Venting On The Cartoon Riots

Charles Krauthammer had a column in the Washington Post today that captured a lot of my own disgust (see this) with the "cartoon riots" in the Muslim world and my frustration with the reactions of the American press: "Curse Of The Moderates." Reading the column was like vicarious venting. I kept wanting to say "Yes!" and "Right on!" For me at least, the column was something of a primal scream against the insanity and against the debilitating fear that such events instill. You really should read the whole things, but here's a sample:

First, Krauthammer points out the duplicitousness of both the outrage in the streets and the rhetoric of the apologists:

Have any of these "moderates" ever protested the grotesque caricatures of Christians and, most especially, Jews that are broadcast throughout the Middle East on a daily basis? The sermons on Palestinian TV that refer to Jews as the sons of pigs and monkeys?

If you doubt the virulence of the Arabic press in this regard, take a tour of Palestinian Media Watch, and, of particular relevance, glance at these "cartoons" from the Palestinian Press. Then, ask yourself where the outrage over some comparatively playful jibes at Muslims comes from.

The real point of the column, though, is this:

The mob has turned this into a test case for freedom of speech in the West. The German, French and Italian newspapers that republished these cartoons did so not to inform but to defy -- to declare that they will not be intimidated by the mob.

What is at issue is fear. The unspoken reason many newspapers do not want to republish is not sensitivity but simple fear. They know what happened to Theo van Gogh, who made a film about the Islamic treatment of women and got a knife through the chest with an Islamist manifesto attached.

The worldwide riots and burnings are instruments of intimidation, reminders of van Gogh's fate.

It's so true. But, like most venting, it may well feel good but it ain't very productive. How are we to battle against the fear? Republish the cartoons (or redo whatever offends these nut cases)? Would that have any beneficial effect either in abating our fear or in mollifying the goof balls? No. It is like raging against the wind.

The best option, of course, would be to ignore them. That's hard to do, obviously, when they are burning down embassies. But, we should try. The less attention the world pays to this type of stuff, the less of it there will be.