The Paradox of Tolerance

February 6, 2006

The riots now raging nearly across the globe over cartoon caricatures of Muhammad are fascinating. It seems as though tolerance is a four letter word in Islam. But what I really find interesting is how Westerners treat intolerance. What does it mean to be tolerant of intolerance? If we support a woman’s “right” to wear the head-to-toe garb found in extremist Muslim areas are we being tolerant or are we supporting intolerance? Do we support the right of Muslims to burn effigies in our streets? (what are they burning BTW, is it the Danish PM?, Bush as proxy?, I’m not sure who their focus is).

What about the recent French laws regarding religious wear at schools? Is that a prejudiced action? Since most Christian sects don’t have any overt dress codes are the French being bigots, or are they just being fair?

How do we Westerners treat entire nations where women don’t even have the right to vote? Their extremism is so in-your-face that it’s offensive. But are we being anti-multiculturalist if we reject such a culture?