The Cartoons

A clash of civilizations (civilisations if you're British and can't understand American English) is not upon us. An offensive misunderstanding is a better term to describe the cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad and the reactions to them.

European newspaper editors claim they are exerting their right to free speech in printing these offensive and racist cartoons. Their argument covers up their anti-Muslim sentiment and their xenophobia. Clearly, a wider issue concerning Muslim immigrants living in Europe is at play here. The fact that these immigrants are Muslim is only a matter of fact, not the reason for Europe's increasing xenophobia.

On the other hand, it appears from the reaction, that Muslim protestors misunderstand who should be held responsible for these cartoons. The governments' of Europe, regardless of their attitude towards Muslims, have no control over what is printed under the law. The anger should be directed towards the cartoonist and the editors of the newspapers.

An Iranian newspaper is running a contest for the best Holocaust cartoon in the hopes of showing Europe how offensive the cartoons mocking the Prophet Muhammad truly are. This totally misses the point. Holocaust cartoons offend Jews certainly, but it would be like if you threw eggs at my house and I punched your next-door neighbor in the face. One has almost nothing to do with the other. The Iranian newspaper should stop picking on the Jews and focus on the real issues.

The religion of Islam forbids idolizing any of the prophets' images or representing G-d in any way, even if a flattering image is presented. Thus mocking the Prophet Muhammad is all that more offensive and really proves no point but to alienate Muslims. As offensive as these cartoons are, violence does not solve anything. A discussion of why these cartoons are offensive would serve Muslims better. Instead, it appears that the potential for a real conversation on the cultural differences between Europeans and Muslims has been lost.