From the “You have the right to say whatever I think” file:
December 27th, 2006 | by Craig R. Harmon |An article seen as denigrating Islam published early last month in an obscure Baku newspaper prompted demonstrations across Azerbaijan and in Iran, raising Azeris’ concerns over Iran’s influence here.The article blamed Islam for Azerbaijan’s meager economic development.
The furor after its publication echoes the case of the Danish cartoons published in 2005 that were seen as mocking Islam, generating protests from Gaza to Pakistan. An Iranian cleric demanded the death of the two authors, and denunciations from village imams and other religious conservatives in Azerbaijan have sent tremors through the Azeri government and the secular elite of this Shiite nation.
“I am for freedom of speech but not the freedom to insult,” said Hajji Ilgar, an imam at Baku’s Jama Old City mosque who is often critical of the government of Azerbaijan’s secular president, Ilham Aliyev. “The only solution is to take this to the courts.”
by which he means, “to the gallows”.
10 Responses to “From the “You have the right to say whatever I think” file:”
By Dusty on Dec 27, 2006 | Reply
L.M.A.O.
He is for freedom of speech but not freedom to insult..these guys are nucking futs. I am slowly coming to the realization that any cleric for any religion is out there if they even attempt to become involved in politics. They need to save,nuture and preach to their flock about living a good, clean life..and thats it.
By Craig R. Harmon on Dec 27, 2006 | Reply
It depends. I’m a (retired) cleric and I am all for your right to say whatever YOU think, whether it insults me, my religion, my God. You see, I’m both a religious person, as you are, and a citizen of the United States. As the second, I have a vested interest in the political direction that my government takes. It is as much an abdication of my civil responsibility to fail to participate in the political process as it is for any other citizen to fail to do so.
As a pastor, I never told my congregation they must vote for this or that candidate. However, I occasionally spoke about various political issues if they had religious/spiritual ramifications for the life of my congregants and for the good of the nation. From this, my congregants could vote their conscience without my knowing or inquiring how they voted unless they brought it up.
So to a certain extent, a cleric has both a spiritual and a civic responsibility to become involved in the political process, in my opinion.
By Jersey McJones on Dec 27, 2006 | Reply
I wish all the clerics of all the world would build a big spaceship and fly the fuckin hell as far away from Earth as possible and never come back.
JMJ
By Dusty on Dec 27, 2006 | Reply
I wish that too Jersey..if they are the kind that like to stick their religious noses in political affairs. Putting their religious beliefs on me as the rule of law is bogus.
By Paul Merda on Dec 28, 2006 | Reply
Whaaat?! Religion and hypocrisy? How can it be? Islam sure has a long way to go. Islam kinda resembles Dark Ages Europe and this kind of crap is a prime example.
By SteveIL on Dec 28, 2006 | Reply
Paul Merda,
No shit, Sherlock. Where the hell you been for the last 30 years?
By Paul Watson on Dec 28, 2006 | Reply
SteveIL,
And yet there are American Christians who are envious of their ability to turn their children into mass murdering psychopaths. Maybe Christianity isn’t that enlightened, either. The Bible is hardly free of exhortations to violence and genocide, after all.
By Craig R. Harmon on Dec 28, 2006 | Reply
Paul Watson,
And yet there are American Christians who are envious of their ability to turn their children into mass murdering psychopaths.
Which Christians are they, exactly?
Just wondering.
Yes, the Bible is not free from exhortations to violence an genocide. That is correct. Nor have Christians, when given the temporal power and theological underpinnings for doing so, refrained from violence and genocide. Elimination of Jews was all the rage in pre-nazi Germany and had been the subject of scholarly and theological reflection and debate within Germany for nearly a century or more before the Nazis came to power and put theory into practice. Christians who are so convinced that abortion is murder and that killing those who do abortions is justified as defense of the millions of aborted babies each year are still not above murdering and threatening murder.
Just like Muslims, there are radicalized Christians, ignorant Christians, Racist Christians and Christians who wish to force their own version of faith and morality on others, through law if possible. And, like Muslims, there are enlightened, well-informed Christians who are convinced that in a secular and pluralistic society, the viewpoints of others must be allowed to be spoken if not respected, that those whose opinions we find revolting must be protected as well as those we find acceptable.
I published this post not just, or even mainly because it was dangerous nonsense from a Muslim but because it is dangerous nonsense that needs to be brought to light and ridiculed and seen for the dangerous nonsense that it is. There are plenty of people here at BIO! highlighting dangerous nonsense from Christians. Seriously under-represented are posts highlighting dangerous nonsense from Muslims so that’s mostly what I highlight.
But by all means, bash those Christians! That’s what free speech is all about: the right to say whatever YOU think.
By Paul Watson on Dec 28, 2006 | Reply
Craig,
I am referring in particular to the tiny minority who starred, if that is the right word, in Jesus Camp and similar documentaries on Channel Four over here. This is not most Christians by any stretch of the imagination. And although it does look like I’m just trying to bash Christians, what I was trying to do is show that ALL religions can be interpreted to encourage blind obedience, intolerance and violence. SteveIL’s comments implied that this was a uniquely Islamic phenomenon, and, as you’ve said, it clearly isn’t.
So I’m sorry you thought I was just bashing Christians, which I’ll admit isn’t an unwarranted accusation given what I said, but that wasn’t what I was trying to say. Although there is a group of Christians who are trying to sue the cretos of Jerry Springer the Opera for blasphemy. But there are also Hindu’s who wrecked a theater putting on a play by a Hindu director that showed a rape in the prayer room for disrespecting their religion, which is just adding evidence to the point that it’s not just Islam, not just Christianity, but all religions.
So far no agnostics have committed acts of violence in the name of their beliefs, but that is probably because it sounds incredibly silly to shout “I believe in rational discourse and debate” before kiling someone. Doesn’t really work.
By Craig R. Harmon on Dec 28, 2006 | Reply
Paul W.,
Good enough, then. Thanks for the explain!
I think I read of a guy that cried out “Cogito, ergo sum!” just before a debate but that’s not really analogous.