There is no Blasphemy

There are some truly idiotic and evil people in the world.

Earlier today, hundreds of Pakistani Muslims ransacked a Christian neighborhood, looting and setting fire to homes, forcing hundreds of Christian families to flee for their lives. [ref]

Why?

Because a Christian man was accused of speaking blasphemy against Muhammad.

Oh, alrighty then. Case closed. Violent temper tantrum justified, right?
Wrong.

Blasphemy? What a load of crap.

These people that perpetrated violence against their neighbors are devils. They had zero justification for their behavior.

Blasphemy? I submit that there is no such thing as blasphemy. It is a fiction. A false pretense to persecute and harm people who don’t share your beliefs.

Anyone can choose to hold anyone or anything sacred, therefore anything done or said “against” their sacred person or object could be construed to be blasphemous. Anything could be blasphemy, therefore nothing is blasphemy.

Everybody should be able to choose to believe or disbelieve whatever they want, without fear of violence. Nobody should be able to harm another person for their beliefs. Nobody should be able to silence a disbeliever through physical threats, intimidation or violence.

Muslims believe Muhammad was a prophet? Fine. I don’t. That’s my right.

Muslims don’t believe Jesus Christ was the Son of God? Fine. That’s their right. They can even mock and deride Him if they want. I’d prefer that they didn’t, but it wouldn’t give me license to harm them if they did.

You want to enforce reasonable prohibitions against blasphemy among people who are voluntary members of your faith community, who willingly agree with your faith’s definition of blasphemy? OK. But the harshest reasonable punishment for such blasphemy is excommunication from membership in the faith.

What about “blasphemers” who aren’t of your faith? Don’t give me the bull crap line that your God wants you to kill the blaspheming “infidels”, or that you are an instrument of his “justice”. Leave it to your blasphemed God to exact his own revenge. If he is real, and if he is truly offended by what someone said, and has affixed a penalty for the offense, you can rest assured that he’ll eventually punish the blasphemer, whether in this life or the next.

You punishing the so-called blasphemer proves nothing but your own ignorance and depravity.