So, after some thought: The recent tragedy of the Charlie Hebdo massacre, I decided to actually see what Charlie Hebdo published. I asked a French friend of mine to translate for me what they posted. Its some of the most infantile, disgusting, tasteless and crude things Ive ever seen. Its faux witty: the kind of thing an imbecile would laugh at, after thinking hes so smart because he said, F*ck the government cuz its corrupt. Charlie Hebdo are the vesitges of a counter-culture movement in France that died in the 60s. These guys were banned in France twice, once in 61, again in 70 for making fun of the deaths of 140+ people in a fire. They stopped publishing in 81 because no one liked them, and resurfaced again in the 90s, constantly causing controversy, not because they had anything intelligent to say, but because of the opposite. They poked bears and dared them to attack back. They laid in front of train tracks and dared the train to run them over. This is bravery, and their deaths are tragic, sad, and their murders are rightfully condemned. But its the bravery of a drunk college student who decided hes going to dive into his frat house pool from the roof of his frat after having chugged 8 beers. What did these people expect? What did any of us expect? They had already been fire-bombed in 2011, Im honest to God surprised they werent attacked sooner. This leads into questions of: But they had the freedom to say what they wanted! Sure they did. And God knows how many people I know who are sharing dry little Voltaire quotes on Freedom of speech on their Facebook walls. But with freedom comes responsibility. You cannot have your freedom, use it irresponsibly, and expect there be no consequences. Charlie Hebdo did exactly that: They had the precious Freedom of Speech: They could have used their freedom wisely: to create satire and political cartoons that informed the public, asked legitimate questions on social issues, and attack things that rightly needed to be attacked. Instead, they decided to publish cartoons of the Holy Trinity having a threesome, the prophet Muhammad naked, and a good deal of other tasteless garbage. What happened yesterday was disgusting, sick, and reprehensible. 12 people were killed, including two police officers who werent staff for the magazine, and I am very, VERY glad that the assailants were caught and killed. But I am not Charlie, for two reasons: I am vehemently opposed to Charlie Hebdos politics, and because they used their very precious freedom in the same way a 21 year old decides to have 21 shots of Vodka on his birthday.
Posted on: Fri, 09 Jan 2015 19:22:28 +0000
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