A bit of a side note, but from what I’ve read/heard from Muslims, what they object to isn’t the drawing of Mohammed per se, but the mocking of Mohammed.
As far as I know, there are significant differences in this regard between different Islamic denominations, sects, schools, and folk practices, but many Muslims consider even respectful portrayal of Mohammed as unacceptable because it constitutes idolatry. Basically, anyone wishing to portray Mohammed is in a Catch-22 situation: if it’s done in a spirit of veneration, it’s idolatry, and otherwise it’s mocking and disrespectful.
Oh, I agree that representing Mohammed is generally forbidden in Islam, it’s just that when I looked for what the Muslims themselves were saying (on forums mostly frequented by Muslims), they were talking about how it wasn’t right to mock Mohammed, not Mohammed, and they were also complaining about how the media would represent their position (even though some Mulsims do try to pressure the west on any depiction of Mohammed), and they were also complaining about violent fundamentalist hicks giving their religion a bad name.
Rereading my post, it can be interpreted as saying that all Muslims take that position (mocking not good, but no big objection to just drawing Muslims), which would explain the downvotes.
Rereading my post, it can be interpreted as saying that all Muslims take that position (mocking not good, but no big objection to just drawing Muslims), which would explain the downvotes.
I think they have more to do with your false-to-fact comparison with a potential American analog.
I never claimed it was a perfect analogy—I still think it’s a better one than the Salmon Pictures.
How would you personally feel about a national “draw Martin Luther King with big lips eating watermelon” day, done by foreigners? I don’t expect you’d go out and burn stuff, but I also expect you’d prefer it didn’t happen (if this doesn’t apply to you you, it probably does to quite a few Americans on this site, I don’t even know if you’re American). I mean, I tend to be a pro-free-speech bullet biter, but I wouldn’t like it.
And many of the arguments that have been made (here or elswewhere) about Everybody Draw Mohammed Day could be made about that too.
I never claimed it was a perfect analogy—I still think it’s a better one than the Salmon Pictures.
Well you’re right about that at least.
How would you personally feel about a national “draw Martin Luther King with big lips eating watermelon” day, done by foreigners? I don’t expect you’d go out and burn stuff, but I also expect you’d prefer it didn’t happen
That’s precisely the point.
(if this doesn’t apply to you you, it probably does to quite a few Americans on this site, I don’t even know if you’re American). I mean, I tend to be a pro-free-speech bullet biter, but I wouldn’t like it.
Well, after the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Westboro Baptist Church’s right to free speech, all the major newspapers ran editorials supporting the decision. In fact, this blog post argues that its easier to support free speech for extreme groups like the WBC since you get free warm fuzzies for supporting free speech without having to worry that they’ll actually persuade anybody.
As far as I know, there are significant differences in this regard between different Islamic denominations, sects, schools, and folk practices, but many Muslims consider even respectful portrayal of Mohammed as unacceptable because it constitutes idolatry. Basically, anyone wishing to portray Mohammed is in a Catch-22 situation: if it’s done in a spirit of veneration, it’s idolatry, and otherwise it’s mocking and disrespectful.
Oh, I agree that representing Mohammed is generally forbidden in Islam, it’s just that when I looked for what the Muslims themselves were saying (on forums mostly frequented by Muslims), they were talking about how it wasn’t right to mock Mohammed, not Mohammed, and they were also complaining about how the media would represent their position (even though some Mulsims do try to pressure the west on any depiction of Mohammed), and they were also complaining about violent fundamentalist hicks giving their religion a bad name.
Rereading my post, it can be interpreted as saying that all Muslims take that position (mocking not good, but no big objection to just drawing Muslims), which would explain the downvotes.
I think they have more to do with your false-to-fact comparison with a potential American analog.
I never claimed it was a perfect analogy—I still think it’s a better one than the Salmon Pictures.
How would you personally feel about a national “draw Martin Luther King with big lips eating watermelon” day, done by foreigners? I don’t expect you’d go out and burn stuff, but I also expect you’d prefer it didn’t happen (if this doesn’t apply to you you, it probably does to quite a few Americans on this site, I don’t even know if you’re American). I mean, I tend to be a pro-free-speech bullet biter, but I wouldn’t like it.
And many of the arguments that have been made (here or elswewhere) about Everybody Draw Mohammed Day could be made about that too.
Well you’re right about that at least.
That’s precisely the point.
Well, after the US Supreme Court ruled in favor of the Westboro Baptist Church’s right to free speech, all the major newspapers ran editorials supporting the decision. In fact, this blog post argues that its easier to support free speech for extreme groups like the WBC since you get free warm fuzzies for supporting free speech without having to worry that they’ll actually persuade anybody.