I've seen the first part of a two-part episode in which Tom Cruise demands to meet Mohammad who cannot be seen due to threats. Mohammad, in fact, never appears (there do exist a few images of Mohammad in ancient art). Everyone dances on egg shells for fear of violence, the near-Pavlovian response for a group in a state of perpetual anger. One must watch the episode in its entirety to catch all the points (if one can find an uncensored version somewhere).
That being said, the creators of "South Park" have finally issued a statement regarding the two-part episode in which Mohammad "appeared":
A Statement from Matt and Trey
In the 14 years we've been doing South Park we have never done a show that we couldn't stand behind. We delivered our version of the show to Comedy Central and they made a determination to alter the episode. It wasn't some meta-joke on our part. Comedy Central added the bleeps. In fact, Kyle's customary final speech was about intimidation and fear. It didn't mention Muhammad at all but it got bleeped too. We'll be back next week with a whole new show about something completely different and we'll see what happens to it.
The honesty I see here is refreshing. As much as I think what is often seen on "South Park" is gross, Stone and Parker's statement reveals what is truly at hand: offense can be lobbed at some groups but not another.
The real reason is fear.
It is an insult to everyone's intelligence to even pretend that the reason why Islam and Muslims are spared from criticism or outright rudeness is due to respect. Ask the politically "upright" person what Muslims believe and why they shouldn't be offended. What is the response? Does one hear a Koranic extrapolation or mumblings?
Here are a couple "rationales":
And the problem is? They are are merely being respectful if Islamic beliefs. However, this site is completely anti-Muslim and most of the followers don't have the capacity to understand this. (*)
The poster in question completely misses the point that Comedy Central (which airs "South Park") bleeped out sections of the episode not because Islam is a religion deserving of respect (quite unlike the several other religions and groups previously offended) and consideration but because of fear.
When people pick on Christianity, it's "You'd never dare to pick on Islam that way! Only us poor Christians!". When people then do pick on Islam, it's "They only want to hide their hatred of Christianity.", apparently. Christian Persecution Complex(TM) in all it's glory.
They think freedom of religion means the freedom to worship the Flying Spaghetti Monster in the privacy of one's own home.
Whatever it means, it certainly doesn't mean being allowed to tell other whom they're allowed to marry, to pick but one example.
I'm all for people worshiping whatever they like not just in the privacy of their homes, but in public as well (within sensible limits, of course). But freedom of religion does not mean that other people have to follow your rules. You can get my tolerance but not my respect. That is something that many Faithful do not seem to get. (*)
A disingenuous AND cowardly argument. The poster above would not explain how Christians incessantly play the victim card nor how they deal with things that bother them. The discourse above is actually quite typical. Instead of dealing with Islamofascists head-on, it is just easier to muddy the waters with an incomprehensible and indefensible attack on Christians and Christianity. Why? No Christian issues fatwas or throws fire-bombs over cartoons they've never seen. It's safe, unlike anything directed at Islam. It's easier to embrace the Stockholm Syndrome than it is to calm an easily riled group.
All the creators of "South Park" have proven with this episode is what we have been accustomed to for quite some time: press a button and watch the fireworks. When it would have been easier to turn off the television, one chooses to be offended, to live with rage and then act on it. It's nothing new.
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