OVO

el estratografico: retronomatopeya [LINK-ZUM]

Trevor Blake: Muslim Priorities [LINK-ZUM]

One great equalizer among all humanity is our mortality. All of us have limited time on this Earth. If something is going wrong, we need to step up and protest it. Let's take a look at the protest priorities of the Muslim world...

Protest! "Shueisha Inc, a Japanese publisher involved in the production of the cartoon 'JoJo's Bizarre Adventure' and its animation version, suspended sales of some of the original comics and the DVD series Thursday, but said the material was not intended to be offensive. At issue is a 90-second segment from 'JoJo's Bizarre Adventure,' which depicts Dio Brando, a villain, picking up a Quran from a bookshelf and apparently examining it as he orders the execution of the hero and his friends." [Apparently the Quran doesn't contain any directives to kill people].

No Protest! "This woman's breast was cut off by the soldiers as a reminder to her and her small child of what lies ahead for those who refuse to convert to the Muslim faith."

Protest! "Police in Halifax are investigating a complaint about a political cartoon that some members of a local Islamic group claim is a hate crime."

No Protest! "Women were sometimes executed for the vague charge of doing something 'un-Islamic.'"

Protest! "A Pakistani Taliban leader has warned local tribesmen to grow beards within the next two months in accordance with Islamic teachings or face harsh punishment, residents said Monday."

No Protest! "Muslim villagers in Mymensingh district eager to rid the area of the Christian work of a local pastor have gang-raped his 13-year-old daughter, the girl's father said."

... for what it's worth, my priorities seem to be at odds with the Religion of Peace. On the one hand I do not kill or rape or mutilate women. On the other I enjoy comic books and keep clean-shaven. What are your priorities?

Labels: comics, islam

Trevor Blake: Fitna and the United Nations [LINK-ZUM]

From Wikipedia: "Fitna is a film by Dutch politician Geert Wilders, leader of the Party for Freedom (PVV) in the Dutch parliament. The movie offers his views on Islam and the Qur'an." The film is available online from Wikileaks, Google Video, and via bittorrent.

Jorge Sampaio is the UN High Representative for the Alliance of Civilizations. Mr. Sampiao issues a call for respect and calm:

The recent release of an insulting film on the Holy Qur'an seems to serve no other purpose than to cause offence. The film may provoke and prompt social unrest, and encourage extremist groups within European societies whose agenda is to discriminate against and marginalize Muslim immigrants. Similarly, this offensive film may add to tensions between different cultures and may give rise to the idea that Europe or the West as a whole are hostile to Islam. So let us always remember that misrepresentation fuels extremism and extremism appears to validate misrepresentation. That is the vicious circle we have to firmly oppose and avoid. We will all be the losers if we fail to immediately defuse this potential crisis, which will only serve to entrench already polarized opinions and to feed stereotypes and misconceptions that deepen patterns of hostility and mistrust among peoples and societies.

At the core of this situation is a trend towards extremism in many of our societies. We should indeed beware of overemphasizing it, because extremism anywhere is extremism everywhere, thanks to new media technologies. Few people think of themselves as extremists, but many can be pushed towards an extreme point of view, almost without noticing it, when they feel that the behavior or language of others is extreme. We therefore deeply regret this offensive film.

Mr. Sampaio's statement continues and may be read in full here. Fitna presents the words of the Qur'an as text, then shows Muslims and Muslim leaders reading that text and explaining what it means, then shows Muslims and Muslim leaders acting on that explanation. If the words, explanation and acts are murderous, it is not the fault of a film that reports such murders that is to blame.

The tension between different cultures presented in the film are as follows. In the West there is a pluralism in which filmmakers can make films and cartoonists can make cartoons without the threat of State-sanctioned death; a pluralism in which homosexuals can be homosexuals without the threat of State-sanctioned death; a pluralism in which women can be women without the threat of genitals mutilation. In the Muslim world, there is a monoculture in which filmmakers and cartoonists and authors and people in buildings and people on buses and people on trains and people just about anywhere can be put to death; a monoculture in which homosexuals can be put to death; a monoculture in which women can have their genitals mutilated. The pluralism of the West tries to include the monoculture of the Muslim world, tries to greet as friends those who are murdering them. The Muslim world contains no such contradiction. Mr. Sampaio uses ideas of culture, race and religion interchangeably. To condemn Islam is to be racist, he seems to say. It is not the case that culture, race and religion are so interchangeable, and to make that claim is deceptive.

This film may cause offense. The ten thousand men, women and children killed by Muslims since 11 September 2001 causes me more offense. How can it be that murder is a matter of culture while art is a criminal offense? The pluralism of the West has been perverted into cultural relativism.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has made the following statement about Fitna:

I condemn, in the strongest terms, the airing of Geert Wilders' offensively anti-Islamic film. There is no justification for hate speech or incitement to violence. The right of free expression is not at stake here. I acknowledge the efforts of the Government of the Netherlands to stop the broadcast of this film, and appeal for calm to those understandably offended by it. Freedom must always be accompanied by social responsibility.

