Qur'an burning contradictions
John-Robson
By John Robson ,Parliamentary Bureau
On hearing that American soldiers had burned some Korans, Afghans
erupted into randomly murderous rage. In the ensuing stone-throwing,
tire- and flag-burning and infidel-denouncing some 14 people have been
killed so far, mostly Muslim Afghans. What's that about?
It's hard to sympathize with whoever was charged with disposing of
Qur'ans at a U.S. military base in Afghanistan and decided a public
bonfire would be nicely inconspicuous. And yes, it feeds into the
stereotype of Americans oblivious to other cultures. But that said,
let me pose a few questions to the kinder, gentler multiculturalists
out there.
Barack Obama predictably groveled in a three-page written apology to
Afghan President Hamid Karzai because some idiots burned Qur'ans
thought to have been used by Taliban prisoners to exchange messages.
So will Karzai send Obama a written apology because an Afghan soldier
shot two American soldiers who weren't involved in the incident?
Or for Taliban desecrating Qur'ans by writing murder plots in them? Or
for his countrymen killing nearly 2,000 Americans and more than 150
Canadians because we came to save them from the Taliban we armed to
save them from Communism, then tried to insist that girls should go to
school without being murdered, raped or disfigured with acid?
Why do we act as if we agreed that it was worse to destroy a book than
a person? If an Afghan burned a Bible in America, or Afghanistan, how
many people would die in the ensuing riots? None, obviously.
If most Afghans found a Bible and recognized it they almost certainly
would destroy it. Quite possibly along with its owner. We don't hear
about that stuff, though, do we?
Has the President of Iraq apologized because Christians are being
murdered, terrorized and driven out of that country? Has the Saudi
King to whom Obama infamously bowed apologized because it's illegal to
build a church in his country or conduct a public Christian worship
service? Or because his predecessor King Faisal told anyone who'd
listen that Jews murdered gentiles to consume their blood on Passover?
Or, if kings are off limits, how about the Saudi imam who, in a
government mosque, reproached Palestinians for failing to enslave
Jewish women? Still waiting for that apology too. A Saudi who burned a
Bible would be lucky if they only went to jail ... for having had a
Bible.
As founding king Ibn Saud's grandfather once explained, he would
haggle over politics. "But when the question is one of religion, we
kill everybody." In Afghanistan that apparently includes not only
innocent non-Muslims, but innocent Muslims as well.
If it were an isolated incident ... I'd still be shaking my head. But
of course it isn't. Last year at least 24 Afghans were killed after an
American preacher burned a Qur'an in Florida. After. But not because.
As newspapers casually noted Friday, terrorists in Iraq killed dozens
of their fellow Muslims on Thursday alone, without a desecrated Qur'an
or any other excuse.
Then there were the infamous Danish cartoons, taken on a provocative
tour of the Middle East by Danish imams complete with added
inflammatory bogus images. In the ensuing riots dozens who were
neither Danish, nor cartoonists, nor Christians, Jews, atheists,
Buddhists, Hindus, or any other form of stinking infidel were killed
because ... uh ... why were they killed?
At the risk of ruffling Justin Trudeau's hair, I find this response
barbaric. By all means be offended if someone clumsily insults your
religion. But exhibit some self-control. Express dismay; request an
apology; ostracize the offender. But don't try to kill him, let alone
get so crazy you kill someone who is not only innocent of the original
offense but shares your outrage.
If you do, don't expect me to pretend it's not disgusting.
--
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