Violence of any Form is Immoral and Should Not be Excused by Freedom of Speech.

Anyone who abuses others in any form is a terrorist and a bully! Violence is never Acceptable! Decent Peace Loving People Must Respectfully Stop and/or Restrain them!
Terrorists do terrible things, but freedom of the press, as interpreted and displayed by the publication Charlie Hebdo is down right offensive, filthy, immoral and repugnant! Their cartoons are seeds that plant/spread and instigate hatred and violence! They have humiliated thousand, possibly millions, especially believers in God; Jewish Muslims and Catholics- all major faith groups! It is evident that their aim, their only objective seems to be the degradation, put down, and humiliating the Prophet Mohammed, the Muslims, the Jews, pope and the Catholic faith. I did not know about their degrading cartoons, until I read about it in the NY Post last Thursday (January 8, 2015). I saw them online and I was deeply saddened and offended because they disrespected Jesus, Mary His mother, and the pope. Their caricatures have drawn criticism, dismay and shock from many civilized, sensitive and decent people, including many previous western leaders, even French President Jacques Chirac. In fact, he stated the following, after one of their cartoons was published:

“Anything that can hurt the convictions of someone else, in particular religious convictions, should be avoided. Freedom of expression should be exercised in a spirit of responsibility.”

Charlie Hebdo has used freedom of the press as a tool, an excuse, to ridicule all major religions. Even their own (past French) President! I think they should stop publishing such filth, and apologize to the whole world, all civilized people! For their immorality and obscene cartoons!

Physical violence isn't the only type that hurts, words and images can also hurt and “kill” others- especially the human soul! Can you imagine if Charlie Hebdo cartoons were paraded in our schools, places of work, offices? We would be fired! Why? Simply because they are immoral and disrespectful, they simply teach the wrong ideals!  They preach hatred/violence. They degrade and put down people’s values, their culture, their way of living/thinking, their religious beliefs and their religious leaders too.

(Source: Google images)

People should boycott this paper, and democratic governments should do something- not suppress freedom of the press- but find solutions (possibly pass laws- Dignity Laws) that protect people’s dignity, their religious beliefs, their traditions, their identity. So that abusers can be stopped, or at the very least restrained.  People of good will should be united in one voice and speak out against offenders/abusers of human dignity (not just this particular paper, but anyone, or any organization) who kill the soul, the human spirit!

(Source: Google images)

We must not respond with hate/violence, no we must remember great leaders, who taught us about peace, understanding, respect and tolerance. The first one that comes to mind is Jesus (2BC - 7AD), the second is Mahatma Gandhi (1869-1948), and the third one is Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968). Many other people who used non-violent means can inspire us in working toward peace and cooperation to build a better world. A world built on the foundation of mutual respect and dignity.

For a list of many great human beings, who have worked for peace, please visit http://www.biographyonline.net/people/world-peace.html

If you have never seen the cartoons that Charlie Hebdo has published, you can see them by visiting the site below, or simply Google: Charlie Hebdo Cartoons.
http://gawker.com/what-is-charlie-hebdo-and-why-a-mostly-complete-histo-1677959168

Freedom of speech should not give anyone the right, the license- the absolute freedom- to carry out any form, or  any type of abuse (be it moral and/or physical).  News establishments, such as Charlie Hebdo, are dangerous for everyone- they offend and provoke/instigate violence. Hence, they should be restrained, and possibly closed down- because their propaganda contribute to society's demise, since their only aim is to humiliate/offend others. Governments should consider passing decency laws, that forbids such incivility and abuse!                  (Source: Google images)

Some people think that freedom of speech cannot censor (stop) publications, and/or anyone to say/write or do whatever they want. But does this mean that we have the right to offend, mock, ridicule and provoke others? Let's reflect and ask ourselves these basic questions:

First. How would we feel if the people in those cartoons were our families, our mothers, or our fathers, and/or sister/brother?

Second. Does freedom of the press give people the absolute right to abuse, humiliate and offend our families?

Third. What has Charlie Hebdo gained so far, from publishing obscene and obnoxious filth? Seventeen people are dead because of their provocation! Should they be allowed to continue their mockery of religions, and hence risk sacrificing more lives? 

Fourth. What will they gain by defying civility, and staying on the same path of arrogance and offensive provocation?

I do not think that decent/honest, and even those who do not follow any religion (and/or atheist who are civilized and caring people) would accept this shocking, offensive, and degrading way of behaving (creating/publishing indecent/obscene work). I don't think that people who have a bit of dignity would ever want themselves, and their families abused, humiliated, ridiculed and mocked. And I also don't think that it makes sense to let this abuse go unchecked/unrestrained because it spreads hate, which in turn breeds/incites provocation anarchy/violence.
As pope Francis said a couple of days ago: 
"You can't offend other religions. If you do, it's like offending my mother. Expect to be punched in the nose!"

I hope that Charles Hebdo, and those who read it, buy it and support it, will soon realize that they are making a grave mistake, because this paper is not promoting peace, but rather adding gasoline to the fire (hatred, provocation, humiliation), which inevitably leads to one result- the ruin of the human family.

We, the people who believe in the God of the universe, and even those who don't, but yet have decency/dignity and respect for all, must have the courage to do something (but always in a peaceful and respectful way) to stop and/or prevent abusers of free speech. We must demand from our governments that only moral and civilized values be propagated, shown, upheld, and encouraged from those who speak, show (on TV, computers, Internet, etc) and those who publish forms of literature (newspapers/magazines, books, etc.). Only values like love, respect, cooperation, tolerance must be encouraged/disseminated. Freedom of expression should not be used to mock other religions/cultures/peoples because they destroy our world, our bodies, our minds and our spirits.

   The Man and the Machine. Oil on canvas. By Ottavio Lo Piccolo (c) 1976.

As a teenager I believed that machines could save mankind. But I was naive!

Technology can be good. In fact, machines/computers can do a lot of good for us, but they also can harm us. They are just tools, like any others. It depends how we use them. 
Freedom of speech is also a "tool". A tool that we can use to help people learn/grow, or we can use it to humiliate,  hurt, destroy and suppress others!

The final outcome is up to us. I hope we use the "tool of freedom" of expression in a respectful/considerate way, in order to build a better world. A world built on understanding, compassion, tolerance, peace and love. Not on mockery and disrespect!

All writings/images are © Copyrighted by Ottavio Lo Piccolo 2014 (unless otherwise specified). All rights reserved. No part of these writings, images/artworks, may be copied or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without the authors’ written permission. Classroom teachers may copy individual articles with the images included in each piece, but only for instructional purposes and only for their classroom students.