they have. austin american statesman published one or two a couple weeks ago. so did the philly inquirer. overall US isn't europe. we dont have 234097234 papers in every city. we have a couple corporations controlling everything. this is what you get. but in this instance i think its proper.
DUde, people have tons of internet access and they can go to their local library if they can't afford it - why would somebody who's too poor to afford internet access shell out 2$ a day for a newspaper anyway? It seems like you're saying that people need to see these cartoons - I've seen them and while I don't think they're that big of a deal - I don't see why they should be mandatory reading for anybody. The idea of forcing the press to publish this is as offensive to me as them not being able to publish it in first amendment terms. Some media outlets have published them - some have not. If you want to see them you go to a media outlet that does - that's the beauty of an ostensibly free press.
I think that is a good point, but I still disagree: I sincerely doubt any US paper refused to publish them out of "respect for islam". They did it out of fear of retribution. And that's a serious problem. It seems like for every moron repeating the "they hate us for our freedoms" mantra we have another doofus unwilling to exercize those freedoms because of the very same people! It's a total contradiction - I'd put it on par with the people who support the patriot act to "protect our freedoms". It's completely illogical, cowardly, and represents a backpedaling of liberal society in the face of theocratic ignorants.
I agree with you. I think they are newsworthy and I am amazed at how little life is valued everywhere in the world. However, the question of the poll is bogus to me. Should is the wrong word. It is not a matter of "should we publish". If the newspaper publishers thought it would make them money, they would have published them by now.
Here is a link to the offensive cartoons Out of respect for Clutch and this site, I will not post them here in this thread, though I would like to, someone mentioned they were deleted elsewhere, so here is a link to them if you want to see them. Sam, Who said FORCE them to publish them, I am asking if people think they SHOULD publish them. Internet access is prevelant, but my point is that Newspapers and television is being bullied/censored by religious extremists and this sets a HORRIBLE precedent. Freedom of the press is a major check against people who want to take away our freedoms. Watergate, anyone? DD
They are already posted in this thread!!! The sky is falling!!! Clutch - the radical islamists are coming to get you....and your little dog, too!!
I am not arguing they are or aren't insulting, clearly people do find them offensive, but there is no outrage over the same insulting Jewish cartoons in Arab newspapers almost daily, nor is there outrage over anti christian cartoons. My point is that, in free society, there are times when people are going to be offended, you can not let a radical extremist sector control what you are willing to print, if it is newsworthy. These cartoons are clearly newsworthy, so why have so many US papers not printed them? Cowardice is what I think. And that is amazing to me, that the group that did Watergate, White Water, Clinton's hummer etc...etc..etc... is cowering down because of a few radical muslims. And the point of this thread is not to rehash old arguments it is to ask people if they think the US newspapers SHOULD print the cartoons. It is merely a matter of opinion. DD
i think your argument is bogus. the only comparison in the US context is race relations. if there was some art exhibit depicting black folks in the most disgusting way and it was offensive...would there be repeated pictures on the front page of every paper? i dont know. but i doubt it. and yes arab countries are full of hypocrisy. i think most people in those countries know this.
I had never seen them and was curious so I clicked on DaDa's link. I must say they aren't quite what I was expecting. I found them silly and not very funny. But I can't for the life of me see how they could be so insulting as to cause death and destruction. Azadre I completely respect your feelings, but really! I think it's time for some people to learn a little tolerance. I have seen much worse depictions of Jews and Christians. Maybe it's because of my environment but I just don't see all the fuss.
Dude - newspapers and most every media outlet are for profit businesses. It is a shame, but they publish or don't publish things with an eye to the bottom line. That affects every story they do, ever, and always will.
No. Don't publish them here. I think editors value their lives more than free press. Everyone can see how differences are resolved over there. Not by discussion, but by violence. Let's be smart and safe.
Then they would have already won. You don't give a small child candy, you discipline them, that way they learn what is and what is not accepted in a free and open society. The Muslim extremists are in dire need of a good spanking. DD
These cartoons are clearly newsworthy, so why have so many US papers not printed them? Cowardice is what I think. Good taste and common sense are what I think.
Fair enough, so we can count on that good taste when Anti Semantic cartoons are printed, or when people bash our politicians, or perhaps when the Christian Right is represented. Do you agree with that? Because that my friend sounds like censorship. DD
We should respect their religious beliefs, they should find other ways to protest besides killing each other.
I completely agree, we should respect their beliefs when they don't interfere with our free society or press. Otherwise, they live by our rules, or they are free to leave. DD
Yes, we should count on good sense in those cases as well. I might add here that there are very few cartoons published in the good ol' USA which contemptously mock Christianity or Judasim.
My response from the cartoons are only disgust, but I could not justify the burning of buildings, killing of people or burning effigies from these cartoons. Allah can punish these people in the hereafter, so according to Islam my job is to worship Allah not punish those who do not worship. As for tolerance, this directly mocks the notion of tolerance. Why, because it is a collection of cartoons whose main purpose was supposed to be offensive to Muslims. Tolerance is not insulting someone for their differences and expecting them to take it with good intentions, but accepting others for being different and hoping to learn something from one another. Once we achieve this mode of thought, there will be a lot less conflict on our little rock.