The United Nations is the centre of the world's efforts to advance mutual respect, understanding and dialogue. We must also recognize that the real fault line is not between Muslim and Western societies, as some would have us believe, but between small minorities of extremists on different sides with a vested interest in stirring hostility and conflict.

This reads to me like nothing so much as a man encouraging his neighbors to continue paying 'protection money' to the gang that controls his neighborhood. The plain words of the Qur'an, the recorded speeches of Muslims and Muslim leaders, the video of Muslims using a hand knife to saw off the head of kidnap victims... somehow these are worthy of mutual respect, understanding and dialogue. It is a film that accurately portrays these that is hateful, not the acts themselves. It is a film that is to blame for inciting violence, not what the film portrays. This film should be banned by law, but somehow that is not a violation of the right of free expression. And once again we are offered the claim that the pluralism of the West is to be found in the Muslim world if the West will only keep quiet about the Muslim world's vested interest in stirring hostility and conflict. Once again we are told that the extremists are to found on both sides. But from where I'm sitting one side made films and cartoons and books, the other side kills people.

I am disappointed by these two statements by United Nations representatives regarding the film Fitna and regarding Islam.

Labels: art, books, comics, film, islam, theocracy, video

Trevor Blake: Art Exhibit April 2008 Portland OR [LINK-ZUM]

April 2008
Coffee Plant
724 SW Washington

Labels: art, comics, portland, trevorblake

Trevor Blake: The Easter Challenge [LINK-ZUM]

Full-size images here [1][2][3][4]. Script by Trevor Blake, layout and design by Dan Howland. From OVO 16 AntiChrist. All thanks to Dan Barker for his inspirational essay Leave No Stone Unturned: An Easter Challenge for Christians. An unspoken regional joke in this comic is that the host is a little cracker. This four-page comic is entered into the public domain. Happy Easter!

Labels: christianity, comics

Rukmini Callamachi: Defame Islam, get sued? [LINK-ZUM]

The Muslim world has created a battle plan to defend its religion from political cartoonists and bigots. Concerned about what they see as a rise in the defamation of Islam, leaders of the world's Muslim nations are considering taking legal action against those that slight their religion or its sacred symbols. It was a key issue during a two-day summit that ended Friday in [Dakar, Senegal]. The Muslim leaders are attempting to demand redress from nations like Denmark, which allowed the publication of cartoons portraying the Prophet Muhammad in 2006 and again last month, to the fury of the Muslim world.

[Article continues at link. It is tempting to chide the leaders of the world's Muslim nations for their skewed priorities. Rather than express concern and make plans of action to prevent further murders in the name of Allah, they express concern and make plans of action to prevent further political cartoons. It is tempting to note the contradiction of these leaders seeking to limit other's ability to criticise them while maintaining their ability to criticise others. Or to point out the shameful contradiction found in some Muslims citing the Universal Declaration of Human Rights as a reason to ban art while not citing the same as a reason to stop killing people. But the more important comment to be made is that this is a step toward the secularization of Islam, and this is a step that I support. Their religion states quite clearly that they are compelled to kill those who blaspheme. This is what the Muslim world has always done, and what it does in many quarters even today. These leaders, as confused as their priorities are, have made a step towards the rule of secular law rather than theocracy. They have made a step toward resolving conflicts by debate and money rather than murder. Where Muslims submit to the secular, I greet them as a friend. - Trevor Blake]

Labels: comics, islam, theocracy

Trevor Blake: Sensitivity, Responsibility and Respect [LINK-ZUM]

Reuters reports: "U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon reaffirmed his predecessor's line on cartoons of the Prophet Mohammad on Wednesday, saying free speech should respect religious sensitivities. 'The Secretary-General strongly believes that freedom of expression should be exercised responsibly and in a way that respects all religious beliefs,' his spokeswoman Marie Okabe told reporters."

In my world, publishing comics as a form of criticism against Islam is more sensitive, responsible and respectful than Muslims killing people as a form of criticism against publishing comics. What sort of world do you live in?

Labels: comics, islam

Muhammed cat [LINK-ZUM]

Man: Boy, what is your name?
Boy: My name is Babu.
Man: It is customary to mention Mohammed before the name. What is your father’s name?
Boy: Mohammed Abu
Man: What’s this in your lap?
Boy: Mohammed cat

Gulf Times: "Police arrested a newspaper cartoonist for publication of a cartoon considered blasphemous by Islamic clerics in the Muslim country, officials said yesterday. The interim government was also considering banning the daily Prothom Alo (The First Ray) and put on trial the newspaper’s cartoonist Arifur Rahman arrested on Tuesday from his home in north Dhaka under emergency laws."

Islam Online: "The head of clerics of Dhaka's main mosques filed complaints against the cartoonist who was arrested from his residence last Tuesday and handed over to the Tejgaon police station. Rahman violated Section 54 code of criminal procedure and under such emergency laws; the government has the authority to detain people without charge if they are deemed to threaten national security."

