
THE remaining writers and cartoonists of the crude and disgusting French magazine Charlie Hebdo have churned out their first issue since the massacre, and it proclaims their complete nihilism — and a subtle form of submission to Islam. The cover shows Muhammad with a sign that says “Je Suis Charlie.” Beneath it is text that says, “All is forgiven.” The idea is that it’s all just a joke. Nothing is serious — not even a massacre. They can even joke in the immediate aftermath of bloodshed in their own offices. They must protect the right to joke — and immediately forgive those who take them a tad too seriously.
But, wait, cartoonist Renald Luzier, says it is all serious too. The aim is to mock all religion. Luzier made this confusing and contradictory statement to the press:
‘We will not give in,’ he told a radio station. ‘The spirit of “Je suis Charlie” means the right to blaspheme.
‘We will not give in otherwise all this won’t have meant anything. A Je Suis Charlie banner means you have the right to criticise my religion, because it’s not serious.
‘We have never criticised a Jew because he’s a Jew, a Muslim because he’s a Muslim or a Christian because he’s a Christian.
‘But you can say anything you like, the worst horrors – and we do – about Christianity, Judaism and Islam, because behind the nice slogans, that’s the reality of Charlie Hebdo.’
Up to 3 million copies of Charlie Hebdo – whose usual circulation is 60,000 – will be printed on Wednesday.
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