), the Marx Brothers, J.S. Perelman, Garry Shandling, Andy Kindler, Jerry Lewis, Danny Kaye, Sacha Baron Cohen, Milton Berle, Lewis Black, Ben Stiller, Lenny Bruce, Harry Shearer, Al Franken, Howie Mandel, Brad Garrett, Adam Sandler, Seth Rogen, Jerry Seinfeld, Rob Schneider, Gene Wilder - to name just a 'few'.

TripleO,

Mel brooks is indeed one funny guy. I remember him speaking in an interview once saying that the best way for him to get revenge on Hitler and the Nazis was poke fun at them...and consequently most of the world wound up laughing at Hitler and the Nazis thanks to his incredible sense of humor.

And don't forget Charlie Chaplin's 1940's masterpiece "The Great Dictator". Unequaled.

My all-time favorite is "Blazing Saddles. Mel Brooks took a serious topic like racism and had everyone laughing...even racists.

They don't want us to laugh at Blazing Saddles anymore. I saw it last month on TV and they had all the PC words masked out. Loses so much of its charm that way. I guess I rent it for next viewing.

History of the World Part I was on last night, and they bleeped parts of it too!

I'm so depressed.

Sheila and RC:

Pitiful, isn't it? They bleep out all of the "racist" dialogue which was EXACTLY what made the movie an icon, the idiocy of the racist comments. Stupid jerks. PC gone wild.

Unbelievable stupidity of the pc crowd.

aND, IMO, Mel Brooks is...a genius!

Here's a short clip from "Blazing Saddles" (the pc morons still haven't gotten to this one yet-- its still uncensored). Is this racist-- or is it a satire of racism, that actually makes racists look stupid? The new sheriff scene from blazing saddles

Would it be as effective if they censored it?

You know what this reminds me of? When Sinead O'Connor tore up that picture of the Pope on SNL and Chirstians around the world lost their collective minds. and NBC STILL continues to protect their collective feelings by refusing to ever release or air the footage again.

However, there is one difference-- 140 or so people were killed over the "Mohammed cartoons'....how many were murdered over the Sinead O'Connor incident?

And what were those deaths a result of? The police firing upon the protesting crowds. Who's fault is that?

I think I can answer that, the idiots that put themselves in that position over a few stupid pictures.

Oh yes. So when you find something to protest about, it becomes your fault when the police open fire into the crowd. I forgot.

FAIL

No, what she did was messed up. I'm not Catholic and I don't care about the Pope, but she took advantage of live televison to shock people on her own accord.

If SNL did a sketch where they made fun of the Pope, one that had planned out and deliberate by the shows producers, then it would have been comparible. (Just as the editor of the newspaper saw the Mohamed comic and saw it fit to print; it would have been intentional)

I think I can answer that, the idiots that put themselves in that position over a few stupid pictures.

Agreed. But its also the fault of some Islamic "spiritual leaders" who whipped them into a frenzy of hate.

Muslims aren't the only ones who use this tactic like it is going out of style.

They sure know how to dish it out, but when their victim fires back, they get all defensive and they become the victim.

Well, there are some like that in any group, and as mentioned I've known some atheists who are also hypocrites.

However, at least in much of the Arab world, the hypocricy reaches extreme proportions. They expect that people must respect their ever so sensitive feelings-- yet they themselves allow extremely bigoted cartoons in their media. Let's go to the videotape.

MatM "Muslims aren't the only ones" that's a classic but tired defence, when you say that the scope of the situation always seems to be overlooked. Yeah people of all walks of life commit things like mass murder, but there are those who take it to the extreme, on a regular basis. Really cant remember to many cases of someone being murderd over a picture of Jesus.

Or at least distinguish it from the truth.

Christians are fond of practicing economic terrorism. If you dare to say Happy Holidays to them, they get so angry at you they will try to get you fired and they will boycott the chain you work for.

All over a greeting. Waaaaaaaah!

Christians are fond of practicing economic terrorism.

Generalize much?

Yeau that video shows them in quite a peaceful light, the scary thing is they actually believe that hog wash.

"And that is exactly the sort of attittde that causes many people to criticize Islam-- the attitude that its OK to criticize anyone else-- but Muslims need special treatment."

I know of another religion that acts the same way....G-d forbid you say anything about their government OR religion.

please tell

I personally have no use for any religion, especially the top three.

Yeau Im sure Mel Brookes would agree.

However, if they mock Judaism, they will be stigmatized as being anti-semitic and their career will suffer. That's cultural, not governmental censorship.

Let's...go to the videotape! LOL :)

After you watch this highly satirical video...re: the producer-- please answer the Q's: Was he "stigmatized as being anti-Semitic"? Did his career suffer as a result? (Were their many Jews placing a Jewish-style "fatwah' on his head?)

Sure-- if someone produces something anti-Semitc... a lot of Jews will boycott it, maybe write angry letters to the editor. Maybe even picket and protest... And the same with anything anti-Christian, or anti any other group. Except Muslims...

But-- how many compare the Muslim reaction to the cartoons to, say, the Christian reaction over Piss Christ.. A lot of Christians were offended. But they wrote letters to the editor, and I believe some walked in protest carrying signs-- all quite peaceful. Angry words are one thing-- actual murder is another..

