Big Mexican Dinner

Surely you all remember the controversy from a few years ago when those silly Danish newspapers first published 12 caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad. It created quite a huge maelstrom of rioting, protests, and other shenanigans by indignant Muslims around the world. I remember looking at the pictures and thinking that they were indeed offensive, but that they weren’t THAT bad, considering the kind of shit we put up with here in the United States. Basically, in America, if someone loves and reveres something, someone else is going to take a giant shit all over it…JUST BECAUSE THEY CAN. That’s one of the things that make America great.

Well, today I was reading an article in The New York Times discussing a book that the Yale University Press was publishing called, “The Cartoons That Shook the World.” According to the article, Yale University and Yale University Press decided to publish the book, but only after removing the 12 caricatures and other historical images of the prophet.

This quote from the article absolutely baffled me:

John Donatich, the director of Yale University Press, said by telephone that the decision was difficult, but the recommendation to withdraw the images, including the historical ones of Muhammad, was “overwhelming and unanimous.” The cartoons are freely available on the Internet and can be accurately described in words, Mr. Donatich said, so reprinting them could be interpreted easily as gratuitous.

He noted that he had been involved in publishing other controversial books — like “The King Never Smiles” by Paul M. Handley, a recent unauthorized biography of Thailand’s current monarch — and “I’ve never blinked.” But, he said, “when it came between that and blood on my hands, there was no question.”

Ladies and gentlemen, the thought of writing a book specifically about these images, and then not including them in the text baffles me. I mean, I cannot rant long and hard enough about how cowardly I think this is. I also can’t help but wonder if they would have any problem publishing disparaging images of any other religious entity. My guess is probably not, because while Christians have a tendency to whine and cry like bitches, they generally don’t go on worldwide rampages. The same is mostly true for all other religions. Now, I know there are exceptions, and other religions have their share of dickheads, but nothing on the widespread scale that we saw in 2005 when these images were first published.

For those of you who don’t remember, here are two of the most infamous of the images.

Yes, This IS Offensive

Now, I wonder how many people reading this would disagree with me and say that the Yale University Press was showing tolerance, restraint, cultural sensitivity, or some other form of “good judgment?” If anyone does disagree, I’d love to hear your thoughts. Then, I’d like to hear your thoughts on these images: Continue reading Yale University Press Pusses Out…