So here we go again with a very touchy Islamic group threatening “South Park” creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker with death because the cartoon show dared to have a cartoon character version of Mohammed, the revered prophet of Islam, revered so much that if you don’t revere him some of his followers will kill you, even for a freaking cartoon. In any case, Comedy Central backed down and censored the episode: ‘South Park’ Episode Is Altered After Muslim Group’s Warning.

The tough part is that it’s actually understandable why a corporation would back down. They have a responsibility to keep their employees safe, and the kinds of cretins who make death threats for this kind of stuff won’t hesitate to direct attacks at any Comedy Central employees, buildings, vehicles, or random passers-by they might encounter. It’s not really up to Stone and Parker at that point, no matter how much they might (or might not) want to take a stand; they’re not the only potential targets.

Still sucks, though. And the threats will continue until a stiffer spine shows up somewhere in the media.

UPDATE at 4/22/10 3:26:24 pm:

Anderson Cooper interviews Ayaan Hirsi Ali about these threats, and the murder of her associate Theo Van Gogh in Amsterdam:

FLV Video