Salman Rushdie Knighted by the Queen!!!

[Shamino]

He's an arrogant tosspot and I met him and I know. But I know him personally- I haven't just read about him in a paper, I was part of his protection team at one time.

[MartinW]

Im sure he has his negatives, most genuienly intelligent people are, genuinely asses. of course, none of this detracts from the quality of his writings.

[gogo]

I'm guessing that Verx is a muslim and has a problem with the Satanic verses or something to do with that.

[lysistrata411]

This is a good statement, IMHO.

The man has really gone through a lot. I am sure he is very intelligent, and also I think who ever has had to pay for all the security is very miffed, I wonder if it came out of a fund that taxpayers are forced to accept, or maybe the Queen's personal fund.

When you were security did you feel it was worth it, and the person was one that should be receiving help for a personal situation he put himself into?

The Queen has sent a statement to the world.

It can be considered good and bad. It is just another piece of the political battle.

To jump all over verx, as what you mention, "Verx, are every one of your 1156 posts complete rubbish?" is pretty much wrong...IMHO

Gary

[ieofe]

err... wah??!!
Yes... let's blame the victim. That's a good plan.

[gourim]

I did not say that, you did.

The world is full of victims and only recently it seems that anyone wants to help them, surly not governments that cause much of the killing and death in this world.

[averyk]

Care to explain how you figure Salman Rushdie should be taking the blame for a death sentence put on his head because he wrote a fictional book?!

[RodS]

Oh I don't think he should take the blame for the death sentence, but something he wrote that is near and dear to millions of others should be looked at before going to print Id think.
Do you think he and the publishers discussed it?

Do you think the western world should have to help him? As they did? Do you think because the Queen Knights him, that in effect stops others from mentioning their free right to skeptic thought and wondering how all this is played by Governments at certain dates and times.

Pretty interesting the timing of this IMHO...

Gary

[RoyalFlush]

Not a big fan of freedom of speech huh?

[LUELLAe]

1) It wasn't millions who condemned him to a death sentence it was Ayatollah Seyyed Ruhollah Khomeini who proclaimed a death sentence.

2) As for whether or not he and the publishers discussed it... I can't say. Do you think publishers, editors and their writers discuss whether they're going to receive a death sentence for what they write in a fictional book... especially when what is written is massively open to interpretation?



If they value free speech... they damn well better. He's British citizen... so by that he's protected as would be any other British citizen. Which doesn't even get to the whole concept of protecting the freedom of speech from fanatic muslim nutbars issuing death warrants for books of fiction. On top of that you make it out that he isn't somehow part of the western world... which doesn't really make much sense. Not at least if you know anything about the man.



1) No... that seems to be your question... not mine. Why not take a stab at it instead of trying to put it off on me?

2) You seem to be under the impression that Rushdie is somehow new on the literary fiction scene... and that the fatwa/death sentence was handed down yesterday. He's not... it wasn't.

The death sentence was issued publicly in 1989... how does that all square with what seem to be your thoughts of complicity or conspiracy by the western world powers?!

Here's some reading that might be of importance:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Satanic_Verses_%28novel%29


Here's an interesting bit for you on the fatwa:



So you realize that arguably that means anyone anywhere who has read this book or is aware of it's contents is sentenced to death.