I agree that just because a society has some laws or principles on the books, doesn't mean the people always or even ever follow them. But that's why I also referred to the riots stirred up by the Danish cartoons. I could have pointed also to the chilling effect of Muslim laws against blasphemy, and to the fact that in the modern period, at least, the laws have been applied many times in the Muslim world. Some Muslim countries kill people for insulting Allah, the Prophet, o the Quran, conflating blasphemy and apostasy.

So no, it's not just anecdotal or theoretical.

As to why I'm talking about the need for having a sense of humour about religion, who says religious people shouldn't be able to come together precisely in comedy? Laughing together can be a bonding experience. So that's why this topic is relevant to this forum about the relation between religions. I'm not trying "looking to put religions against each other." I'm explaining why they are in fact against each other, and I'm suggesting a way of rectifying that. Muslims should stop taking their religion so seriously. They're missing the satirical point of Jewish monotheism.