Je Suis Charlie. Let’s Talk!
I don’t do politics – much. I just blog here… I have an honest opinion. Mostly, I tend to disagree with all those who try to suppress opinions, ideas, and attempt to stifle creativity and common sense… whoever they may be. Unfortunately, once in a while, events are so traumatic that I simply forget that I don’t do politics… Voilà!
I am not sure how many of you out there actually knew those Charlie Hebdo cartoons, but if you’re easily offended… DON’T read further!!
Ooops! Too late…
You looked. 🙁
Last Wednesday 7th January 2015 was a trying day in many more ways than one.
Coming back home to such tragic news as the deadly events unfolding in the heart of Paris, and the following days’ unrelenting developments, was the tipping point.
These days, I imagine it’s easy enough to come by a Kalash. But it’s one thing to disagree strongly and another one to turn a pencil-driven retaliatory attack to your problem…
Pens Up!
In a brutal and surreal twist of events, worthy only of the quirky situations depicted by Charlie Hebdo‘s cartoons, or perhaps seen in some Monty Python or Family Guy scenes, the weekly magazine team of Charlie Hebdo was brutally executed at their central Paris office.
A remarkable chain of events ensued…
Tributes have poured onto the Internet from all sides. Solidarity and unity demonstrations have overwhelmed the French capital and the enthusiastic support spilled over worldwide. Many gathered on Sunday afternoon at Place de la République in Paris. Around one-and-a-half million people…
The long-held revolutionary French tradition of using ridicule as a weapon against the bullies, or to keep the powerful on their toes, whether to deride or to celebrate, grew even stronger.
After all, the pen will always be mightier than the sword… Non?
You cannot elect to agree with freedom of expression only when freedom of expression agrees with what you think. Can you?
We should think about what the terrorist extremists would like and expect us to do, then go ahead and do the exact opposite! This is the only way to resist that form of fundamentalist threat.
It’s not about God or religion. Crazy people have no religion.
In Irreverence We Trust
As for the guys at Charlie… They were no angels, it is true. Actually, they were ruthless. No-one was immune. They took no prisoners. And that was just the editing team lampooning everything and everyone, including themselves!
Humorous. Yes. Incisive. Silly. Insolent. Yes. Incendiary. Well… erm…
Hateful. NO.
Disrespectful. Rude… Oh, YES!! 😀
But not racists. Humanists.
It’s a must. The right to freedom of speech and satire does include the right to offend others.
Here’s to Charlie. Here’s to free speech and free creativity. And unity. Here’s to liberty, equality and fraternity.
I breathe. I feel. I think. Therefore… Je suis Charlie.
#jesuischarlie
