Cartoon riots

Since the Danish cartoon riots hit the headlines a few weeks back, much of the world has watched with something close to astonishment as mobs burned embassies and rioters wound up dead because of their zeal to protest. To those of us in the news business, it all seems so odd. To us, if you really don't like a cartoon, the proper response is to write a letter to the editor. If you're truly angry, you might even call some harried editor to scream a little. But riots over a cartoon?
But we're also eager to understand what it is all about, to see why this issue has unleashed such fury, to try to bridge what at first glance is a wide chasm between the Enlightenment-based societies of the West and the Muslim world.
Yaffa Fredrick, a New Jersey teen, is the first of our writers to take a crack at the issue, with an opinion column published today that wonders how come Jews got dragged into this whole mess and why they have been so silent about it.
While we appreciate her words, we'd like to hear from many other teens, whatever their perspective on the raging controversy. Was the Danish newspaper right or wrong? If the Muslim rage is acceptable, why is it? Is there something about all of this that isn't being said? What does it mean for young people who are soon to take leadership roles in this crazy old world of ours? We're eager to hear all viewpoints, to publish teens who have something important or interesting to say.
Meanwhile, catch Fredrick's piece at www.ReadTheTattoo.com, and, if you're a teen, consider jumping into the fray. We take teens seriously at The Tattoo and firmly believe the whole world should as well.


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