To clarify - an entertainer or commentator in our culture has the freedom to mock any religion they choose. However, if they mock Judaism, they will be stigmatized as being anti-semitic and their career will suffer. That's cultural, not governmental censorship.

Well, again-- in a democracy, an entertainer has the right to free speech. And-- the public has every right to attend the production-- or boycott it. And the right to protest, write angry letters, call or email their politicians or the producer, etc. Or-- purchase his product.

(That's democracy for ya...)

So-- if someone produces somethings and enough people boycott it, then their income may suffer-- at least temporarily. So what?

And, in any event-- I believe your statement is inaccurate. Here's another satirical video (from the amazing, incomparable krishna- 167929-- peace be upon him! Yeah!!! :-)

After you watch the video (if you dare)-- ask yourself the following questions: Was the producer stigmatized as being anti-Semitic? (In this case the answer is probably 'yes"-- at least by some folks). Did His carrer suffer? Was there some sort of massive Jewish conspiracy to punish him in some terrrible way...?

Video: Throw the Jew Down the Well. (Warning-- strong stuff, stronger than the video linked to in comment #16.2. This video may offend some people...!!!)

And, finally-- who is this Borat dude anyway? He seems to be some sort of bigot...anti-Semite, eh? From Kazakhstan? That's in Central Asia...is he a Muslim? Or just some bigoted American Christian "redneck"...? The answer is quite revealing...and really quite relevant to the topic we are discussing!

Frankly, I think all religions are worthy of being made fun of. I'm also tired of people being so sensitive over it. Get over your boycotts! Yawn!

Loved "Borat". Hysterically funny!

krishna-167929

"I wonder how many people know that he's Jewish?"

Really? With the last name Cohen, I wonder how many people are ignorant enough not to realize that he's Jewish!

"there is a long standing Jewish tradition of laughing at their own foibles. Now-- imagine a Muslim who laughs at Islam or Muslims...and there's the big difference."

Excellent point !!

"I wonder how many people know that he's Jewish?"

Really? With the last name Cohen, I wonder how many people are ignorant enough not to realize that he's Jewish!

LOL. When I first heard his last name, I thought it was a fake-- that he was just trying to con us (which shows just how convoluted my mind is...)

My mind is even more convoluted. I would assume that he was trying to make us believe he was trying to con us. Can you beat that? No, please don't. LOL

My mind is even more convoluted. I would assume that he was trying to make us believe he was trying to con us. Can you beat that?

Are you trying to make us believe that he was trying to make us believe that he was trying to con us? Or... the opposite?

I believe what I said earlier. I don't know what I said, but I know what I think. And, well, I assume that's what I said.

but I know what I think

Well-- then you're one step ahead of me. :)

Whenever I turn out to be particularly clear, you've probably misunderstood what I've said. : )

Whenever I turn out to be particularly clear, you've probably misunderstood what I've said. : )

Clear communication of ideas can lead to a lot of confusion...

actually, check out the Israeli Palestinian Comedy Tour

That's freedom of speech, it works both ways.

And, it doesn't just apply to things that hurt the feelings of Muslims-- here's a related issue:

It's Banned Books Week -- the 10 "most challenged titles" of 2008!

What's sauce for the goose should be sauce for the gander...or should it? Should there be special exceptions made for things that hurt the feelings of Muslims?

A Gentile (non-Jewish person, if you aren't aware of what the term means) doing the same sort of humor would be called anti-semitic.

Reading your comment, 2 thoughts come to mind:

1. I think the key factor is their intent (and not, as you seem to be obsessed with, their ethnicity or religion...).. IMO, Mel Brooks satire is obviously not bashing Jews or blacks, but rather bashing anti-Semites and racists.

For me Borat was, at least at first, a little more difficult to figure out-- although even at first I was suspicious of the fact that he came off as blatantly anti-Semitic and and anti-women.

And-- would some people like Borat be called "Anti-Semitic"? Well, it depends.

The fact is, there are indeed some people who are racist bigots...should we not call them that? Are there some people who really are racist, anti-black, anti-gay, misogynists, ...yes...even anti-Semitic?

For example, some of the hatred that appears in the media from time to time in parts of the Arab world. This was on TV-- is this guy just being satirical-- is he a comedian? Or is he actually seriously bigoted? "Religious Sermon".

2. "Self-deprecation?" WEell, there are sometimes different values in different cultures. It seems that many (of course not all-- but it does seem to be fairly common) Jews are able to lighten up at times and laugh at themselves. IMO, this is a good thing to do.

And-- again with exceptions-- I have noticed that in many parts of the Arab world this ability does not seem to be the norm. Perhaps they would be better off if they did "lighten up" more-- and not get all bent out of shape (and in many cases prone to acting out-- sometimes quite violently)by even the slightest insult (or in many cases what is merely perceived to be an insult-- and actually wasn't even intended to be such).

Psychologically speaking, the lack of any ability or gusto for self-depreciating humor is a sure sign for a lack of self-esteem and general insecurity. Millennia of persecution have not resulted in the lack of self-esteem among the Jewish people... au contraire. Mazel Tov!

