I don't think a lot of Muslims in Western countries appreciate, respect, or understand freedom of speech. This is partly our own fault for allowing large irredentist seditionist enclaves of culturally adverse people to gather in our midst. Quite frankly, if you create an environment for these groups to grow and fester, you are asking for it.

I think it's funny that Muslim protesters in England, in a protest against their prophet being depicted with a bomb for a turban, decided it was clever to dress up as suicide bombers, to protest in the heart of London, and to chant things like "7/7 on its way", "death to Israel" and "death to America". I mean, seriously, how dumb are these people. They need a good dose of Western liberal education so they can learn how to think, and then, one day, maybe they'll understand comedic device like parody and satire, and even irony.

I agree that freedom of speech should be exercised sensitively, but in Western societies we should be able to publish whatever we want without fear of upsetting nutcases living amongst us who subsequently threaten to blow up the world. In one sense it's a good way of quickly determining who is fit for expulsion. Let them protest in Iran or strap themselves to nuclear power plants there. But why should we tolerate their retrograde attitudes in our societies? They don't tolerate western freedoms in Iran.

If it is inevitable that for every 20 Muslims you get one loony, then we cannot have any Muslims. There is no other way to have no loonies. And it only takes a small number of loonies to unleash catastrophic destruction through terrorist acts. The risk is too great, and not one we should tolerate. Go figure. But I'm open to suggestions.

I vehemently object to what you say, but I defend to the death your right to say it. Does anyone remember that? Do Muslims living in large numbers in Western societies understand that? Or is it a politically incorrect thing to say in this atmosphere of cultural cowardice?

As for Syed Atiq ul Hassan's "article", it is the vilest detritus I have stumbled across for some time. Upon reading this piffle I immediately assumed he writes for The Age, then I realised he is a "senior journalist" of some type who supposedly writes for "foreign media agencies".

Hassan talks about "terrifying Muslim extremism", obviously cowed by the prospect of lunatic attacks in the future unless such groups are appeased. And the scary thing is that he is a journalist. He must be from the new school of journalism. Ever heard of "fearless reporting" Mr Hassan? Do you know what the function of a journalist is in society? Do you know what a journalist is supposed to DO?

Freedom of expression has always included a freedom to insult, mock, and humiliate, even when we don't like it.

And as for comments about David Irving, I don't like what he says, but I think he should have been allowed to come into Australia to say whatever he wanted. It is only because Australia has already started to lose its way and because we are "multicultural" that we bowed to narrow interest groups and barred him. And it was a national disgrace.

It seems to me that the best thing for humanity would be to get rid of all religions. They're all pretty silly when you look at them objectively.

Mr Hassan’s opinion is simply a demand that Islam must be exempt from any criticism, dressed up with sanctimonious flowery rhetoric.
What Mr Hassan and his co religionists will not face is the fact that Islam is a failure and it must reform. What caused the West to power ahead of the Islamic civilisation was the West's realisation that a slavish adherence to religious doctrine was detrimental to the concept of good governance.

It took hundreds of years of religious wars to drive that point home. But when that concept was finally internalised by the Reformation, our sciences, arts and commerce began to flourish. The Reformation was a period when every aspect of contemporary Western social values, including religion, was either directly, indirectly of covertly criticised and even held up to ridicule. It was by such means that rigidly held concepts of what was right and what was wrong that had existed for centuries in the Western world were changed. Western society evolved as changing times and changing circumstances altered the fundamental concepts which had guided our culture.

If ever any culture now needed a lot of criticism and a great deal of introspection, it is the Islamic culture. It’s adherents are among the poorest, sickest, and least literate in the world. It’s manufacturing industries do not even exist, it’s governments are almost entirely dictatorial, and it’s people are renowned as potential sources of endless civil strife, war and terrorism. That a “senior journalist” like Hassan could demand that his faith be exempted from any criticism at all by the press, is an indication of how brainwashed these people are by their Imam’s.

Hassan’s rant reeks of the same phoney self righteous piety of his religious leader, Sheil Al Hilaly, who public comments always praise multiculturalism and social harmony, while he preaches sermons at the Lakemba mosque attacking the Queen, calling Freemasons, Rotary, and Lion’s clubs “conspiratorial groups”, and calling Americans “pigs”, Russians “dogs”, and Jews “snakes”. (Weekend Australian, Sept. 14, 2002)

I am not going to participate in this debate,but seeing that JC was mentioned,my question is why is he always portrait as an ANGLO SAXON,this has been the case ever since I was at school,and when we were given religeous lessons, when he was the subject,all pictures or holy cards shows him as a WHITE ANGLO SAXON,and this is still the case in 2006.

I cannot but comment on the constant chants of atheists who wish to do away with religion altogether. This indicates their longing for the type of State that existed in the USSR where the practise of religion was banned. They equally want a totalitarian State that quashes any expression of faith in God or upholds spiritual values as primary.

We live in a free democracy where freedom of expression is primary to our way of life and if any point of view or religion is dominant then it violates others freedom of expression. Muslim emergence cannot cope with a democratic State as they try to close freedom of expression down, for the emergence of shari'ah blasphemy law enforcement. A closed community to other opinions becomes obsessive in the enforcement of one opinion and destroys true personal freedom and democracy.

Being a Christian I believe the individual is totally responsible for their character, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviour; so any imposition other than a democratically agreed law that serves all people is denying that personal responsibility whereby the individual is accountable before God. If an individual is enforced to believe or behave in a certain manner against their free will then they cannot be judged by God for that. Our accountability before God must be our free and total choice.