Another day's developments

The 12 drawings story continue. By now it is more than just a story. It is an international event that might change history.

Today two main events played themselves out. First of all, sympathy actions in many European countries have led to the 12 cartoons having been published in other countries (see brief below).
On the other hand the appeasement movement of mostly socialist intellectuals have in Denmark started their damage control. Unfortunately supported by a scared Danish Government.
Thus we have seen official pleadings to the Danish population to please not to do anything that might escalate the crisis. Danish lives, jobs and economy are at stake. Even the Danish Internal Secret Service (PET, police intelligence service) has entered politically, by asking people not to join demonstrations and thus be considered right wing radicals. On TV this warning (thinly disguised threat) was accompanied with some of the few hundred stupid Nazis living Denmark marching along with their flags.

The newspaper that started the whole thing, Jyllandsposten, has been cowed into apologizing. The chief editor now declares they lost. Danish free expression is not as free as it used to be. He believes no Danish newspaper in the coming years would dare to publish anything even nearly in the same line.

I noticed Danish news today being very careful not to be even slightly critical in their journalism, but to concentrate on appeasement messages or just reporting the news. A completely ridiculous proposal to build a great mosque for the Danish Muslims has been given excessive coverage. Of course Danish TV and Radio has always been largely controlled by left wing journalists.

Extreme left wing and/or pacifist Muslim supporters have been given airtime resulting in political correct messages of the art:

• Muslims being called the other modern people.
• Demanding Danish subjugation to Muslim traditions as Denmark is now a dynamic multicultural society.
• I don't think the lack of tolerance in the Middle east is as widespread as most people think
• Freedom of expression does not give you the right to hurt other peoples feelings (*)
  

But I would say things still look good in so far as a majority of Danes are really upset and in no manner at all wish to apologize to the Muslims. Appeasement is not popular politics at the moment - it is like a red flag in front of the bull to start giving presents in the form of a Mosque. Therefore the government and the press will soon come to the senses and give moderate and right wing spokespersons their say. If enough international support is given, I believe Denmark again will gain the force to stand strong.

Look at these fine articles. Here is one from Spiegel, the German magazine, that sums up the situation nicely. Another one here is from the blog, The Brussel Journal. Many blogs and news organs are presenting the right picture and will not let the appeasers and apoligists win the day.

Also the common Muslim tactics of saying one thing while corresponding with non Arabic speakers and then saying something complete different when speaking Arabic, now backfires. In Denmark the moderate Muslims are as upset as most Danes. They do not wish to be compared to fanatics or to loose their democratic rights. Thus translators abound. The main Inman of Denmark was caught telling the Arab News that please do continue the boycotts after having said on Danish TV, that he would now help to normalize the situation. Of course he was part of the group of Arabs living in Denmark, hosted I would say, who traveled around the Arab world agitating for protests after the drawings were originally printed in September. Also I am sure the nice scenes of flag burning and other much worse threats will continue. Now we just wait for the first true violence. All this will not help the Muslim cause.

Let us not forget that this is an extremely important matter. We must never let our free expression be controlled by intolerant regimes run and populated by bigots taken out of the middle ages. Freedom is at stake!

(*) How on Earth is it possible to express anything meaningful without hurting somebody's feelings?