 Christopher Hitchens wrote in Slate that official reaction in the West — particularly the United States — was too lenient toward the protesters and Muslim community in Denmark , and insufficiently supportive of Denmark and the right to free speech . He said , " nobody in authority can be found to state the obvious and the necessary — that we stand with the Danes against this defamation and blackmail and sabotage . Instead , all compassion and concern is apparently to be expended upon those who lit the powder trail , and who yell and scream for joy as the embassies of democracies are put to the torch in the capital cities of miserable , fly @-@ blown dictatorships . Let 's be sure we haven 't hurt the vandals ' feelings . " William Kristol also wrote that the response of Western leaders , with the exception of the Danish Prime Minister , was too weak and that the issue was used as an excuse by " those who are threatened by our effort to help liberalize and civilize the Middle East " to fight back against the " assault " on radical Islamists and Middle Eastern dictatorships . 
