#2 2010-05-04 01:07:42
On the one hand, I enjoy seeing members of the Christoban subjected to official harassment for inciting hatred of gay people. On the other hand, as someone who has been known to say outrageous things myself, the suppression of Free Speech freaks me out.
Offline
#3 2010-05-04 01:35:58
I hear ya, but it gave him hours of preaching material. Having enjoyed many an afternoon at Speakers Corner, I find this all a bit odd. Kind of like Sproul Plaza for Cockneys, Pikeys and Pakis.
Offline
#4 2010-05-04 01:59:26
This will not end well. What happens when the next government, or another government farther down the road, decides that acceptable speech should include B but not A? This is seriously fucked. If someone wants to stand on a street corner and tell me I'm a sinner, fine. Let them. I don't have to listen to it and if it's really a problem, freedom of speech allows me to counteract his stupid statements with information supporting my arguments.
This is such a stupid, stupid move.
Offline
#5 2010-05-04 02:11:21
After seeing the Special Branch with Heckler&Koch machine guns manning the road blocks looking for Flying Pickets during the Coal Strike in 84', nothing surprises me anymore about the UK. As much as I dislike New Labour, the Conservatives under the Neo-Thatherite Cameron will serve the common laws far worse.
There is no going back it seems.
Offline
#6 2010-05-04 08:48:06
Every pedestrian on High-Street would be subject to arrest.
Offline
#7 2010-05-04 11:30:20
I am encouraged that my H-S friends see the vile potential in hate speech laws. The same goes for hate crime laws. Why should there be a difference in the punishment for an asshole who beats up a gay person because he's gay and an asshole who beats up a fat guy because he's fat or a red head because he's ginger?
Offline
#9 2010-05-04 13:43:01
I am sure I can guess exactly how they "took care of that" too. Our elected officials, so open-minded and willing to consider others differences.
Offline
#10 2010-05-05 09:28:44
I love the smell of Irony in the morning! It smells just like KY Jelly! Nothing like a bar of soap wrapped in a towel for your squad mate while you are busy bringing freedom to the (Germans | Koreans | Vietnamese | Afghanis | Iraqis )
Offline
#11 2010-05-05 19:57:59
phreddy wrote:
Why should there be a difference in the punishment for an asshole who beats up a gay person because he's gay and an asshole who beats up a fat guy because he's fat or a red head because he's ginger?
Or most importantly, the asshole who just likes to fight.
Offline
#12 2010-05-05 21:21:37
phreddy wrote:
I am encouraged that my H-S friends see the vile potential in hate speech laws. The same goes for hate crime laws. Why should there be a difference in the punishment for an asshole who beats up a gay person because he's gay and an asshole who beats up a fat guy because he's fat or a red head because he's ginger?
If you kill a guy because he's fucking your wife, your motive is personal antipathy toward that one individual. If it's the 1920s and you lynch a black guy, it's the same body count but an entire group of people are terrorized into submission, not voting, whatever. I can beat up a guy in the bar because he's an asshole, and a gay guy can come there the next night without fear. If I beat up the guy and told everyone it was because he was a faggot, that same gay guy might not want to go to that bar--he was affected without ever having met me, and his personal freedoms were affected.
There's a difference between first degree murder and manslaughter based on intent of the killer; this is much the same thing. The difference with crimes and hate crime is that a hate crime is the original crime plus a threat, implicit or explicit, to a larger group.
Offline
