This is disgusting and abhorrent in every sense of the word. Hopefully those responsible will be brought to justice and this tragic episode doesn't become the rallying call for Islamophobic, far-right bigots that it unfortunately has all the potential to become, given the circumstances and the media narrative thus far. The last thing we need in a situation like this is the further sowing of hard feelings and hatreds between those who have more in common than they might otherwise think at the moment.
Agreed.
There's a difference between defending the freedom of speech and acting irresponsibly/indecently as an organ of the press. No one in this thread is calling for the government to block the publication of the cartoon in question but I hope that we'd all agree that it would be irresponsible, indecent and disrespectful to festoon the carton beneath the banner of the New York Times or the Guardian or Le Monde. I, for one, would like to think that that the virtues of the freedom of the press do not reside in its protection of clownish/petulant behavior.
