Pope vs. Mohammed -- Irony wins!

So as I understand it, last week the Bishop formerly known as Joseph Ratzinger -- now "The Pope"-- insulted Muslims by quoting an old, dead Pope who accused Islam of being too violent.

That's right. The Pope, the head of the Roman "Nobody stops the Spanish Inquisition!" Church, berated another world religion for being too violent.

Predictably, some Muslims then reacted to The Pope's offensive comments by, well committing acts of violence, burning a church and killing a nun. (Savor the irony.) Many leading Muslims called on The Pope to apologize for offending Islam, just as they did when the Danish cartoons were published.

(You remember the cartoons, right? Do you also remember when the Pope denounced the Danish newspaper for having published them? No? Savor that irony, too.)

In any event, the world outrage forced The Pope's hand this weekend, leading him to give one of those half-assed apologies usually reserved for people like Terrell Owens' agent, wherein The Pope didn't really apologize for saying Islam was a bloodthirsty religion, but rather, apologized for the "reaction" to his provocative remarks. Unsurprisingly, Muslims saw right through the half-assedness and are calling for yet another apology.

I'm rooting against everyone: The Pope, for being a hypocritical bastard with no sense of history; the outraged Muslims, who need to calm the fuck down and realize that their religion does not exist for the purpose of being righteously indignant; and organized religion in general, which is making an impressive stand against the forces of science and reason in the 21st century. Enough is enough.