The cartoons insulted everyone of Muslim faith, good and bad alike. This is at the time we need cooperation from the moderate muslims, both immigrants to the West and at their homelands. That is the stupid.
Free speech is about exchange of ideas, not insults. If you want to debate the Muslims, or evict them from your country, -- go right ahead, I am with you. Juvenile insults are not free speech, they are antithesis of free speech. Only a complete idiot would not have predicted that riots would ensue. Are riots speech?
Civilization means respect for any religion. The West in particular used to value religious tolerance. Blasphemy is contrary to the ideals of the Western Civilization. With this, secularist yahoos prevailed. Next time they will prevail against the Christians. Soon there will not be much left in Europe to defend against Islam.
Next time?
Oh, BS. They weren't "juvenile insults", they were political cartoons, which have always been a part of free speech. The Danish cartoonists' points weren't to mock Mohammed, they were to point out that their religion is being corrupted into a death cult by fanatics. The riots only proved that point.