There were other posts that I was working on for "The Charbor Chronicles" when I learned of the attacks at the Paris offices of Charlie Hebdo yesterday. I wrote a relatively brief entry basically giving some information to what was then still relatively breaking news, when details were still sketchy. More is known now, but today as yesterday, as a show of both respect for the victims as well as solidarity with their spirit of resistance to curtail freedom of speech, I will publish only this entry about the shooting today, and will not publish anything else on this day, either. They had been threatened before, and chose not to cower, despite knowing the possible risks. Indeed, they paid the ultimate price in yesterday's senseless tragedy, but the spirit and their strength should live on through the rest of us. Not is not the time for cowardice. May those who perished rest in peace.
It is difficult to know what to think or say at a time like this.
Not even fully a week has been completed in 2015, and already, there is a stupid tragedy with far too many casualties and huge ramifications to usher in the new year.
The French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo has long been known for biting humor and pushing the envelope, if you will. There were many Muslims who apparently felt that the magazine was probably poking a stick into a fire.
It was not the first time that Charlie Hebdo had gotten the attention of Islamists. This controversy was just the latest, as the journal made fun of the ISIS leader on the cover of the latest issue, which also had something on a recent book by Michel Houellebecq, Submission, in which the author imagined a France that became essentially an Islamic state and banned women from working. The editor-in-chief, Stephane Charbonnier, after another infamous controversy in 2012 when Charlie Hebdo published controversial cartoons of the Prophet, said that he would prefer dying than living like a rat. He would not be intimidated into silence, and refused to live in a country without freedom of speech.
Let me just say this, however: there is no excuse for what happened. None. Never has been, and never will be.
What these religious fanatics was nothing short of murder. They surely envision a world eventually dominated by Islam. That is a world vision that will never be realized. Period.
How could it? Who in their right mind would look at the events today and think to themselves, "Hey! I want to convert to Islam?"
It is the same kind of criminal activity that Christians and Jews and Muslims in history have committed throughout history. How could Christians in the New World truly believe that the natives would ever want to convert to Christianity when they populated and settled a not so new land by brutally suppressing the native population, religions, and way of life there? For that matter, how could they ever assume anyone would want to convert to their faith when those trying to force the issue committed horrendous atrocities? How could Jews consider themselves "The Chosen Ones" when they populated and settled a land that was already inhabited by brutally suppressing the native population, religions, and way of life there? How could Muslims taking over new lands from the African deserts all the way to India expect to be doing God's work by populating and settling lands already inhabited by brutally suppressing the native population, religions, and way of life there?
These men wanted to be able to cherry pick those parts of their holy books that they wanted to focus on and interpret in their own way, and conveniently forgot other parts that are very, very clear. What part of "Thou shalt not kill" did they not understand?
That really is a mystery to me.
For that matter, how could fundamentalist Christians today still believe that they are doing God's work, and are God's chosen, when they condemn anyone and everyone who is not exactly like them, and promise the fires of eternal hell to those who do not share their belief and world view? How could fundamentalist Christians justify protesting at the funerals of innocent little children shot in a senseless slaughter? How could Jews who believe that they are doing God's work, and are God's chosen, when they settle lands that belong to other people, and have established a brutal system that many have compared to a de facto apartheid? How can Muslims today still believe that they are doing God's work, and are God's chosen, when they fly hijacked planes into buildings, kidnap hundreds of school girls and force them to convert at gunpoint, or ruthlessly, barbarically enter an office building and murder 12 innocent people, simply because they did not agree with their world view?
These men want to be able to cherry pick those parts of their holy books that they want to focus on and interpret in their own way, and conveniently forget other parts that are very, very clear. What part of "Thou shalt not kill" do they not understand?
I want to say here that I am not opposed to organized religion, when it is taken in the correct way. There are plenty of peaceful believers of good faith that consider themselves Christians, Jews, and Muslims. It has been my privilege to get to know some from each religion, and to become friends with many. Some of the most decent people that I have known have been believers of these religions. I met some very decent Christians, some of the finest people that I have ever known. The same with Jews and Muslims.
Religions can be good, when they establish a strong moral framework for individuals, and perhaps even communities, to guide them. Undeniably, religion has helped people. I am thinking of Christian values that helped those in desperate need because of substance abuse, such as Alcoholics Anonymous. There are great individuals in the Christian faith that I actually have read some stuff on religion by, such as Archbishop Desmond Tutu and President Jimmy Carter for Christianity. There are Jews who survived the Holocaust and tried to relay a message of peace and enlightenment to the world from their experiences, such as Primo Levi and Elie Wiesel. There are inspirational Muslims who fight extremism in Islam, such as Muhammad Ali and Nobel Peace Prize winner Malala Yousafzai.
Too often, however, the face of religion is not nearly so peaceful. When narrow religious views are forwarded by unforgiving men with guns and mean tempers, that is not bringing out the best in humanity. Quite the opposite. That was true when the Conquistadors were officially trying to convert natives of the New World to their faith, while simultaneously stealing their gold and wealth. That was true when Muslims went to other lands and put to the sword anyone that would not convert. It was true when Jews emigrated and forcibly established the state of Israel in a land previously occupied by Palestinians. It is true now, when Muslim extremists cut heads off foreigners in Islamic nations, or commit atrocities like the shootings yesterday at Charlie Hebdo.
