An Italian company that makes Internet-based games has removed a game that allowed users to have religious figures fight each other. Faith Fighter, which had been online for more than a year, allowed users to control Jesus, the Profit Muhammad, Buddha, God, or the Hindu god Ganesh. The game was removed after the Saudi-based Organization of the Islamic Conference, which represents most Islamic nations, launched a complaint with the game’s maker. According to the Islamic Conference, the game was offensive to Muslims, Christians, Jews, and all religious people. The company said that it offered the game as a way for people to confront their religious intolerance. In an attempt to be deferential to the tenets of Islam, which prohibit pictures of the Profit Muhammad, the company offered a censored version of the game which covered Muhammad’s face.
I can see how religious people could have been offended by this game. But it is interesting that only an Islamic organization chose to complain about it. One of the real problems with Islam is that it does not allow people to have alternative points of view. If I were running the company I would have refused to pull the game. By giving into the demands of the Muslims that company was contributing to the world-wide program of allowing Muslims to determine what is and what is not protected speech. Of course, had the company refused to pull the game its employees might have been subjected to death threats.
If Muslims want to settle in the West they must understand that the West is under no obligation to go out of its way to accommodate the aspects of Islamic culture and law that limit the liberties and freedoms that define Western society. And governments of Muslim countries should not concern themselves with Internet-based games that are produced outside the Muslim world, because they censor their people from seeing them anyway.
Tags: Associated Press, Buddha, games, Ganesh, God, Islam, Jesus, news, politics, Profit Muhammad, religion, The Organization of the I, the Organization of the Islamic Conference
April 28, 2009 at 12:23 pm |
Jonathan, your link goes to a story about terrorists finding safe havens in East Africa.
On this story, I find it interesting that the claim included that Jews, Christians and other religions yet I see no spokespersons for those other religions being asked their thoughts on the game.
Seems like the Islamic group wanted blanket coverage on the issue to keep from being called intolerant maybe?????
April 28, 2009 at 1:20 pm |
Chief, Thanks for letting me know aabout the link. I have now put the correct one in the post. I agree with your conclusions. It is clear that the Muslim group wanted cover for doing something only they were going to do.
April 29, 2009 at 6:44 am |
[...] Jonathan Simeone wrote this on his American Reality blog: [...]
April 30, 2009 at 2:35 pm |
[...] If anyone thinks this is not a big deal, they do not understand how frequently Muslims cause waves by complaining about anything they find offensive. [...]