So Much for "Hoping" ...

[Link] Rioting over the controversial cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad claimed another 16 lives last night in Nigeria as churches were burned by protesting Muslims.

The violence erupted as the Danish cartoonist whose drawings originally sparked the furore, Kurt Westergaard, used an interview with a British newspaper to defend the right to a free press - and said the Islamic faith provided 'spiritual ammunition' for terrorism.

The story goes on to say that 40% of British muslims polled said they want Sharia Law enacted within Britain.

{shakin'head}

And that headcase pol from Italy, the one who seems to have forgotten that he's a big time government official and thus subject to harsher scrutiny when it comes to being politically sensitive, he's gotten what he was bound to get for wearing a Mo shirt.

The protesters in Libya, angry over the minister's T-shirt, had stormed an Italian Consulate in Benghazi on Friday and were fired on by Libyan soldiers. Here in Italy, critics of Roberto Calderoli, the reforms minister who showed off his T-shirt on television earlier this week, blamed him for the violence — and even his own political allies, including Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, demanded his resignation.

Idiot. There was nothing illegal about wearing the shirt and blaming him for the rioters stupidity is just plain immature and utterly irresponsible. I think it'd be cool to see a few of those shirts around town.

But dude is a minister of the freakin' Italian government! One would really think he might realize he's not an average Joseppi whilst in that capacity and that he will be held to different standards of conduct, just as are School Boards and every other official in a secular government, because their actions can be construed as potentially restrictive of others' rights and freedom. Nice shirt. Baaaaad idea.

I'm tired. My PC went whacked out on me this morning when I was first writing this up and things have not gotten much better as the day has progressed. At least the 'puter is working again.

So I'll just leave it at that...

No, and better yet, I'll leave y'all with a little hope for peace in the middle east, curtesy of The Onion. (and I'm still shakin' me noggin' ...)

{sigh.. .}