Danish cartoons

Wow. This whole situation surrounding cartoons of the prophet Mohammed boggles my mind. I just read in the online version of the New York Times that it was a major topic of conversation at a meeting of Islamic leaders in Mecca this past week. What?? Seriously? I kind of wonder if there are some folks who are using this as a way to poor gasoline in a flame that's already burning hot enough. I mean, I see cartoons depicting God and Jesus in funny, even derogatory ways, fairly often, but I'm not about to call up the President of the United States and try to file a complaint. I, clearly, do not understand why people of the Islamic faith are so upset about this. Maybe somebody can help me understand. Seriously.