Quote:
Originally Posted by Strontium Dog
Charlie Hebdo - French publication but probably has a small circulation in UK so for the sake of argument...
If you're saying that printing cartoons depicting the Prophet Muhammad is hate speech then you must be all for blasphemy laws in general? I'm not and any religion that imposes their own beliefs on the world at large is a valid target for satire. Yes Charlie Hebdo = free speech.
And your second biggest example is a dog trained to do a nazi salute.
Man fined for hate crime after filming pug's 'Nazi salutes'
To flesh out the story a bit ...
So I'd say that's hate speech as defined by the laws of the UK - the sheriff certainly thought so.
The Hebdo cartoons were reprinted in the uk.
I don't know why you would draw the conclusion that I am against the Hebdo covers. The logical conclusion from my posts surely should have been that I consider it all free speech, by which I mean I think hate speech laws are wrong.
But the drawing of Muhammed wearing a bomb turban on his head is pretty clearly hate speech. The hate speech trial over the three covers had to invent a reason why it was free speech that is logically inconsistent.
Part of the free speech hate speech trial around these cartoons centred on how people can just not buy the magazine if they don't want to see the offensive material. Similarly maybe don't click on a YouTube video titled "mate yur dogs a nazi" if you are offended by Nazis?
Separately btw I have no issue with YouTube deleting the video and banning the guy. I genuinely have no support for either the dog nazi guy or the Hebdo editors. But they both should have free speech because sometimes defending ****ty people saying ****ty things is the price for defending good people saying controversial things people aren't yet ready to hear.
Given the choice between the ACLU and British government when it comes to rights and freedoms I come down on the side of the ACLU.
Hate speech law is subjective and that is why it is wrong. How is Katie Hopkins or Boris Johnson or Jeremy Clarkson not in prison? Because they are powerful and connected so the rules don't apply to them like it would to powerless people like you and I even if we said or did something a fraction as bad.