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What if the cartoons were mocking Jesus? (LAUGH AND BARF ALERT)
Chicago Sun-Times ^ | February 19, 2006 | MARK BROWN SUN-TIMES COLUMNIST

Posted on 02/19/2006 7:18:04 AM PST by Chi-townChief

Opinions Are Like Belly Buttons (everybody has one) -- aka: Brown Picks Lint from His Navel.

********

Odds are that you would not be offended by seeing a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad wearing a turban shaped like a bomb, seeing as how Muslims are a scant minority of this newspaper's readers.

But how would you feel about it if we ran a cartoon depicting Jesus Christ in a priest's garb sodomizing a choirboy to illustrate the sexual abuse scandal in the Roman Catholic Church?

I'll bet some of you would have a slightly different reaction to that.

Or what if that same cartoon depicted the choirboy as African-American, in light of the alleged abuse at St. Agatha's in North Lawndale?

Just reading the description probably causes the hair to stand up on the back of some of your necks, as I well appreciate.

Words can be powerful tools, pictures even more so. I considered substituting a milder description than sodomizing, just to tone it down. Self-censorship, you see.

But what if I took it even further, what if the cartoon's caption somehow incorporated Jesus using the "N" word? Or just to clarify that the point I'm trying to make is not based on race, let's make the choirboy a white girl and the caption with Jesus using the "C" word.

That's entirely different than the Muhammad cartoons, you may say.

The Muhammad cartoons are nowhere near as offensive as what I'm describing, you think.

Well, apparently they are to Muslims.

It's great to hear all the support that's being voiced around the country right now for the First Amendment in light of the Muhammad cartoon controversy -- all of it coming from people egging us on to print the cartoons.

Yes, we have the right to print the Danish newspaper's cartoons, just as we would have the right to print a cartoon such as the offensive ones I have imagined.

Having the freedom to print what we want carries some responsibility to consider how it will affect those on the receiving end, which is a balancing act we face every day.

Pushing people's buttons

I'll bet my imaginary Jesus Christ cartoon could get a few protesters outside the Sun-Times, and if we told the protesters to buzz off, citing freedom of the press, I'll bet we could get some death threats, too. Rioting in the streets? Probably not. Unless we kept it up.

Maybe you think I'm missing the point. The real issue, you think, is the violent rioting in the Muslim world and that Muslims need to understand that they can't kill people because they don't like what's in the newspaper.

How exactly does publishing the cartoons here serve that end? Or do you just feel the need to prove that we're not afraid of any Muslim protesters?

One thing I've learned since I started writing this column is how easy it is to push people's buttons, and I'm not even the most skilled in-house practitioner of the art.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Editorial; Foreign Affairs; Government; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events; Political Humor/Cartoons; US: Illinois
KEYWORDS: cartoon; cartoonjihad; cartoons; idiot; muslims; wot
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To: Bon mots

I didn't see #6 behind the bars in the foreground.

The Koraniacs are a bunch of sissies. They and Europe deserve each other.


61 posted on 02/19/2006 10:27:37 AM PST by DoNotDivide (Romans 12:21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.)
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To: Chi-townChief

http://www.zipperfish.net/free/yaafm12.php


62 posted on 02/19/2006 10:28:22 AM PST by Eagle Eye (There ought to be a law against excess legislation.)
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To: Krankor

Something tells me Mark Brown *is* a receiver. ;)


63 posted on 02/19/2006 10:29:00 AM PST by DoNotDivide (Romans 12:21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.)
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To: Chi-townChief

He lost me with his "Prophet Mohammed" stuff.


64 posted on 02/19/2006 10:31:02 AM PST by Luke21
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To: Salman

"Oddly enough, there might be violent protests from Muslims over mockery of Jesus."

Yeah, the mohammedans took to the streets when their 'revered' 'prophet' Jesus's followers were blown to bits, beheaded and pillaged non-stop on nearly every continent the last few decades and centuries. /sarc


65 posted on 02/19/2006 10:32:24 AM PST by DoNotDivide (Romans 12:21 Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.)
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To: Chi-townChief
Secondly, these anti-Christian tests that Brown is proposing have already taken place and we know the results: in the case of 'Piss Christ' and dung covered Mary, most anger was non-violently directed at the federal government for financing such literal waste. And, more recently, supposed pop singer Kanye West posing as the crucified Christ on a Rolling Stone cover was greeted by Christians with a collective shrug and the thought that, even with all his money, Kanye is still a loser. Can you imagine an effigey of Mubombedd immerrsed in piss? The resultign riots would be Romper Room compared to the cartoon reactions. We have to hit back hard in the escalating culture wsr!

A liberal friend almost stated uncategorically that she would have Muslims knocking dowm her door, rather than the US continue to fight this "phony war on terror.

