I am not Charlie Hebdo

First things first, I condemn violence in any form. It is fundamentally evil. Especially in the name of religion. It’s 2015, and we don’t need to come to blows over who has the best invisible friend. The criminals who attacked the office of Charlie Hebdo are terrorists. They are cowards.

But having said that, I also have to ask why Charlie Hebdo would publish something so inflammatory. I like to say that I was brought up with enough sense to respect other peoples’ beliefs and practices be it Christian, Jew, Pagan, Muslim, Hindu, or Sikh. I condemn the violence that has occurred in France of late, but I also condemn the inflammatory cartoons that Charlie Hebdo has published.

My sympathies lie with those who lost their lives in those attacks. But I don’t see either side as being completely innocent. Charlie Hebdo has published inflammatory pictures that I myself see as offensive and I’m not Muslim). And the terrorists decided to use force of arms to force their views on everybody else.

Violence. Is. Evil. Period. But I am not Charlie Hebdo.