Salman Rushdie Attacked.

Unfortunately Caleo the 'reward' is still on the table, it should have been rescinded.

We must support free speech and free writing otherwise democracy - not perfect, I know - is at risk. If the Iranian government failed to make the fatwa of no effect as they claimed in 1991 they cannot be trusted in signing a treaty about nuclear nonproliferation. Sanctions should continue until their medieval regime disappears. Their ayatollah should be treated as a terrorist.

i remember all the hoo-haa at the time when that book came out.
i didn't read it, didn't sound like the kind of thing i would like.
at that time i vaguely thought the author was vain and arrogant for writing something that he knew would cause such offence.
many people died around the world in protests.
he didn't seem to properly consider the effect it would have, negative effect, causing riots in which people were killed, probably bystanders, also on his own wife and son.
perhaps he was naive. yet so obviously clever and well read generally, people can have blind spots.
i thought why didn't he choose to write something else; he is obviously a very accomplished writer.
then quite by chance, watching bbc programmes on the partition of india, i saw midnight's children. and there was interviews with him at the time he won the booker prize for that book.
he looked and sounded quite different; strangely, similar to a friend of mine at the time.
so i felt more sympathetic towards him.
now this terrible news. i do hope he pulls through.

It's a case of if you don't agree with me you'll die.

Jesus too knew all about the danger of expressing legitimate views.

It’s a disgraceful state of affairs when people are attacked/murdered for expressing their legitimate views. The killing of Jamal Khashoggi is another victim to the type of thinking that says people can be killed for their views, particularly their views about their religion. Hitler condoned the burning of books and what do we see on our screens? Salman Rushdie’s books being burned along with the flags of other nation states. What a world we inhabit.

Even if the attacker turns out to be mad the attack has brought Iran's theocracy into disrepute.

The attack on Salman Rushdie is going to reflect badly on Iran in its international relations.

"Notably, reformist President Mohammad Khatami’s foreign minister in 1998 said that the “government disassociates itself from any reward which has been offered in this regard and does not support it”.

Sir Salman slowly began to re-emerge into public life around that time. But some in Iran have never forgotten the fatwa against him."

(Googled)

@Chestnut Do you remember the name of the TV show?

Guardian reports Iran revoked the fatwa in 1991 if I remember right . I'll check.

I'm afraid there are still very strong feelings about that book even now. I saw a programme on TV where a young trendy, modern young Muslim presenter went around Bradford waving the book and asking people what they felt about it. He was attacked in an aggressive way, and the guy grabbed the book in full view of the camera and tore it up in front of him.

The fatwa had never been revoked. But I guess he thought he was safe after all these years. Shocking.

What culture nurtured the attacker? If he had been through an adequate liberal education he'd have celebrated an author who questioned tradition.