IT did not take a long time, just a few days actually, to witness further insults aimed at Muslims as far as Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is concerned. Following the great rage that was expressed by many Muslim countries against the vile movie clip broadcast on the Internet depicting the Prophet (pbuh), a French magazine published insulting cartoons of Prophet Mohammad (pbuh) and clearly stated that it did so in order to protect its freedom of speech and the right of the expression of its opinion. If you objectively examine these incidents, you cannot help but notice the devious intentions behind them. There was an obvious intent to denigrate and humiliate Muslims as there was no point of discussion to begin with except to insult Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) and to call it one's freedom of expression. I cannot help but wonder how truly “free” that freedom of expression would be if the history of the Holocaust was put in question and was up for review! Now that would be the ultimate acid test, wouldn't it? No mainstream media organization would dare undertake such a task for fear of being labeled anti-Semitic and of finding itself faced with numerous legal challenges. To a lesser degree the same thing is true with homosexuals today. It is almost impossible to see any direct criticism of this group in the media regardless of how valid or how objective such an argument might be. Muslims may be forgiven for having a strong feeling that it is “open season” for the world (particularly the international media) to insult them. Although one must admit that this is not a new phenomenon and that it has indeed been going on for decades in Hollywood movies, TV shows and books, it must be recognized that the stereotyping has been magnified tremendously in recent years. As I write this article, I notice that there is no end in sight to the avalanche of insults. Even so-called holy men who preach the gospel are in on this despicable act. Just listening to “dirty old men” like Pat Robertson and Terry Jones is reason enough for your stomach to turn completely upside down as they curse and insult other religions while at the same time preaching love and peace. Something is wickedly wrong out there. Freedom of speech should be just that: Complete freedom not just a selected one!