BBC: "Street clashes have broken out in the Bangladeshi capital, Dhaka, as Islamic activists protested over the publication of an 'offensive' cartoon. Witnesses say that hundreds joined the protest, even though such demonstrations are officially banned under the country's state of emergency. [...] Witnesses say the violence began after Friday prayers, when protesters tried to break through barricades put up to prevent them reaching the Prothom Alo offices. The demonstrators demanded the execution of the paper's editor, Matiur Rahman, and burned effigies of him and his Bengali-language daily."

[This is the way the entire world used to be. The hold of superstition was so strong that any perceived transgression was dealt with by the State and by violence. The advance of the secular has made occurrences such as this seem bizarre and foolish to most people today. It is mainly the Muslim world that is holding on to that old time religion. It is not inevitable that the Muslim world will move forward to join the rest of us, nor impossible that we will move backwards to join them. Fortunately there are light-bringing organizations such as Secular Islam and documents such as A Secular Muslim Manifesto to aid the former and forestall the later. - Trevor Blake]

Labels: comics, islam, theocracy

Trevor Blake: Cartoons, Two Responses [LINK-ZUM]

Israel News, Swedish Muslim group to sue newspaper over Muhammad drawing: Mahmoud Aldebe, chairman of the Swedish Muslim Federation, said the group would sue the newspaper for inciting hatred against ethnic groups. "It ridicules our religion. This is discriminating and insulting... they want to see just how far they are able to go by pushing the boundaries of press freedom," he said.

Asharq Alawstat, Al-Qaeda in Iraq leader offers bounty for murder of Swedish cartoonist: [Abu Omar al-Baghdadi said] "We are calling for the assassination of cartoonist Lars Vilks who dared insult our Prophet, peace be upon him, and we announce a reward during this generous month of Ramadan of US$100,000 (¤72,000) for the one who kills this criminal," [...] The leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq offered money for the murder of a Swedish cartoonist who recently produced images deemed insulting to Islam and promised a new offensive in Iraq during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, in a statement carried by Islamist Web sites Saturday.

[Articles continue at links. Islam, like all of us, has two choices. It can go by the rule of law or go by the rule of force. If it goes by the rule of law, it can elect to sue people who draw pictures of their particular invisible monster that lives in the sky. If it goes by the rule of force, it can elect to kill people who draw pictures of their particular invisible monster that lives in the sky. It is a sad comment on their particular invisible monster that it is weakened by cartoons. And how curious that it takes the secular reward of money to accomplish the superstitious goal of human sacrifice. But between the rule of law and the rule of force, I commend the former and condemn the later. - Trevor Blake]

Labels: comics, islam, theocracy

John-Henry Westen: Lord of the Rings Film Star Ian McKellen Admits to Ripping Out Hotel Bible Sections Against Homosexuality [LINK-ZUM]

British Actor Ian McKellen who has used the mega-stardom he achieved playing Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings films to promote homosexuality, has admitted to ripping out pages of hotel bibles that refer to homosexuality. In an August 10 interview on New Zealand's TV1 Close Up program McKellen was confronted by the interviewer questioning the truth of the rumour "He's the one, that when he stays in hotels rips the part of the bible out that criticizes homosexuality."

"Yes it is true," responded McKellen in even tones. "It[']s Leviticus 18:22 that I object to, or is it 22:18, I've always got to look it up. Thou shalt not lie with a man as with a woman, it is an abomination. And they, I think the punishment for an abomination was being stoned to death," he said. McKellen added, "I think it's rather obscene and pornographic, and shouldn't be there, so I remove it." Asked how many bibles he has vandalized, McKellen replied, "I have no idea, but other people do it as well, people send me evidence that they have been removing that."

[Magneto was right. - Trevor Blake]

Labels: christianity, comics

The Road to Serfdom in Cartoons [LINK-ZUM]

Wikipedia has an entry for The Road to Serfdom. Economic planning is the doom of socialism, as explained by David Steele at Posing the Problem: The Impossibility of Economic Calculation under Socialism and the Wikipedia entry for Economic Calculation Problem.

Labels: books, comics, libertarian

media tags [LINK-ZUM]

architecture art blog books comic comics film flash mac music palm periodical podcasts sewing spoken television ubuntu video zine

Labels: architecture, art, blog, books, comic, comics, film, flash, mac, music, palm, periodical, podcasts, sewing, spoken, television, ubuntu, video, zine

Opus, 26 August 2007 [LINK-ZUM]

The comic strip Opus for 26 August 2007 won't be seen in many newspapers this Sunday for fear of offending Muslims. It is good not to offend Muslims by way of comic strips. The invisible monster that lives in the sky that they worship is so weak that colored lines on paper or pixels on a computer screen cause Him to suffer. Gods are an endangered species and most of the thousands of Gods that have ever been worshiped are dead now. We need to take care of the few hundred that are left in the world. Oh, and it's also not good to offend Muslims by way of comic strips because they will boycott your country, threaten you with death, cause you to go into hiding, burn down your buildings, and kill you.

Labels: comics, islam, theocracy

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