Saturday, November 18, 2006
'This is a blatant lack of respect'
The Italian media is merrily having a field day with the pope. There's no question there's a double-standard at work here between how Christianity and Islam are treated. There's also little doubt, in my mind, the Italian media is taunting the pope to see if he overreacts like Muslim leaders, as one critic suggests. But with all of those caveats out of the way, I gotta say some of the jokes are pretty funny. Example:
I have a suspicion the Italians are also slipping whoopie cushions under the pope because he's German. But that's another story. ...
Update -- A reader partially confirms my German suspicions:
The Italian media is merrily having a field day with the pope. There's no question there's a double-standard at work here between how Christianity and Islam are treated. There's also little doubt, in my mind, the Italian media is taunting the pope to see if he overreacts like Muslim leaders, as one critic suggests. But with all of those caveats out of the way, I gotta say some of the jokes are pretty funny. Example:
The Holy Trinity won a free trip and had to decide where to go. God the Father said he would like to go to Africa, Jesus to Palestine, and the Holy Spirit to the Vatican. Asked why, the Holy Spirit responded: “Because I’ve never been there.”
I have a suspicion the Italians are also slipping whoopie cushions under the pope because he's German. But that's another story. ...
Update -- A reader partially confirms my German suspicions:
The night the pope was elected (a friend from Italy) and I were watching the news and one of the anchors inquired "Who was the last German pope?"
My friend's instant response was "Attila"
