Separating Truth and Belief

The anti-caricature campaign started by attacking a newspaper. It then focussed on
Denmark as a defender of the freedom of the press, and now it has all of Europe
in its sights, which it accuses of having a double standard. The European Union
allows the Prophet to be denigrated with impunity, but it forbids and condemns
other ‘opinions’ like Nazism and denial of the Holocaust. Why are jokes about
Muhammad permitted, but not those about the genocide of the Jews? This was the
rallying call of fundamentalists before they initiated a competition for Auschwitz
cartoons. Fair’s fair: either everything should be allowed in the name of the freedom
of expression, or we should censor that which shocks both parties. Many people
who defend the right to caricature feel trapped. Will they publish drawings about
the gas chambers in the name of freedom of expression?

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