Washington Post Writers Group
From The American Muslim, by Sheila Musaji
This past Sunday’s Berkeley Breathed “Opus” Cartoon was not run in The Washington Post and several other newspapers around the country.
Coming just a few weeks after an “Opus” cartoon strip poking fun at Jerry Falwell was printed, many are seeing this as a sign that there is a double standard and poking fun at Muslims is treated differently than poking fun at Christians for example.
Making fun of Islam (or any religion) is offensive, making fun of Muslims, there is no problem, and there are plenty of Muslim comedians and comic strip artists who do just that all the time. This cartoon is funny, and most Muslims would also laugh. We might not agree with everything it insinuates, but so what!
This is a non-incident, non-issue, but I am certain that over the next few days it will take on a life of its own and Muslims will be blamed for getting the strip pulled.
I’m aware that I occasionally offend religionists – especially if their credo is linked to populist anti-intellectualism, opposing science and progress.
The stereotypical American Liberal can be as useless as a Falwell. Spineless, timorous, their “political correctness” is no less absurd than the several Conservative flavors – and just as frustrating to dialogue and understanding.
