How tragic that the U.S. ambassador to Libya, Chris Stevens (in photo), and three staff members were killed Tuesday as the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi was overwhelmed by a mob upset about an obscure film that ridicules the Prophet Muhammad. The violence made Stevens the first U.S. ambassador to die in the line of duty in 33 years. The U.S. Embassy in Cairo also has been targeted by protesters. Boston Globe columnist Farah Stockman watched the trailer on YouTube believed to have inspired the violence, for a movie credited to California real-estate developer Sam Bacile. She found it hard to believe something that “felt like a ‘Saturday Night Live’ spoof” with “terrible acting” and “weird cardboard-looking desert backdrops” could lead to the death of Stevens, a friend of a friend. “The blame for Chris’ death rests squarely with the mob who attacked our embassy. Their actions are despicable, and perhaps were incited by long-standing enemies of the United States. Muslims who are angry at how their religion has been portrayed must stop responding in violent ways that perpetrate the idea of Islam as a dangerous faith,” Stockman wrote. “But shouldn’t people who knowingly incite violence against the United States – as a crude, thinly-veiled publicity stunt – also be held accountable?”
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