Sunday, July 13, 2008

A Muhammad cartoon push back


The Dutch cartoonist Gregorius Nekschot, whose government is persecuting him for drawing cartoons making mock of Islam and its adherents, has a Web site on which his drawings appear -- including a caricature of "the prophet" Muhammad. In solidarity with Nekschot, and as a thumb in the eye of Muhammad's present-day followers and a push back against their odious campaign against freedom of expression, I'm posting it here.

A Dutch-speaking commenter at Gates of Vienna kindly provided a translation of the text per my request. The header translates as, "By modern day standards, Allah would be considered extreme-right wing." The word balloon by the image says, "Mister Sybrand van Haersma Buma ... kill the unbelievers wherever you find them -- Sura 2:191, Sura 4:89, Sura 4:91."

"Sybrand van Haersma Buma," the commenter explains, "is a CDA politician who advocates the idea that freedom of speech is OK, but that it should be exercised with 'responsibility,' 'respect,' and so on." "CDA" stands for "Christian Democratic Appeal," the largest and most mainstream political party in the Netherlands. Its leader, Jan Peter Balkenende, is the country's current prime minister.

Verses 2:191, 4:89 and 4:91 of the Qur'an exhort Muslims, respectively, to "slay (the unbelievers) wherever ye catch them," to "seize them and slay them wherever ye find them," and to "seize them and slay them wherever ye get them." (Muhammad, it seems, knew all about "staying on message.")

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