Indeed he would be. And he also says: “Instead of responding to attacks against freedom of expression, voices were raised to cry blasphemy and propose compromise with terrorism. There is no blasphemy in a democracy.” That’s right as well: as soon as blasphemy laws are enforced, democracy ceases to exist, for those groups that are protected by the blasphemy laws are a privileged class, with rights above and beyond those enjoyed by the rest of the population. Equality of rights under the law, a principal foundation of representative government, ceases to exist.
“Salman Rushdie: ‘Today, I would be accused of Islamophobia and racism,'” translation of “Salman Rushdie: «Aujourd’hui, on m’accuserait d’islamophobie et de racisme,»” by Thomas Romanacce, Le Figaro, September 5, 2016:
…According to the novelist, after the terrible attacks in the drafting of Charlie Hebdo, the French government has reacted badly. “Instead of responding to attacks against freedom of expression, voices were raised to cry blasphemy and propose compromise with terrorism. There is no blasphemy in a democracy,” he says.
For Rushdie, gradually our democracies have accepted the notion of compromise. The author believes that if he published The Satanic Verses today, it would not be supported as it was at the time. In this novel published in 1988, he made remarks deemed offensive against the Prophet Muhammad. “Today, I would be accused of Islamophobia and racism. Attacks against a cultural minority would be imputed to me,” says the writer. He defends freedom of thought and claims to have the right to say that religion is stupidity….
“Faced with the reality, we must call things as they are: Charlie Hebdo journalists were killed in the name of Allah and to avenge the Prophet,” says Rushdie.
Also according to the novelist, the Western governments seem to have difficulty to use the term “Islamic terrorism.” They prefer to speak of “the unbalanced” or “radical extremists”. “You French, use the Daesh label, which neutralizes things, while worldwide the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria is called the Isis movement, to avoid hearing the word Islam,” laments Salman Rushdie.
Nor does he understand the stubbornness of Barack Obama in refusing to pronounce the word “Islam” in reacting to the attacks committed in its name. The author interprets this silence as an intention not to offend Muslims and African-Americans, who often rally to Islam. Finally, Salman Rushdie says that Daesh represents a form of Islam that most Muslims reject but that exists and grows. But the British writer wondered how can we fight cancer if we do not recognize that it is in the body?

Angemon says
“Would” or “will”?
tor says
placard on the left looks like smiling charlie brown.
JIMJFOX says
“claims to have the right to say that religion is stupidity”
What do you mean “CLAIMS”? How can religion be any other than stupid?
Simple Definition of stupid
: not intelligent : having or showing a lack of ability to learn and understand things
: not sensible or logical
Jay Boo says
Jim
I have no issue with you making that point about religion, especially here where it has somewhat of a general relevance to the topic.
Regardless of whether or not your point is valid though, I wonder why you make that general point about religion, yet you end there and have no comment specifically about Islam as well. You must realize by now that Muslims are a particular threat to the West.
RAB says
I wish some of you people who state with such certainty that religion is stupid – or whatever – would please define your terms. Are you talking about Hinduism, Buddhism, Shamanism, etc. or are we discussing Islam on this website? If you don’t know the difference between the political ideology of Islam and “religion” you should educate yourself before posting your ignorance here and confusing the issue.
Kay says
It’s a good point to always define terms, especially if listening to a Mohammeden or one of their apologists who hasn’t bothered to.
Norger says
I am an atheist, but I wouldn’t say religion is stupidity.
I was offended by the statement that Rushdie “claims” to have the right to criticize religion because there should be no question in the west but that he’s free to criticize ANY religion as much as he wants. The author of this article seemed to questioning whether Rushdie has the right to speak his mind about Islam. It’s as though he doesn’t realize how much we’ve surrendered to Islam already.
Paul says
‘Racism’ certainly would be levelled at Salman Rushdie by
the regressive ‘intellectual’ left today, attempting to deny the right
of somebody who grew up in such a culture to criticise
it, something they know only too well is not a “race” in any way.
The mind boggles at the mental gymnastics performed by these
race obsessed latently racist retards.
Guest says
That’s every person telling the truth
David says
Those who continue to demand that the entire world bow down before the famous PSYCOPATH of the desert, are themselves INSANE!
Only a person who suffers with the sort of brain damage typical of TRIBAL INBREEDING would still view islam as any sort of viable life choice!
The rest of us will continue to see it, very clearly, for what it is: INSANITY and Satanism.
davej says
Indeed. Any decent and fair-minded person who surveys Islam and it’s evil teachings, coupled with it’s present day actions and demands should be easily convinced that this represents a psychopathic and criminal enterprise that is and always will be at war with civilization.
So why are our political leaders lying to us while importing more of these Satan worshipers?
Jenny H says
An honest intellectual. How refreshing! It’s sad to see the increase in intellectual dishonesty or cowardice, in relation to Islam, in recent decades.
PRCS says
It’s a holly, jolly Ko-ran…..
Keys says
PRCS, LOL.
The Arabic on the Holly Jolly Koran sign looks like a smiling Sponge Bob.
?
Kay says
Yes.
It’s probably smiling, ‘I hate you.’
