Teddy Bear's Name Provokes a Crisis

The AltTulsa team believes that some people take religion a wee bit too seriously.

No, we're not talking about the Religious Right in the U.S.

We're talking about the oh-so-sensitive and zealous Sudanese who are calling for the execution of a British teacher who allowed her students to name a class teddy bear Muhammad.

This "crime" has led to the teacher's conviction and a 15-day jail sentence. A Sudanese government spokesman told the New York Times that the teacher's sentence was "very light."

He's not kidding. CNN is reporting today that Sudanese protesters want the teacher, Gillian Gibbons, executed. The Times reports that British diplomats are "furious." They have called the incident "an innocent mistake."

Perhaps these very devout people ought to consider the consequences of their values, beliefs that can elevate a minor slight into an international incident and put religious dogma ahead of actual human life.