Boycott and cultural conflict
So, the Mohammed cartoon flap is still alive and kicking. The experts claim that this will taint the reputation of Denmark for the years to come and that the results of the boycott will never fully subside. Many danes are running around in circles with terror at the loss of prestiege and trade.
On the other hand I read somewhere that although Denmark will lose billions in trade over this, the total loss repesents about 1.7% of our total export budget. And in spite of the boycotts, our exports are expected to rise about 3% throughout 2006. So this is no big deal, really.
I find it quite amusing, in a twisted way. The muslim world believes that they can make us change our policy on free speech through violence and a paper-tiger boycott of our wares. I expect the long-term damage to their economies will be several orders of magnitude larger then the damage to ours. Denmark is after all a member of the EU and a close ally of the most powerful nation of the earth - two of the largest economic powerhouses in the world. So let them boycott. Like we care. Really.