Already, angry Palestinian militants have assaulted seven West Bank and Gaza churches, destroying two of them. In Somalia, gunmen shot dead an elderly Italian nun. Radical clerics from Qatar to Qom have called, variously, for a “day of anger” or for worshippers to “hunt down” the pope and his followers. From Turkey to Malaysia, Muslim politicians have condemned the pope and called his apology “insufficient.” And all of this because Benedict XVI, speaking at the University of Regensburg, quoted a Byzantine emperor who, more than 600 years ago, called Islam a faith “spread by the sword.”
You know, Marx was right; religion really IS the opiate of the masses. How else could one reasonbly explain so many millions of Muslims apparently going brain-dead en masse? Instead of honestly and openly considering the entirety of Pope Benedict XVI’s Regensburg speech, Muslims the world over have violently overreacted to propaganda, half-truths, and just plain misinformation. I actually heard a story in which a Muslim stated that the protests were a statement of anger against the Pope linking Islam to violence.
Who says irony is dead??
Jeebus, people, can you get over your bad selves long enough to recognize how silly y’all are making yourselves look? No, Islam is not a religion of ignorance; but large numbers of Muslims do seem to be willing to give free reign to their ignorance and willingness to react before thinking, never mind actually reading the Pope’s speech.
Freedom of speech is NOT an indictment of Islam. At no point during the Pope’s speech did he ridicule, demean, or insult Islam or those who practice it. If those who are burning, rioting, and demanding the Pope’s head on a platter would bother to remove their anteriors from their posteriors for a moment, they might recognize the truth for what it is. Of course, reaction IS a whole lot more fun, and killing, burning, and looting in the name of your religion IS a great way to show your devotion and piety.
And people wonder why I’m a Buddhist….
