Hard to hide

I knew that Al Qaeda would finally figure out to which extent Scandinavian society is the dead opposite of radical, militant religious fundamentalism. It was only a matter of time. There is simply no place on this planet that is further from and more unlike the imagined caliphate of Osama Bin Laden than are the Scandinavian countries, with the sole exception perhaps of Holland. 'Must be a combination of herring, cheese, and beer that does it. That and girls that get to anything that boys get to do. Well maybe those things plus an actual free and open debate about what the people want and don't want (and that without fear of intimidation).

I myself am a Norwegian and as such I am quite typical in being a dyed-in-the-wool opponent of any and all theocracies as well as being a proponent of 100% gender equality. I am also a huge believer in free speech. I do think the guys that are publishing these cartoons in Scandinavia are pushing the envelope a bit too far these days, but I am happy that no one is busting open their doorways and shutting them down for it. I am happy that they have the right to express themselves, even if I think they are going too far.

So there you have it. When presented with which side to support in this whole cartoon-based violence dilemma, I come down on the side of the people that do NOT do things like condone honor killings.

Question for the Times

It would be interesting to see exactly how many tens of millions of dollars worth of Government aid Denmark has given to Pakistan over the last 15 years or so. 'Probably similar in amounts to the many millions given to the other countries where Danish embassies have been attacked. 'Money well spent?