Our erstwhile ally in Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai is responding to the brutal murder of U.S. ambassador to Libya J. Christopher Stevens and three other embassy staff in Benghazi on Wednesday. Stevens was reportedly suffocated to death by the attacking mob which attacked the consulate because of a small film shown in the United States that was deemed as insulting to the Muhammad. Karzai then offered his own take on the murders by denouncing the “inhuman and abusive act” of the . . . filmmakers.
President Obama heralded Stevens as someone who “[t]hroughout the Libyan revolution, he selflessly served our country and the Libyan people at our mission in Benghazi . . . and supported Libya’s transition to democracy. His legacy will endure wherever human beings reach for liberty and justice. I am profoundly grateful for his service to my administration, and deeply saddened by this loss.”
Afghan President Hamid Karzai then stepped forward to denounce the “inhuman and abusive act” of the filmmakers and criticized them for causing “enmity and confrontation between the religions and cultures of the world.” I have not seen this film and have little interest in doing so. However, those filmmakers have a right to portray Muhammad in any fashion that they wish. It is the basis for free speech. The continued pattern of Muslim extremists killing people as a protest to intolerance is facially absurd and little more than a rationalization for violence. For Karzai to pick up on that theme demonstrates his fundamental disagreement with key free speech and free exercise values. It also shows the dangers of the Obama Administration’s effort to create an international blasphemy standard with its Muslim allies.
The Obama Administration has been working to develop an international standard for blasphemy prosecutions. The West has steadily yielded to the demands of religious groups that free speech must be curtailed in the name of faith. At the same time, Western governmental and religious leaders have denounced agnostics and atheists as one of the greatest threats facing the West (here and here and here and here). President Obama and Hillary Clinton have been facilitating this trend by working with Muslim nations to develop an international standard allowing for the prosecution of those who insult religion. The Administration has drawn a dangerous line with Muslim countries in first supporting the concept of an international blasphemy standard. As I have mentioned before, the efforts of the Obama Administration to work with these countries on an international blasphemy standard is a threat to free speech around the world. After first supporting an international blasphemy standard, the Administration sought to get Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and other countries to adopt the Brandenburg standard as the basis for such prosecutions. This case also shows why the use of the Brandenburg standard is so dangerous in the hands of such officials who view free speech as the cause of imminent violence. Past cases show that even the suggestion of blasphemy is enough to trigger violent riots in some Muslim nations. Because any joke or image of the Prophet can trigger violence, the standard is immediately satisfied in countries like Egypt and Pakistan, which can then claim some legal legitimacy under the standard created with the United States.
Secretary of State Clinton continues to push for the implementation of the new international effort to criminalize certain forms of anti-religious speech as our Muslim allies expand their definition of blasphemy.
Source: Guardian
The death of our ambassador and these other Americans was simply murder. It was not caused by a film or the exercise of free speech. It was caused by the continued failure of leaders like Karzai to stand up to extremists who believe that violence is warranted whenever people insult your faith or a religious figure. There is a global struggle today over free speech, not just in the Middle East but in the West. The solution is not to enable or legitimate efforts by people like Karzai to prosecute those who “cause” violence by engaging in unpopular or blasphemous speech.
Source: National Journal
” 35 anonymously posted
1, September 12, 2012 at 2:57 pm
http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/13/world/middleeast/for-veteran-envoy-return-to-libya-was-full-of-hope.html?hp
Such a loss
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Bull hockey, both your message and nytimes message.
He was an experienced proven executor of American foreign policy. Which for the moment is laying hands and control of all available oil resources to protect us.
He had proven his skills in “battle” during the “rebellion”.
Don’t believe that serving in the Peace Corps confers a halo on anyone. I have known a few PC people up country in Thailand in 65.
The sucker was smart. And you don’t advance unless you do your bosses bidding. And he advanced to his incompetence took his life. As ambassador, he should be commanding (to use army speak), he should not have gone to Benghazi.
His place was managing resources, not facing down mobs.
Is there no one who can turn off their blind sighted patriotism and recognized this as how it should have been.
Did Obama ring and say: “Your life or your family’s”. Maybe so, that’s maybe part of the job nowadays. Do or die. No pun intended.
History of the film is getting very murky. There may be no Bacile.
ID, I agree it’s a good idea for dialogue w/ sane people. The terrorists hate us. I realize that’s difficult for many people to get their head around. These folks are sociopaths before being religous zealots. The religion is merely a delivery system for their sociopathic personalities. Having dealt w/ many sociopaths..sat down @ tables and interviewed them, they have no conscience. What’s good for them is, by their definition, good. The vast majority of people can’t comprehend that. Well, IMHO that’s good. I don’t want a world where all people can understand sociopaths. I want it to be a foreign concept. I wouldn’t want my kids to understand it unless it was their job. These are people that must be killed or captured. It’s not complicated.
Blouise,
“That’s your spin and never my token so the answer is also yours to provide which will continue to be completely divorced from my opinion.” (to JCT)
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So you know what he is gonna come with. Psychic? Psychotic? Firm as a rock, and just as wise as one too?
Amazing. Take that as a gentle nudge. Bright does not always mean right. And I said that. Use it if you like.
Malisha, Luck of the Irish was a classic. I was living in Chicago when Belushi died. As you might imagine, it was a big deal.
Nick,
“JCT, You don’t walk on eggshells for crazy, hate filled, people. It simply doesn’t work.”
