It's not a question of climbing on a high horse. It is a question of noting how easily these people can be manipulated. Any nobody can threaten to burn the Koran, and whip these guys into a killing frenzy. A simple cartoon causes widespread destruction in their *own* society.
Well there are a couple of obvious issues with that line of reasoning.
Firstly, why on earth would anyone feel like the absolutely need to burn copies of the Koran or make cartoons about Mohammed? These are not innocent acts, they are deliberate choices people make, and there is absolutely no good reason for anyone to do either of those things.
The only justification anyone has thus far presented to defend these blatantly offensive acts is 'I want to do it because I can', and that is a pathetically selfish and moronically irresponsible reason as far as I am concerned, and it seems to be the exact same kind of perverted illogic that drive sadistic youths to thrown large stones onto cars from bridges.
It is both ironic and incredible sad that writers and journalists would often boast that the pen is mightier than the sword, yet be completely immune to the very real and tragic consequences that their words cause in the world world. The written word is a tool as powerful and deadly as any machinery or weapon if abused by those with the right gifts and skills and can do just as much harm. Why on earth are we not making people who use and abuse this powerful tool, often openly as an offensive weapon, as liable for the consequences of their actions as any other misused tool? The fact that the written word is abstract and intangible should be no limitation, computer viruses and complex financial crimes are also abstract and intangible and no society seem to have any qualms about punishing people who abuse those.
As you have pointed out, it is no mystery how the Muslim world would react to such acts of provocation, and the cause and effect chain should be as plain and obvious as someone pushing a large heavy object off of a tall building over a public street.
If someone pushed a large heavy object like a safe or grand piano off of a tall building over a crowded street and killed someone, there would be no question about his liability if that heavy object killed someone. As far as I am concerned, it should take no more intelligence to predict that making such an openly and intentionally offensive film about Islam would cause widespread violence and destruction and likely loss of life. Whoever made that film knew full well the likely consequences of making that film and went on regardless, and as such, I think in any logical world, he should share equally in the responsibility of the consequences.
The other problem with your original statement is the implied judgement that no other society would revert to such extremely violent protests over an insult.
As I have already pointed out in my last post, there are plenty of issues that will drive normally rational and reasonable people to violence all over the world.
Anyone suggesting the Japanese occupation of Korea and China was a good thing could expect to be publicly lynched if he was in China or Korea; merely denying that the Holocaust took place is a criminal offence in the western world, so one does not need much imagination to deduce what would almost certainly happen to anyone who made a film mocking the victims of the Holocaust and praising Hitler - there would be massed outrage, probably protests and demonstrations, widespread and unequivocal condemnation by the western world, all of the entire world's law enforcement agencies would spare no effort to find whoever made such a film and bring him to justice and no country would dream of offering him sanctuary on the grounds of free speech.
Contrast that to the western world's reaction to the Islam mocking film and it should be pretty obvious why one people might react more forcefully than the other to such a grave offence - for the western public, much of their anger and frustration would be tempered by the knowledge that everyone is united in denouncing the offender and that the world order is tasked with tracking him down and bringing him to justice. OTOH, for the Muslim world, much of the western media's reporting of the film have been studiously neutral with a distinct lack of condemnation for what the makers of the film did. How do you think your average Muslim is supposed to interpret that? In addition, have there even been a hint that any authorities are looking into the matter or that the people who made the film will be censored in any way, shape or form for what they have done?
It's easier to say, 'don't do anything rash, and let the proper authorities deal with it' when the proper authorities are taking the matter seriously and looking in it and pretty damn hard to do the same when the proper authorities don't seem to give the slightest crap about it.
Look back at all the demonstrations that have turned violent in the past in western countries and societies and what is the most common share factor? The perception that the authorities are not taking the issue seriously enough and that the perpetrators might escape justice. The LA riots, various G20 protests, the recent London riots and many more.
I dare say there would be a great deal less anti-American and anti-western violence if western leaders and media had offered up the kind of condemnation as you would normally expect for something so despicable and deliverable offensive, and if such an offensive film had been made mocking something that would offend the western world, like the Holocaust.
In my view, the demonstrations are as much about the nonchalance the west is showing to this as much as the fact that the film was made in America.
that aside from attacking some foreign embassies, all the destruction wreaked by these mobs is upon their own people.
When the mob take over, all sense of logic is lost, that is why governments across the world are so scared by the prospect of demonstrations turning violent and do all they can to stop that from happening. The fact that a mob become a raging, uncontrollable rampaging monster like the hulk doesn't mean much, a mob will do that no matter what nationality, race or religion it's participants are.
