Hat tip to reader kryflam.
Here we go again. Of course the ASA can't allow anyone to make fun of terrorists.
Cape Town - A television commercial for an "Ahmed the dead terrorist" ringtone mocks Islam and must be withdrawn, the Advertising Standards Authority has ruled.
Its ruling followed a complaint by a Moegamat Khan against the GloMobile commercial, flighted on SABC and DSTV.
The commercial shows American stand-up comedian Jeff Durham holding a skeleton puppet with a white cloth around its head, which demands that the audience keeps quiet and says: "Silence! I kill you!"
The ASA said Khan had complained that this was offensive to the Islamic religion, and created the impression that all Muslims were terrorists who would kill to get people to be quiet.
I've seen Dunham's act a few times, and at no time does he even approach the idea that all Muslims are terrorists. In fact, in one part of the act Achmed says he isn't a Muslim. See for yourself.
The ASA said it appeared to be common cause that the puppet was meant to represent a terrorist who was a suicide bomber.
So the ASA is concerned about the feelings of suicide bombers? Or is the ASA just afraid to offend those who support suicide bombers?
While it was debatable whether the puppet was wearing any particular head gear, or a bandage as GloMobile claimed, the name Ahmed appeared to be of Arab origin and was one of the names of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.
"To associate this divine inspiration to a terrorist is offensive to the people who believe in him [Muhammad]," the ASA said.
What if the Muslim world were also making fun of suicide bombers and terrorists instead of naming streets after them? Wouldn't that decrease the terrorism that they say offends their religion?