Mr. Farton says
Islam is a threat to democracy. There can be no comprise with this vile idealogy.
epistemology says
Salman Rushdie always fought against racism, another evidence of Muslim limitless stupidity to blame him for racism. Islam is no race but a vile ideology same as Nazism. The other stupid reproval is blasphemy which means insulting G’d. G’d isn’t mentioned in Salman Rushdie’s book, he only aptly portrayed the self-proclaimed prophet, a fly-by-night impostor and a criminal. But never discuss facts with muzzies their mental capacity is confined to a tiny space.
It all started in Europe with the Bradford rally against the great writer in 1989. The British police should have been a lot harder, the protestors burned copies of the book in the street, that was arson. But the cops only deescalated. Salman Rushdie justifiably deserves the Nobel prize but the committee caved in and maybe the award would even put him more in harm’s way.
Today .politicians cave in all over the Western world, only the French mayors act appropriately the burkini ban is a step in the right direction.
Adrian says
Rushdie is correct, of course.
Now just watch all the Lefties who formerly celebrated Rushdie, start throwing him now under the bus…
Dennis says
I have read most of his books. I eva specially like his Satanic Verses and the Moors last Sigh. Muslims hate him without ever. Reading his books because the majority village Muslims can’t read. And therefore can’t think either. Yay, Rushdie .
Bee says
Mr. Rusdie’s books are on the list of banned books in Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and no doubt in all Muslim countries. Being caught with one of his books would put one in serious trouble. Therefore, most muslimes have never actually read his books. Just like to cooran, most muslimes have never read that either and blindly follow the ideology.
Baucent says
Why does the woman on the left get to hold a jumbo size Holly Koran while her sisters on the right have budget sized versions?
commonsense says
Rushdie, despite all, remains a Muslim. Why? He declares that Daesh represents a form of Islam that most Muslims reject, and yet acknowledges its growth and expansion. He should be asked on what basis he, as a Muslim – or any Muslim, for that matter – can repudiate the goals, tactics, and beliefs of the Islamic State under al-Baghdadi. What alternatives to Daesh exist for Muslims who have studied and attempt to follow Islam based upon its core beliefs and the guidance and rulings of the Ulema?
Carolyne says
ISIS is a pure form of Islam, the real Islam as commanded by the Koran. Every Muslim knows this and every believing Muslim approves of ISIS whether or not they do it openly.
epistemology says
No, he never was a real Muslim, he’s from a Muslim family but his father was an atheist, albeit very interested in religion. When Salman Rushdie studied hie wanted to attend a course about the self-appointed prophet, but he was the only person to register. So there was no course and he studied books on his own and later wrote The Satanic Verses. You can read all that in his autobiography Joseph Anton, a very recommendable book.
You’re right Daesh is pure Islam as the self-appointed prophet taught it and his first adherents lived accordingly. I think Rushdie only quoted some Muslims who pretend to reject .ISIS.
solange silverman says
Why does no one speak about the actual and real underlying problem? That problem is the fact that none of this is by accident or out of stupidity or out of denial, and that our leaders know EXACTLY what they are doing and why. Having failed with Naziism, Islam, a perfect vehicle, is being used by the globalists as a means to march forward its NWO agenda. This became very obvious to me when Obama, a Muslim and NOT an American, was placed in the White House. Then, there’s the EU, with its non-elected leaders, accountable to no one, and the tying together of the rest of the world’s countries into blocks, like the EU and like BRICS. The next and last step after that is to tie those blocks together under one world government, which, like the EU, will have selected leaders accountable to no one. We must deal with the underlying issues and the powers that should not be behind the curtain before we can solve the problem and free ourselves from further globalist rule.
citycat says
@ JIMJFOX
The people need something to aspire to, to hold them together, to have a common agreement of their mores.
So what if it’s a carrot.
It is the aspiring to something more than sex and drink and drugs and wealth and power and etc etc etc,
and not the ‘can never be boxed’ God.
There is stuff in religion that is wise, although there’s a heavy God.
There comes a time to “leave the temple”.
That may have happened in lifetimes before this one. One may have been in religion many times before this lifetime. God forbid Islam, that must be for the first life being a human cos not enough animal bodies.
One may been a Christian, Hindu, Sikh, Pagan, etc several or no times.
Islam is out of order, totally, no question, relatively speaking at least without even having to read the Qur’an, because the others have mainly stopped killing in the name of religionGod.
And some religious music can uplift the spirit.
Except for the music of YKW,
citycat says
Is he, was he a Muslim?
Satanic Verses banned in India and S. Africa, 1988
Protest in Islamabad 1989, 5 shot and thousands injured.
Muslim burning books England 1989
fatwa imposed 14 feb 1989-
“… the author of the book entitled “The Satanic Verses” which has been compiled, printed and published against Islam, the Prophet and the Koran, as well as those publishers who were aware of its contents, have been sentenced to death. I call on all zealous Muslims to execute them quickly, wherever they find them, so that no one will dare to insult the Islamic sanctions. Whoever is killed on this path will be regarded as a martyr. .”
Rushdie was hid by the British Special Branch.
His wife left him 5 months later
Christmas Eve 1990-
Rushdie re-embraced Islam.
Sept 1991 Rushdie came out of hiding with “Haroun and the sea of stories”
1992 Rushdie again renounced Islam.
Hard to leave the cult?