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February 10, 2012
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David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
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Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
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The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
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February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
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Jewish World Review
Feb. 7, 2006
/ 9 Shevat, 5766
Western wimps missing chance to teach important lesson
By
Wesley Pruden
This could have been an occasion for instruction and tutelage, for assisting the followers of the religion of peace out of the 8th century and into the relative light of the 12th or 13th, en route on some distant day to the 21st.
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
The prophet Muhammad, who lived in the 8th century, never met Boss Tweed, who presided over New York in the 19th. But if the prophet runs into Mr. Tweed at the mall in a modest suburb somewhere in the afterlife, they can compare afflictions.
Mr. Tweed suffered boils and warts at the hand of the great newspaper cartoonist, Thomas Nast. "Stop them damn pictures," the old Tammany tiger told his hit men. "I don't care what the papers write about me. My constituents can't read. But they can see the pictures."
If we are to believe the millions of Muslims who are racing into the streets from Damascus to Jakarta looking for Jews to torment, Christian churches to torch and European embassies to plunder, the prophet who invented Islam is suffering a similar migraine this morning, the gift of a Dane reckless with pen and ink. The prophet's constituents can't read, either. They're not even supposed to look at the pictures. The imams fomenting hysteria are apparently afraid they might peek.
Hollywood couldn't contrive this latest Islamic comic opera, which has been tough on government property but has afforded the bored Muslim masses an opportunity to entertain themselves, and a lot of pols and government bureaucrats the stage for a remarkable performance of pandering, hot-dogging and grandstanding.
Several European heads of state have done what Europeans do best, the full grovel, and yesterday Kofi Annan, the secretary-general of the United Nations, did his usual shuck and jive on the high road. "I understand and share their anguish," he said of the plunderers and looters in the capitals of Arabia. "But it cannot justify violence, least of all attacks on innocent people. I appeal to Muslims to accept the apology that has been offered and to act as I am sure Almighty G-d, who is compassionate and merciful, would wish them to do. That is, to act with calm and dignity, to forgive the wrong they have suffered and to seek peace rather than conflict."
But Muslims have suffered no wrong; Muslims have inflicted the wrong. It's reassuring to learn that the theologian-general of the U.N. is on such intimate terms with G-d, and endorses the almighty mind. Expecting "calm and dignity" in the Muslim street is expecting a lot, and only a man of Mr. Annan's deep faith in the whatever would attempt such a stretch.
Representatives of nearly every European country, and sad to say the United States, hurried out to the nearest camera with apology and penitence, where apology is not called for and penitence is not appropriate. The bureaucrats, like the State Department officer who called the cartoons "unacceptable," are addicted to the grovel, too. What does "unacceptable" mean in the mouth of a government officer? Is an arrest imminent?
This could have been an occasion for instruction and tutelage, for assisting the followers of the religion of peace out of the 8th century and into the relative light of the 12th or 13th, en route on some distant day to the 21st. Scott McClellan, the spokesman for President Bush, attempted a lecture yesterday but delivered the wrong rebuke. "We support and respect the freedom of the press," he said, "but there are also important responsibilities that come with that freedom."
This is wrong, and dangerously wrong. The guarantees of free expression (such as the First Amendment in our own country) include no "if," no "also," no "but." The guarantees do not ordain a "responsible" press, but a free press. This is what the Muslims, who often show no respect for the beliefs of others, must learn even if they learn it the hard way. Followers of the prophet are entitled to believe that a caricature of the man they revere is wrong. If they believe that, they should neither draw such a caricature nor look upon one drawn by someone else. They have no right to impose that belief on anyone else, Hindu, Christian or Hottentot. This is what Kofi Annan and the bowed heads of Europe and spokesmen for the State Department and the White House, and George W. Bush for all that, should be telling the Muslims. And not forget to duck.
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JWR contributor Wesley Pruden is editor in chief of The Washington Times. Comment by clicking here.
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