Jewish self-deprecating humor is a form of resistance and an emotional defense mechanism to a hostile and absurd world, not agreement with anti-semitism. Jews laugh to ease their pain.

Plus of course, there's Yiddish. A language loaded with comic one word-descriptions that don't easily translate into English from here:

Like schnorrer, which is a kind of crafty, self entitled beggar.

...and all types of troublemakers (trombeniks, pfeiffers, dreykopfs, bulvanim), various types of gossips (kokhleffels, kookhtehs, khlippehs, and the American Jewish creation called the "butt-in-ski"), gluttons (fressers), slobs (schlobs, schlumps), sourpusses (fahrbissener),whiners and hypochondriacs(kvetches, krekhtzers), annoying pests (noodniks and noodnitzehs), pretenders and fakers (baal gaivehniks, makhers, 'panns and pannis'-- Polish words for 'aristocrats' but in the Yiddish-character sense, panns and pannis are self-righteous pseudo-aristocrats who walk around trying to make others feel they are somebody important), and the "nasty" types of people (shtoonks, pasgoodnyaks). There is the self-deprecating character type that constantly apologizes for his existence (a nebakh or nebbish). There is also the self-righteous religious fanatic (khnyok).

There are schlemiels, schlimazls, schmendricks, bokks, naars, tipishes, and laytzim.
American Jews created another -- the schmegeggi.

Just to describe two of them -- a schlemiel is a person who spills a cup of hot coffee on a schlimazel.

Schlemiels are awkward, bungling, totally inept, have no coping skills in dealing with ANY kind of situation, and, at the same time, always hopeful and confident that "this time they will succeed."

A schlemiel's worst enemy is himself because the schlemiel always gets in his own way.

A schlimazel, on the other hand, is a person with no luck. No matter what the schlimazel tries to do he invariably gets it wrong -- not because he has no intelligence, but because he has no luck and doesn't realize that he should "quit while he is ahead."

And not to leave Christians out, here's a link to a service that features 38,500 quality jokes for sermons.

I have the feeling I've wandered around this topic before. I guess that makes me a deja Jew.

hey, speaking of wandering......... Golda Meir said,

Let me tell you something that we Israelis have against Moses. He took us wandering 40 years through the desert in order to bring us to the one spot in the Middle East that has no oil!

a**holes are we? At least we have enough pride in our beliefs that we're not offended enough to riot, burn vehicles, and make death threats when someone makes fun of them. Are your beliefs so weak that you have to go ballistic if someone criticises them or mocks them, is your faith so flimsy that you have to riot to make others think that your faith is strong, and your understanding of your religion so low that you can't understand why peope have problems with it? If so, then I'm an a**hole, but what does that make you? A pretender or a wanna-be follower?

make joke and insult are two different things if you know!!

freedom if speech is not freedom of insulting.. or anyone can expect some backlashes

Actually, I don't see an insult. I see a criticism, and the results of the publishing took them from an observation to a proven fact.

make joke and insult are two different things if you know!!

Sometimes. Sometimes something can be both

freedom if speech is not freedom of insulting.. or anyone can expect some backlashes

Well, actually, that depends where you live. In the U.S., The Supreme Court is the ultimate authority, and decides what is the supreme law of the land. There have been numerous rulings re; free speech. And, according to law in the U.S., the right to free speech does not protect anyone from having their feelings hurt-- no matter how sensitive the poor dears may be.

In fact, there is political satire in democracies such as the U.S. (and Denmark)-- cartoons satirizing our political leaders--- every day in many newspapers. Some of it is downright insulting-- but that's the way a true democracy works. (And of course a religious leaders should be open to criticism as much as a political leader-- or a scientist or academician..or any other "authority figure".

But, of course, I'm speaking of democracies. There are many other countries that are not democracies...I supppose some people would rather live there.

ateeq:

You are absolutely, 100% incorrect. In fact, freedom of speech is defined by the right to insult, absolutely, especially something as amorphous as a religion as opposed to individuals.

Otherwise, all freedom of speech goes away because SOMEONE can see an INSULT in damned near anything.

It's clear you 1) don't understand the concept of freedom of speech, or 2) don't want freedom of speech.

Here's a comment by Flemming Rose, the culture editor of the Danish paper that puvblished the cartoons, explains the concept:

The modern, secular society is rejected by some Muslims. They demand a special position, insisting on special consideration of their own religious feelings.

It is incompatible with contemporary democracy and freedom of speech, where one must be ready to put up with insults, mockery and ridicule. It is certainly not always attractive and nice to look at, and it does not mean that religious feelings should be made fun of at any price, but that is of minor importance in the present context. [...] we are on our way to a slippery slope where no-one can tell how the self-censorship will end. That is why Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten has invited members of the Danish editorial cartoonists union to draw Muhammad as they see him.

my favorite product is toilet paper with allah drawn on it

I use strips of American flag.

I use strips of American flag.

Sounds terribly hard on plumbing.

Who needs plumbing when you have a perfectly good floor? Im just surprised they use anything at all.