Unfricken believable. She's Jewish too...

66 posted on 02/19/2006 10:44:12 AM PST by 101st-Eagle (God http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/12/28/healthscience/sneinstein.php)
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To: Andy from Beaverton

The Lord even forgave those who killed Him.

"Forgive them Father, for they know not what they do."


67 posted on 02/19/2006 11:11:49 AM PST by Search4Truth ("Rebellion to tyrants, is obedience to God"-Thomas Jefferson.)
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To: seastay
If something is true then it can within the test of criticism, while a false prophecy cannot, therefore one needs to question the motive to silence the criticism of Islam, as if what are they afraid the world or themselves will find out?

And do you ever notice the MSM always uses the term "the prohet Muhammed" but never the "Lord Jesus Christ?"

68 posted on 02/19/2006 11:26:57 AM PST by 101st-Eagle (God http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/12/28/healthscience/sneinstein.php)
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To: Eagle Eye

That was too - too FUNNY !!!!!!


69 posted on 02/19/2006 12:04:56 PM PST by LM_Guy
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To: Noachian
Why doesn't Brown put his ideas where his mouth is and publish some obscene cartoons about Jesus -- find out what happens?

Lets not encourage him.

He might wind up getting federal funding to do so.

70 posted on 02/19/2006 2:57:07 PM PST by Sonny M ("oderint dum metuant")
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To: Chi-townChief

Well .. Jesus was beat up, spit on, vilified, kicked, nailed to a cross.

Hmmmm?? I don't recall anybody taking to the streets to protest and killing people and burning down churches and businesses.

And .. I agree with you .. you cannot equate the SON OF GOD with the "prophet" Mohammed.


71 posted on 02/19/2006 2:59:52 PM PST by CyberAnt (Democrat Leadership = No program - no ideas - no clue.)
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To: Chi-townChief

This is a good time to note something I've wanted to point out. It's probably not gone unnoticed here, but I've yet to hear it mentioned in the old media.

It's funny how these riots start on friday and become murderous and violent, but then they tail off all week and blaze up again the following friday. Obviously it is the moolas and ima'ams in certain mosques that are inflaming their sheeple.

We should shut down any mosque that preaches hatred, and turn it into a McDonalds.


72 posted on 02/19/2006 3:08:01 PM PST by Flavius Josephus (Enemy Idealogies: Pacifism, Liberalism, and Feminism, Islamic Supremacism)
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To: 101st-Eagle

Observation:

The name of Jesus is used on the web, more than twice as much as Muhammad. The cases when Jesus is referred to as lord or Lord Jesus Christ is about 11% of the time. While Muhammad is refereed to as "prophet Muhammad" about 16% of the time. Not much different for the added title for either in common usage on the web which pretty much reflects equal respect for both religions in western culture.

However compare washingtonpost.com, Associated Press Reuters combined for the last 60 days; Jesus and Muhammad appear in about the same number of articles, which is understandable with Christian and the cartoon controversy as news stories, yet consider that Jesus has been referred to as lord or Lord Jesus Christ only 1% of the time, while Muhammad is refereed to as "prophet Mohammed" 69 % of the of the time.

If the press reporting isn't blatantly anti Christian, then what is? And why are the cartoon Nazis protesting when their prophet is not only respected in Western media , but the media is going out of their way to trivialize Christan's while paying great tribute to a prophet who has yet to prove he really is a prophet which literally means somebody who brings the news of well being to mankind?


google results :
41,500,000 for "Muhammad"
6,980,000 for "Prophet Muhammad"


109,000,000 for Jesus
5,210,000 for "Lord Jesus Christ"
7,150,000 for "Lord Jesus"



washingtonpost.com Associated Press Reuters combined for the last 60 days

"Muhammad" returned 299 results.
"Prophet Muhammad" returned 206 results.

Jesus returned 233 results.
"Lord Jesus" returned 2 results.
"Lord Jesus Christ" returned 1 results.


73 posted on 02/19/2006 3:12:27 PM PST by seastay
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To: freeangel
Good analysis. msm outlets all over the country are rationalizing to themselves why, since the cartoons ARE the news that are "causing" riots and deaths, they are not printing this news.

Controversy, Crap & Confusion -- Alan Simpson

74 posted on 02/19/2006 3:33:38 PM PST by Flavius Josephus (LSM: Controversy, Crap, & Confusion)
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To: Chi-townChief
We know what Christ went through for our sins. Heck, Mel Gibson did a very good job portraying it in the Passion.

Does this Yahoo actually think that Christians would go up nuclear if he drew what he describes? If it was plastered all over the front page of the NYT? If a college of all of what he describes was plastered on the Washington Post?

He just does not get it. He just does not get Christians.

Cest la vie.
75 posted on 02/19/2006 7:24:02 PM PST by Truth Table
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