President Obama recently bowed to Emperor Akihito in Japan. At this point, one might wonder exactly who is advising Barack Obama, if any one at all. If you will recall, this is the latest in what seems to be a string of inappropriate greetings in international settings by our Commander-in-Chief.

So far to date, Barack Obama has bowed to Saudi King Abdullah, given an exaggerated nod to Queen Elizabeth II, and there has been speculation as to whether or not he has offered a similar gesture to Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.

This is troublesome, and embarrassing. Common sense would indicate that it would more than likely be difficult for international leaders to take our president seriously if he is constantly subordinating himself to them. Perception goes a long way on the international stage, and at this juncture, an honest observer of the situation would be hard pressed to find an incident where Obama has projected himself as leader of the free world when he travels abroad, let alone an equal.

For those who would argue that President Obama is trying to “make amends” for some of America’s supposed arrogance of the past, it should be made known that bowing to other leaders is not a traditional form of greeting, particularly in the case of Emperor Akihito. The Emperor is most commonly greeted with a simple handshake.

So, with that in mind, it could be fair to say that what is going on here goes far beyond supposed protocol. This appears to be another whistle-stop in the “Obama Apologizes for America tour”. It doesn’t seem that he has given up on his concept of being a “citizen of the world”, and it looks like he intends to remain in a never ending campaign to be personally adored until the end of his term in office.

Americans thought they had elected a leader. It doesn’t look like that happened. Instead, they got a teenage girl who just transferred to a new school and is desperate to do anything to fit in with the cool kids. However, unlike high school, when President Obama ends up getting stuffed in a locker, America will be the one who feels the pain and humiliation.

He [Geert Wilders] shrugs off anxieties that his film will trigger a fresh bout of violence of the kind that left Van Gogh stabbed to death on an Amsterdam street and his estranged colleague Ayaan Hirsi Ali in hiding, or the murderous furore over the Danish cartoons in 2005.

The Dutch government is planning emergency evacuation of its nationals and diplomats from the Middle East should the Wilders film be shown. It is alarmed about the impact on Dutch business. ‘Our Prime Minister is a big coward. The government is weak,’ says Wilders. ‘They hate my guts and I don’t like them either.’

But he does want to create a stir. ‘Islam is something we can’t afford any more in the Netherlands. I want the fascist Koran banned. We need to stop the Islamisation of the Netherlands. That means no more mosques, no more Islamic schools, no more imams… Not all Muslims are terrorists, but almost all terrorists are Muslims.’

Free speech or hate speech? ‘I don’t create hate. I want to be honest. I don’t hate people. I don’t hate Muslims. I hate their book and their ideology.’

Read the entire Guardian article. H/t SDA

Quick, let’s kill people and blow some shit up!

Terence Koh, the provocative Canadian darling of the New York art scene, has aroused controversy in Britain after a top gallery displayed one of his sculptures showing Jesus with an erect penis.

Media reported that Mr. Koh’s statue at the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art in Gateshead “has offended Christians and visitors alike.”

But yesterday, Baltic Centre spokeswoman Ann Cooper said that Mr. Koh’s artwork will remain on display until the exhibition ends Jan. 20. Ms. Cooper added that visitors to the gallery are warned that they may be confronted by images of “a sexual or violent nature” in the exhibition.

“Contemporary art by its very nature is often challenging and controversial; reflecting and responding to some very serious personal and social issues in modern life,” the gallery said in a statement. “Baltic does not shy away from presenting such works.”

How these hypocrites don’t choke on their own forked tongues is beyond my comprehension. Maybe I would take them a little more seriously if they had the balls to print the Dreaded Cartoons of Blasphemy, instead of just shaking their heads at our perceived gaucheness.

Day By Day

Remember when this was the kind of thing you’d find at the back of a newsprint magazine, offering you the chance to draw Woody Woodpecker or Betty Boop for a $25 prize and a cartooning instruction book? Geez, I remember stuff like that at the back of my Archie comics when I was little.

Times have changed, though, and $25 doesn’t buy quite as many Sea Monkeys as it used to. Nowadays a book of art instruction goes for more than that! Heck, you’d be lucky if you could buy 5 Archie comics!

Now the cartoon prizes are much bigger, and the rules have changed. No longer do you submit your attempt along with a proof of purchase and a $1 entry fee. No, now you have to go out and slaughter another artist like a lamb.

The purported head of al-Qaeda in Iraq has offered a reward for the murder of a Swedish cartoonist over his drawing depicting the Prophet Muhammad.

The $100,000 (£49,310) reward would be raised by 50% if Lars Vilks was “slaughtered like a lamb” said the audio message aired on the internet.

The speaker, said to be Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, threatened a new offensive during the holy month of Ramadan.

Last month’s cartoon showed Prophet Muhammad’s head on a dog’s body.

Several Muslim countries protested.

Hmmm… wasn’t more than two or three years ago that the Religion of Peace was telling us that violence during the “Holy Month of Ramadan” was haram, or verboten. I guess they noticed we weren’t buying into that bullshit, dropped the charade, and went back to what they do best: Threats and killings.

But Saturday’s taped message said the militants were announcing a “call to shed the blood of the Lars who dared to insult our Prophet”.

“During this generous month we announce an award worth $100,000 to the person who kills this infidel criminal,” the speaker said.

He also announced a $50,000 reward for the killing of the editor of the newspaper.

Yup, Islam is a generous religion indeed.