Cartoonist: We don't apologize for opinions

Toronto Star ^ | Feb. 3, 2006 | FRANCINE KOPUN

[libstripper]

You would think that after drafting an editorial cartoon that brought the wrath of Islam down on his head, a man would think twice about stepping back into the fray.

But Doug Marlette, a Pulitzer-prize winning cartoonist from North Carolina, says he admires the European newspapers that are defending their right to publish controversial cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.

"This is a war of two cultures, it's really a war, and it's really important that in the West we stand up for these hard-won freedoms and that we stand up to bullying and intimidation in the name of sensitivity," Marlette said. "No one is more intolerant than people demanding tolerance, that's been my experience."

[libstripper]

Our own MSM should be showing this kind of courage and posting the Mohamed cartoons wherever they can. Here's a link to Marlette's cartoon:

http://www.dougmarlette.com/

[GAB-1955]

Of course, we also must allow Tom Toles to publish his cartoons in the Washington Post, as distasteful as they can be. However, there are ways to tell the Post and Toles they are wrong without rioting and burning the Washington Post corporate flag.

[Wasanother]

This is one battle worth getting the popcorn out, propagandist MSM vs. Propagandist MuSliMs.

[voletti]

Wow. A lib cartoonist gets it? finally?

[horse_doc]

He gets it because his paycheck is at stake.

[Oldhunk]

What you may not know is that 95% of Marlette's cartoons bash Bush pretty hard. Many are tasteless.

[TomGuy]

Laugh alert:


Watching CNN report on the Euro cartoons. Wolfie said CNN was pixelizing the 'toon so as not to offend muslims by showing a likeness to Mohammed.

[Dark Skies]

"This is a war of two cultures, it's really a war, and it's really important that in the West we stand up for these hard-won freedoms and that we stand up to bullying and intimidation in the name of sensitivity," Marlette said. "No one is more intolerant than people demanding tolerance, that's been my experience."

Very well put.

This has been a strange week indeed. It's like the world is playing musical chairs and, with the uproar of these cartoons, the music has stopped. I am surprised to be sitting happily next to France, Germany, and even some liberals...while my President continues to speak of the nobility of islam and the U.S. State Dept sides with muslims and against freedom of speech.

[elpinta]

What a wooz, what an excuse for a jounalist, what a lame ^%&!!!
Oh, sorry, CNN; that xplain'it!

[fizziwig]

"Watching CNN report on the Euro cartoons. Wolfie said CNN was pixelizing the 'toon so as not to offend muslims by showing a likeness to Mohammed"
______________________________-

Our own media...such pitiful hypocrites. Of course we have all known that for some time but this is so glaringly obvious....how do they live with themselves?

[conservative physics]

this whole incident makes me want to go buy a koran and some pictures of mohammad and desecrate them in every possible way imaginable, take pictures of it all and post them on the net.

[libstripper]

We also aren't threatening to behead Toles.

[fizziwig]

Boy you hit the nail on the head DarK Skies....what a wild and weird week....libs and Freepers joining ranks against the Bush admin on the cartoon issue....who'd thunk it?

[libstripper]

This has been a strange week indeed. It's like the world is playing musical chairs and, with the uproar of these cartoons, the music has stopped. I am surprised to be sitting happily next to France, Germany, and even some liberals...while my President continues to speak of the nobility of islam and the U.S. State Dept sides with muslims and against freedom of speech.

Sort of like the world turned upside down.

[jwalburg]

Steyn knew.

[Dark Skies]

If Cindy Sheehan comes out as a defender of the cartoons...I am either gonna mix myself a strong cocktail or lay off the stuff altogether.

[libstripper]

Good idea. The graphic that might be a starting point is the one of the Virgin Mary spattered with elephant dung. If you're a good enough artist you could adapt that by putting Mohamed in her place and replacing the elephant dung with pig s**t.

[kjo]

It's not Cindy Sheehan I'm worried about. The reaction of the State Department is one of near total appeasement. Our State Dept., part of the executive branch, and the federal government of the US expressed support for the Islamic protesters.

NBC/ABC would not show the cartoons on their news programs yesterday because they wanted to be "sensitive". They don't have a sensitivity problem smashing Chrisitans with their programming.

[Dark Skies]

Brit Hume on Fox showed some of them last night...and he and Fred Barnes had a chuckle at the expense of muslims.

[Continental Soldier]

Today I watched CBS, NBC and ABC news coverage of the muslim riots over a cartoon published in a Danish newspaper sometime last September. Also in those MSM broadcasts was the recent outrage over the cartoon depicting a quadroplegic American soldier and Secretarey Donald Rumsfeld. In the first case, no cartoon was shown. In the second case, the offending cartoon was shown, even though no riots ensued. I am in a quandry. Why didn't they show the source of muslim outrage? Why didn't the show the offending cartoon? In fact, I have read four different news accounts of those muslim riots and not even one of those news sources saw fit to show me the offending cartoon. What the heck is going on? Have the MSM outlets effectively given up their freedom of speech? Are they so frightened of muslim homicidal madness that they have backed-off from fully reporting that story? It sure seems so. What is the lesson here? Maybe others who have agendas should threaten riot and rampage too. Maybe fear is the best censor to MSM offenses.