01-12-2015, 11:16 AM
You definitely did post about how and why anti-Islamic and Muhammad-mocking expression is the work of idiots who will cause a deadly reaction from the Islamic extremists. You were right about repercussions -- kinda prophetic even, Mohammed. 
The attack on Charlie Hebdo as "payback" was not difficult to foresee. Hell, Charlie Hebdo's Paris office had already been bombed and Charb had already been declared a target for years. It's unfortunate that security at the Paris office was not much tougher to breach.
But, were it not the Charlie Hebdo cartoons and artists, those same terrorists would have found another target whom they deemed responsible for one of thousands of other perceived present-day or centuries-old insults to Islam, IMO. It was simply easier to target an office full of well-known satirists than it would have been to target a French military or governmental building, I imagine.
Muslims kill each other in the name of Islam way more than they kill non-Muslims, using different interpretations of the same religious documents as justification. I think that when people are convinced that war is a righteous way of life, it's not difficult for them to find justifications to continue killing and dying over the same old shit. With the ease of internet access across the globe now, it's also not difficult to attract weak-minded violent new recruits from wide and far; recruits who are anxious to belong to something and itching for justification to kill. The Islamic extremists are doing well when it comes to hooking those fish, IMO.
While you may not see a Charlie Hebdo-type publication originating from the U.S. I don't believe that's because we're afraid of becoming targets for avengers of the prophet. That's a silly insinuation. We declared a "war on terror", killed a bunch of Muslims on foreign ground, etc... We've got huge red targets on our chests as it stands. There simply isn't a market for Charlie Hebdo here, IMO, and one only needs to read comments on the internet or visit dedicated anti-religion or anti-Muslim websites to see that freedom of (condemning and blasphemous) speech is alive and well.
We also have our share of violent feeble minded citizens who watch extreme right-wing news or join hate groups/forums and go off on deadly rampages - nothing to do with Islam. Now, we've got Islamic extremists in the mix here as well -- probably hiding in plain site, same as France, Australia, Germany, the UK, etc... Those Islamic extremists are not all here as a result of immigration; many are homegrown converts, I suspect. In any case, I don't see western populations negotiating our freedoms in order to minimize the chances of provoking them to attack, nor do I see us moving from place to place and significantly changing our lifestyles due to fear of forseeable attacks -- just the opposite. Just the opposite is the way it should be, IMO. We pay a price for freedom sometimes, that's just the way it is.
I do think that western societies need to be more aware and vigilant about security and identifying jihadists in the making, however. Edward Snowden made that a little more difficult in the US, IMO. But, we'll be comparing notes with our allies and developing international counter-terrorism strategies to address Islamic threats at home. I don't know if that will include changing immigration policies to discriminate against all Muslims, but I doubt it. I do hope it means a much harder look at anyone seeking residence in the US and very harsh penalties for anyone convicted of terrorist-related activities. I feel strongly that the men who attacked Charlie Hebdo and the Kosher deli should have been in prison, given their criminal records; shame they were put back on the streets so soon.
The attack on Charlie Hebdo as "payback" was not difficult to foresee. Hell, Charlie Hebdo's Paris office had already been bombed and Charb had already been declared a target for years. It's unfortunate that security at the Paris office was not much tougher to breach.
But, were it not the Charlie Hebdo cartoons and artists, those same terrorists would have found another target whom they deemed responsible for one of thousands of other perceived present-day or centuries-old insults to Islam, IMO. It was simply easier to target an office full of well-known satirists than it would have been to target a French military or governmental building, I imagine.
Muslims kill each other in the name of Islam way more than they kill non-Muslims, using different interpretations of the same religious documents as justification. I think that when people are convinced that war is a righteous way of life, it's not difficult for them to find justifications to continue killing and dying over the same old shit. With the ease of internet access across the globe now, it's also not difficult to attract weak-minded violent new recruits from wide and far; recruits who are anxious to belong to something and itching for justification to kill. The Islamic extremists are doing well when it comes to hooking those fish, IMO.
While you may not see a Charlie Hebdo-type publication originating from the U.S. I don't believe that's because we're afraid of becoming targets for avengers of the prophet. That's a silly insinuation. We declared a "war on terror", killed a bunch of Muslims on foreign ground, etc... We've got huge red targets on our chests as it stands. There simply isn't a market for Charlie Hebdo here, IMO, and one only needs to read comments on the internet or visit dedicated anti-religion or anti-Muslim websites to see that freedom of (condemning and blasphemous) speech is alive and well.
We also have our share of violent feeble minded citizens who watch extreme right-wing news or join hate groups/forums and go off on deadly rampages - nothing to do with Islam. Now, we've got Islamic extremists in the mix here as well -- probably hiding in plain site, same as France, Australia, Germany, the UK, etc... Those Islamic extremists are not all here as a result of immigration; many are homegrown converts, I suspect. In any case, I don't see western populations negotiating our freedoms in order to minimize the chances of provoking them to attack, nor do I see us moving from place to place and significantly changing our lifestyles due to fear of forseeable attacks -- just the opposite. Just the opposite is the way it should be, IMO. We pay a price for freedom sometimes, that's just the way it is.
I do think that western societies need to be more aware and vigilant about security and identifying jihadists in the making, however. Edward Snowden made that a little more difficult in the US, IMO. But, we'll be comparing notes with our allies and developing international counter-terrorism strategies to address Islamic threats at home. I don't know if that will include changing immigration policies to discriminate against all Muslims, but I doubt it. I do hope it means a much harder look at anyone seeking residence in the US and very harsh penalties for anyone convicted of terrorist-related activities. I feel strongly that the men who attacked Charlie Hebdo and the Kosher deli should have been in prison, given their criminal records; shame they were put back on the streets so soon.