Do people choose to be offended?

Although the immediate context is the depictions of Mohammed, there are dozens of recent instances where one group or another has reacted – sometimes violently, sometimes with fists, sometimes with letters to the editor, sometimes with demonstrations – based on their perception.

To me, the originator of the information (Whether Charlie Hebdo, Westboro Baptist Church, Salman Rushdie, or a TV or movie director) has a far smaller role in the so-called offensive action than the receiver.

In other words, the same message is being sent out by the book/broadcast/movie to all of us, but only certain people choose to be offended.

If that’s the case, why is the onus on the rest of us not to offend them, when being offended is a voluntary, personal choice?