Regardless of the quality of the cartoons - (they are routinely dismissed as 'offensive' but if you look at them closely they clearly attack extremism and not Islam in general - or is that an oxymoron?) the cartoonists have done us a great service. They have lifted the lid on the medieval state of mind of most Muslims not domiciled in the west, and have made it possible for liberal, tolerant people (of whom I am one) to argue that Islam IS a special problem - something that only could be done before if one was brave enough to ignore accusations of racism. CarolC on this forum, for example, was convinced that anyone whith a deep suspicion of modern Islam was a 'bigot' - but this is no longer sustainable (if it ever was) after this absurd hysteria over a few cartoons.