Bait

I just finished reading this article by Jonah Goldberg. I couldn't agree more:

I find Darwin fish offensive. First, there's the smugness. The undeniable
message: Those Jesus fish people are less evolved, less sophisticated than
we Darwin fishers.

The hypocrisy is even more glaring. Darwin fish are often stuck next
to bumper stickers promoting tolerance or admonishing random
motorists that "hate is not a family value." But the whole point of the
Darwin fish is intolerance; similar mockery of a cherished symbol
would rightly be condemned as bigoted if aimed at blacks or women
or, yes, Muslims.

As Christopher Caldwell once observed in the Weekly Standard,
Darwin fish flout the agreed-on etiquette of identity politics. "Namely:
It's acceptable to assert identity and abhorrent to attack it. A plaque
with 'Shalom' written inside a Star of David would hardly attract notice;
a plaque with 'Usury' written inside the same symbol would be an
outrage."

But the most annoying aspect of the Darwin fish is the false bravado
it represents. It's a courageous pose without consequence. Like so
much other Christian-baiting in American popular culture, sporting
your Darwin fish is a way to speak truth to power on the cheap.

I've never understood this hypocrisy either. Why is alright to ridicule people of
the Christian faith but other faiths are off limits in Western societies? I don't think
any religious faith should be demeaned.

Last year I was perplexed when a television showed Christian teens stoning someone.
I thought it was a relentless attack just for the sake of being provocative. I just don't
understand where this disdain comes from? It doesn't make sense to me.

I've also noticed a tendency to be inconsistent with which religious speech we find
appropriate. Michelle Malkin posted a story today about a kid who got a failing grade
because he drew a cross and wrote "John 3:16." After reading stories like these I
wonder if we take our religious freedoms for granted here in America.

I acknowledge I'm so very fortunate to live in a country where I am free to express
myself religiously. I'm not persecuted. I'm not jailed. I don't have to practice my faith
secretly. For this I am a grateful person. I'm also fortunate that I live in a country
where people can also freely be critical of any religion without any fear.