I haven't posted much about this whole cartoon thing because 1) I think the whole idea is fundamentally stupid and 2) the online community and press, including much more important people than I, has made this a prime cause. My contribution won't be missed.
I'd just like to say that this is the kind of thing that President Bush was talking about when he said that they "hate our freedoms." I've been trying to explain to people ever since that he wasn't just being rhetorical or repeating a ridiculous claim for political reasons, like everyone assumed. They really, really do.
There's even a genre of books that have been published on the idea, begun with something called 'Signposts Along the Way' or 'Milestones' (when translated to English) written by a guy named Sayyid Qutb. Sayyid was executed in the 60's by Abd al-Nasser in Egypt for anti-government Islamist ideas and actions with the Muslim Brotherhood, but his brother carried on his ideas and was one of Ayman al-Zawahiri's college teachers. The Wikipedia article I linked above is kind of sanitized and neutral (as I guess I reference has a right to be) but it doesn't say that he claimed that we Americans deserved death for how we lived. This one demonstrates some of his nuttiness. And here is a glowing biography of Qutb as a 'Great Muslim,' demonstrating that his life and ideas are still looked upon favorable in the Middle East and not just by terrorists but by Young Muslims and the Islamic Circle of North America, which describes itself as a "non-ethnic, non-sectarian, open to all, independent, North America Wide grassroot organization."
From 'Milestones:'
From Sword of Islam, a hardback that I own: "...jihad is solely geared to protect the religion of God and his Holy Law (Shar'ia) and to save the Abode of Islam (Dar al-Islam) and no other territory... Any land that combats the Faith, hampers Muslims from practicing their religion, or does not apply the Holy Law, becomes ipso facto part of the Abode of War. (Dar al-Harb)"
Following this classification and borrowing some ideas from Sayyid Mawdoudi, he describes how those lands that apply Shar'ia are legitimate and those that do not are illegitimate and deserving of destruction and replacement by something new and righteous. He also originated the use of the term Crusader (Salibi) and Land of the Crusaders (al-Salibiyah) to describe Westerners and the West. You might have heard those terms used by Al Qaeda. You should've. They say it all the time.
Allow me to point out that these writings predate American support for Israel. Qutb was executed in '66. American support for Israel didn't really manifest in any meaningful way until after the Six Day War which was, of course, in '67. Also, Israel's most virulent enemy, Abd al-Nasser, was bogeyman #2 (behind the West) on Qutb and co.'s hit list. A blow against apologists and revisionists that think the world revolves around Jerusalem.
In conclusion, the reactions to this cartoon thing (manufactured as it may be) shouldn't really surprise anyone who has studied Islamism and the Modern Middle East. Liberties, individualism, and tolerance are literally not respected there. Orthopraxy, community, and piety are. It doesn't take a genius...
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