Why is the world Afraid?

According to the news today, there is trouble in the Gaza strip today. Nothing new, right? A Danish newspaper in Norway and Denmark published a few cartoons depicting Mohammed the prophet wearing a turban shaped like a bomb with a lit fuse, and the muslim population of Gaza is beating Danish citizens in Israel and 'Palenstine' because not only was the cartoon offensive to them, the very act of showing a picture of the prophet or anyone is bad because it promotes idolatry. Danish citizens are getting beaten, shops are getting destroyed, and the citizenry of Denmark and Norway are either enraged or scared. What kind of religion promotes this insanity? What philosophy preaches slavery of the mind like this? How can a whole mass of people believe in the destruction of another and relate this to God and Heaven? This is not only happening in Denmark or Norway, but all over the world. Look in Thailand, Indonesia, Spain, most of Africa, France, the United Kingdom, etc. Look in Bosnia. Can people not see this 'movement' for what it is? People may argue Christianity enslaves the mind; but look at predominately Christian countries: there is a mass turn to evil because there is a relative amount of freedom to choose. We can choose evil or good. We have the freedom, the power to exercise that freedom. Has the backbone of the United States weakened to a point where we have no resolve to handle this problem? We have the knowledge and the technological capabilities to handle this. But are we too much of cowards to make that choice?