That is not showing what is best in religion, but what is worst.
The question, then, is will it work?
To that end, thousands of Parisians flocked to the streets of Paris to protest and show that the answer to that is a resounding no. They held up signs that read "Je suis Charlie" (I am Charlie) and showing that they were not afraid. I think that is the best response possible under the circumstances.
French President Francoise Hollande called these attacks "cowardly." They are that, indeed.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and British Prime Minister David Cameron both showed support for France, and Barack Obama issued a statement that, hopefully, will resonate with many Americans that still have hang ups about France. To his credit, he reminded people of the long-standing historical ties that the two countries have together:
"Our thoughts and prayers are with the victims of this terrorist attack and the people of France at this difficult time. France is America’s oldest ally, and has stood shoulder to shoulder with the United States in the fight against terrorists who threaten our shared security and the world. Time and again, the French people have stood up for the universal values that generations of our people have defended. France, and the great city of Paris where this outrageous attack took place, offer the world a timeless example that will endure well beyond the hateful vision of these killers. We are in touch with French officials and I have directed my Administration to provide any assistance needed to help bring these terrorists to justice."
One thing that I personally hope to see is universal and unequivocal condemnation of these attacks in the Islamic world. There have been some serious questions about the reaction to terror attacks by Islamic fundamentalists in predominately Muslim countries in the past. Far too often, the same people that are quick to condemn aggression by the state of Israel, or by the United States, are not so quick to condemn terror attacks by some extremists among their own people. That has led to obvious suspicions. What they need to show after this, and similar incidents, is universal and systematic condemnation of these acts, without any ambiguity whatsoever. Whatever Charlie Hebdo, or other publications, may express, that never gives justification for others to kill those who published things that some Muslims find offensive. There have been similar aggression in the past. Anytime anyone seems to criticize any aspect of Islam, their lives are suddenly in danger. It happened in the eighties, when Salman Rushdie was forced into hiding because of death threats following the publication of his book, The Satanic Verses. It was true some years ago when a Danish cartoonist published some images that some Muslims were outraged over. There have been other such episodes as well, and they need to be stopped. Period.
If their God is so great and all-powerful, then let justice fall at His hands. It is not for man, for the flawed followers, to take it upon themselves to break perhaps the most basic and sacred commandment and commit horrendous acts. They have no right, period.
Also, it is cowardly not only because they fired guns to kill people that were not themselves armed, but also because they did not have the strength in their own religious convictions to withstand even the slightest criticism from those who do not share their faith. In too many Muslim countries, those within the faith are treated harshly. Women in some Islamic countries are not allowed to do much of anything, and a de facto sexual apartheid exists. Some of those countries have public executions, including some by stoning. A solid and objective education is not encouraged, and education for girls at all is too often militantly discouraged. I know that I personally have been critical of some of the injustices and xenophobic attitudes that I find in the United States or in France, as a citizen of both countries, and in other western countries more generally. But we in such countries should all be thankful that, for whatever the flaws that exist in these countries (and again, there certainly are some), that we do not allow such a level of repression.
Let the Islamic world condemn such attacks, now and in the future, as baseless and unjustifiable, without condition. If progress is to be made there, then the signs need to become more visible.
The task now will be to capture the men responsible. Three were involved, and one has already been caught. Now, for the other two. If they resist, and are killed in the process, so be it. They need to be caught, before they can commit such monstrous acts again, surely in the name of their God.
To me, any God that is used to justify such awful acts is not a God worth thinking about or giving the time of day to, let alone worshiping.
The one thing that I can be sure to feel is this: remorse for those who are gone. None of this makes any sense at all, but it seemed right to take this time to express sadness at this senseless tragedy. May those responsible be caught and brought to justice, and may those lost in yesterday's attack rest in peace.
Oh, and one other thing. I stand in solidarity with the opinion of those lost in the stupid attacks yesterday. We should not curb freedom of speech because some cannot handle it. We will not be afraid, or allow such cowardly and, yes, evil attacks to win out and force us to live in fear. I am not afraid. Je suis Charlie.
Youngest Suspect in Charlie Hebdo Attack Turns Himself In by ABC News, January 7, 2015:
https://gma.yahoo.com/12-dead-terrorist-attack-paris-satirical-newspaper-162351662--abc-news-topstories.html
How the Paris Attack on Charlie Hebdo Unfolded by Mechan Keneally, January 7, 2015:
https://gma.yahoo.com/paris-attack-charlie-hebdo-unfolded-210140968--abc-news-topstories.html
Charlie Hebdo Editor in 2012: 'I Prefer to Die Than Live Like a Rat' by ABC News, January 7, 2015:
https://gma.yahoo.com/charlie-hebdo-editor-2012-prefer-die-live-rat-215937917--abc-news-topstories.html
Thousands of Demonstrators 'Not Afraid' After Charlie Hebdo Massacre by ABC News, January 7, 2015:
https://gma.yahoo.com/thousands-demonstrators-not-afraid-charlie-hebdo-massacre-215937525--abc-news-topstories.html
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