Salman Rushdie's statement on the attack on Charlie Hebdo

[backscatter712]

http://www.englishpen.org/campaigns/salman-rushdie-condemns-attack-on-charlie-hebdo/

Salman Rushdie, who more than just about anyone else, knows the danger of religious fanaticism, penned this statement on the Charlie Hebdo attack.

Religion, a mediaeval form of unreason, when combined with modern weaponry becomes a real threat to our freedoms. This religious totalitarianism has caused a deadly mutation in the heart of Islam and we see the tragic consequences in Paris today. I stand with Charlie Hebdo, as we all must, to defend the art of satire, which has always been a force for liberty and against tyranny, dishonesty and stupidity. ‘Respect for religion’ has become a code phrase meaning ‘fear of religion.’ Religions, like all other ideas, deserve criticism, satire, and, yes, our fearless disrespect.

[Warpy]

1. Rushdie knows better than others what being a target of zealotry feels like

We can't lose sight of the fact that we have similar zealots here in the US, misreading the bible instead of the Quran.

[backscatter712]

2. Indeed. He's had a government mark him for death, for writing a book.

It confirms what Christopher Hitchens said: Religion poisons everything!