Some idiots in Syria have set fire to the Norwegian and Danish embassies. This is, of course, the sensible, civilized way to respond to cartoons offensive to Muslims. It shows that Muslims are calm, wise, people who, in the face of 'provocations' (and those 'provocations', by the bye, were at the end of September) respond with clarity but without resorting to violence.
In the West, the image of Muslims is increasingly of people who resort to violence at people who have not provoked their rage, while impotently snarling at those who have.
Train passengers in Madrid, bus and train passengers in London, office workers in New York, have all felt the power of the 'weapons of the weak'.
That the victims had nothing to do with the existence of the state of Israel, the American presence in the Middle East, or, for that, matter with anything to do with Islam, has nothing to do with it. That the victims included Muslims seems even less relevant. The gap between Muslims and the West widens, and while Muslims have undoubtedly been provoked, their response is beyond disproportionate.
Civilisation requires compromise, it requires tolerance. Freedom means that we will get offended -- I for one am offended by racists, sexists, and religious fanatics -- but we don't have a right not to be offended by people we believe to be wrong. We do have a right to respond; but speech needs to be answered with speech, not violence. The argumentum ad baculum, ultimately, is a sign that the offended person really doesn't have an answer. That's as true of Christians as it is of Muslims. And it can be as true of Hindus. Religion often blinds believers to the humanity of those who do not share their beliefs.
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