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Yes, you do. You embrace one and say: Let us talk as brothers about your feelings this film has offended.
And then you talk. You get to know one another. You start to ask about each others children, the parents, the school results, the health of all…..!
And what do you get? The fruits of being Christ-like and a new friend whose religion you can not share, but whose life you value and respect, in spite of his sensitivity.
Christians once killed Christians. I’m sure some evangelists would like to do so even today. We are not less sensitive than the Muslims, just more indifferent to the messsages presented by our religions. Garbage has become recognized as such by 40 per cent or more of Americans younger than 40 years.
Los Angeles-based Israeli real estate developer Sam Bacile released on the 11th anniversary of 9/11 on Youtube a 13-minute trailer for a two hour anti-Muslim short movie, titled “Innocence of Muslims,” depicting the Prophet Mohammed as insane, a fraud, and as a sex pervert.
In an interview with The Times of Israel, Bacile stated, “The main problem is I am the first one to put on the screen someone who is (portraying) Muhammad. It makes them mad,” Bacile said. “But we have to open the door. After 9/11 everybody should be in front of the judge, even Jesus, even Muhammad.” Bacile further riled up Muslims with his statement: “Islam is a cancer, period.”
Bacile said he received financing for the movie from 100 Jewish donors. The movie’s production costs were around $5 million. Bacile is unapologetic about the consequences of his movie.
Vassals have always been against the power of hegemony; accepting the brute strength of empires while extracting what they can.
This post shows U.S. foreign policy at work — kill the beggar, pay the thief.
only one way to settle this, once and for all. celebrity death match jesus vs muhammad.
LETS GET READY TO RRRRUMBLE.
Jesus already won against Mohammed..Why? The soul of Mohammed is already dead being in Satan’s jail awaiting final judgment.. The Stupid Muslims don’t know it yet. Whoever wars is in the same boat that is already sunk like the titanic. Repenting is the only way to save their soul.
Alexander the Great took ships to get around it to reach India. He was wiser than we are.
The Afghan says: “This is my side of the mountain. If you stick your nose over, I will cut it off.”
Such are the ways of the mountain tribes. Ask any Kurd. The mountains are our only friends is their motto.
Just guessing. My Afghan friend was raised in India. My Afgan pharmacist is friendly but we haven’t discussed more than Rumi’s poetry.
Dig Dr. Z:
“Those who use the gift of institutionally and legally-protected free speech to exploit and prey upon the vulnerability of certain people to violence ought to be shamed. ” Mark Ambinder”
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Is there not a limit to free speech and incitement to violence. This issue did not come up, I believe, when we discussed the Pa judge who castigated atheists mocking Mohammad, etc. provoking violence as revenge etc.
Is there such a borderline?
The Muslims wanting revenge might as well be a legion of Cackling devils demanding, calling out for for war.
Muslims in Pakistan were ready to burn a child with mental age of 8 over blasphemy that was later found to be framed, and some here think that it was the movie that provoked this, I guess some people can, without even realizing that they are reinforcing these barbarians by directly or indirectly justifying their acts. God save us from these living with us but mentally still as twisted as the killers
The blasphemers are the killers calling it good. Have therm die in that state, and it will be all over for their soul.They have to know this.
Nick S, OMG OMG yes, and nobody’s ever been like Belushi.
Did you ever see his routine “The Luck of the Irish”?
When he smashed the table with his hand and screamed I fell LITERALLY fell on the floor (so did he) and laughed my a55 off! I tried to sue him for damages but he died. OMG, it’s past hilarious. “THEY LOVE THEIR MOTHERS!”
First Amendment is not protection against criticism or denunciation of speech or even otherwise legal private action designed to punish that speech. I’ve got no problem condemning those who incite violence by mocking or disparaging other’s religions. It’s silly and counter-factual to say that such speech cannot be a cause of violence. Note, however, that all of that is a long way from saying such speech should be legally restricted. I fully support the First Amendment and I fully condemn the filmmakers at issue here. Nothing inconsistent with that.
I think the makers and promoters of this “film” got a little more than they hoped. They hoped for some riots, maybe a fatwah and Americans whipped into another frenzy of hate. I wonder if they regret the death of four Americans.
Terry Jones burns Qurans. That’s not art but I bet it has improved his standard of living. This probably will, too.
I miss Gilda, and Belushi.
Malisha 1, September 12, 2012 at 4:12 pm
One of the biggest thrills I have had recently was attending a meeting of stand-up comedians, which was introduced by the leader saying:
“We’re here to brainstorm with each other about stuff and to be funny and help each other to be funny. At the same time, we have to recognize that some things are considered funny by Person-A and not by Person-B. So if you get offended about something, F*CK YOU!”
nick spinelli 1, September 12, 2012 at 4:19 pm
Malisha, Great anecdote. Comedians say what people think but are afraid to say. They are our best defense from pc, which is a pernicious attack on the First Amendment.
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“Humor is truth, only faster.” – Gilda Radner
Malisha, Great anecdote. Comedians say what people think but are afraid to say. They are our best defense from pc, which is a pernicious attack on the First Amendment.
One of the biggest thrills I have had recently was attending a meeting of stand-up comedians, which was introduced by the leader saying:
“We’re here to brainstorm with each other about stuff and to be funny and help each other to be funny. At the same time, we have to recognize that some things are considered funny by Person-A and not by Person-B. So if you get offended about something, F*CK YOU!”