"Th-th-that's All, Folks!" (Not)

Is this violence about cartoons or is it about rage? Claudia says the latter. I couldn’t agree more.

“Rage over cartoons” has been the gist of many a headline over the past week describing the violence with which masked gunmen and arsonist mobs in Islamic world have been protesting the publication in Denmark five months ago of political cartoons caricaturing Mohammed.

Rage, yes. But let’s please get over the idea that this latest violence has anything much to do with the cartoons.

Meanwhile, flummoxed politicians, Bush and Jordan’s Abdullah are condemning the cartoons and condemning the violent reaction. I condemn the cartoons aesthetically. Can you imagine the reaction to someone good – like a Daumier or a Goya? [Anti-Semitic cartoonists already pirated Goya.-ed. Right. I forgot.]