President Obama issued a statement concerning the US Embassy attacks in Libya and Egypt. Here is part of what he said:
“Since our founding, the United States has been a nation that respects all faiths. We reject all efforts to denigrate the religious beliefs of others. But there is absolutely no justification to this type of senseless violence. None. The world must stand together to unequivocally reject these brutal acts.”
This was a pretty good statement in that the US Government shouldn’t criticize any religion nor should it endorse or praise any religion above any other religion or non-religion. That being said, I think the President should have criticized the 14-minute movie trailer which sparked this nightmare… not because of its content, but because of its crappiness.
I’m joking of course. The trailer is crappy but the President doesn’t have to comment on that. He should however have commented on every American’s right to free speech and encouraged the protection of those rights for every person around the globe.
It is disappointing that the President did not defend free speech in his statements. Criticizing bad ideas and beliefs is important in the evolution of discovering good ideas and beliefs. When we protect religious beliefs from criticism, we are sending a message that people shouldn’t ask questions, shouldn’t question authority, and that dogmatic beliefs are more important than people’s lives.
In case you missed the now infamous trailer, here it is. I dare you to make it through all 14 minutes.
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