Everybody Draw Muhammad

Just a quickie to inform, or remind, everyone that today is the first annual "Everybody Draw Muhammad Day" on Facebook. The Pakistani government has already blocked Facebook and, as an extra measure, has blocked Youtube as well as well as 450 other websites.

My understanding is that, while the Qu'ran itself does not forbid the practice of drawing Muhammad, the practice is generally shunned so as to prevent idolatry (much like the Bible's injunction against graven images). So for Islamic leaders to call "Everybody Draw Muhammad Day" sacrilegious seems to miss the mark because they are, in fact, making an idol out of the Prophet.

But the point of Islam's taking offense at drawing Muhammad has nothing to do with idolatry, I think. Rather it's a way for (yet another) group of conservatives to play on our liberal cultural sensitivities. The point is to either guilt us or cow us into being sympathetic to something that we want no part of.