Bill Maher: Western culture isn't just different, it's better.

[telemann.livejournal.com]

On "The Daily Show," Jon Stewart relatively soft-pedaled his defense of fellow Comedy Central employees, "South Park's" Matt Stone and Trey Parker, against a group of Muslim critics. Over at HBO this weekend, though, Bill Maher wasn't holding anything back. On his show "Real Time With Bill Maher," the show's every-incendiary host opined during his segment "New Rules:"

"When South Park got threatened last week by Islamists incensed at their depiction of Muhammad, it served -- or should serve -- as a reminder that our culture isn't just different than one that makes death threats to cartoonists. It's better." In his defense of the First Amendment and other Americal civil liberties, Maher -- who made the film "Religulous" -- continued: "The Western world needs to make it clear: Some things about our culture are not negotiable. And can't change. And one of them is freedom of speech, Separation of church and state is another."

Completely spot-on observation about real differences in cultures, one that will not play well with PC police. Bill Maher is certainly no friend of religious people; and gives grief equally to Christianity, Judaism, Scientology, and Mormons as you will see. But he specifically singles out Isalm with the recent actions in Afganistan and the Taliban's attack on an all girls school.

Comments

[medea34.livejournal.com]

i don`t know much (anything) about norway or andorra. the vatican is a theocracy, no doubt about it and, i am of the view that it has (and continues to) perpetuated much violence and evil on the world. at present england seems pretty secular (homosexuality and adultery - two big religous bugaboos are not criminal).

it was my understanding that pakistan, afganistan and iran are theocracies in that their laws must be compatible with sharia. there are alot of monarchies in the muslim world (like saudi arabia and kuwait that ban the public practice of non-muslim religion).

[underlankers.livejournal.com]

And these are the monarchies of the West: UK, Holland, Norway, Monaco, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Lietchenstein......

The rarety is the state where the Monarch *is* strong.

[medea34.livejournal.com]

i guess the issue is, how much of the state`s law (whether it is a monarchy, democracy or other) is determined by a religious set of principles. in a theocracy, the laws are based on religion.

also, i am pretty sure that the uk, norway, holland, sweden and denmark are constitutional monarchies (where people vote and the monarch is a figure head - we have one of those up here in canada too, and despite the fact that the queen of england is our head of state, there is no state religion - unless you count the catholic school system that we publicly fund for (stupid) historical and political reasons). i have no clue what`s going on in monaco or lietchenstein.