Free the Pope!!

I know what it must look like - a Jew supporting the Pope in a conflict which has angered Muslims. The enemy of my enemy is my friend, right? Wrong.

It's about people who value free speech versus those who threaten death to people who, with their speech, give offense.

I don't know what the Pope said, and I don't care. If it's like most of the other things this or other Popes have said, there's about a 50% chance I'll agree with it, which means it's just as likely to offend me.

Heck, the Pope can call my people (Jews) Christ-killers if he wants. I don't know if it's true and, really, neither does he or anyone else. But that's his right, as a free person. To speak freely and, occasionally, to offend.

I think the Pope should be free to say whatever the heck he wants. Heck, same for all the other Catholics out there. And while we're at it, how 'bout Jews, Hindus, Atheists and...well, okay, Muslims.

But what about the Islamo-facist thugs who took offense at the Pope's recent speech, in which he said something about Mohammed spreading Islam by threat of the sword. To this, the Islamo-facists have apparently taken great offense, and for this, some have threatened the Pope with death by suicide bomb.

I can understand their distress at such lies. Clearly a suicide bomb is nothing like a sword! How dare the Pope.

As I write this, it strikes me that, if the Islamo-facists were in charge, I could be killed even for paraphrasing the Pope's words. Now there's a thought.

I have read some things lately in which people from some political quarters have opined there is no such thing as an "Islamo-facist". Who knows, maybe they're right. But what do you call it when a group which identifies itself with a religion, say, Islam, threatens death to those who utter words which its adherents consider offensive? Islamo-speech-police? Hey, whatever works.

We are all people sharing the same earth, and breathing the same air. It follows we are children of the same G-d (whatever we choose to call her, and however we pray to her, if at all).

The correct way to oppose those whose speech we dislike is to tell them, and then to speak in opposition, dispelling untruths and correcting misperceptions. And if the words are true, and we still take offense? Perhaps we just need to take a deep breath and count to ten.

In arabic numerals.