Is it OK to insult Islam in Canada?

[Bonam]

Heres a couple of photos taken two blocks away from the one you used...

Cheers,

http://blog.cleveland.com/world_impact/2008/12/large_School-Bombing-Dec28-08-Afghanistan_Meye.jpg

http://www.outlookindia.com/images/afghanistan_bombing_20080721.jpg

Hahaha, Afghanistan isn't "two blocks" from Baghdad. I guess geography isn't your strong suit.

[Born Free]

Hahaha, Afghanistan isn't "two blocks" from Baghdad. I guess geography isn't your strong suit.

Ha Ha....the rocks I was refering to were in Afghanistan where the troops are still moving them around without a hope in Hell of winning a damn thing...

PS the rocks in Iraq are now being moved around by Iraquis and their car bombs...

Edited April 18, 2010 by Born Free

[Bonam]

Ha Ha....the rocks I was refering to were in Afghanistan

No you were replying to BC and said your photos were "two blocks" from the one he used. The photo he used was of the embassy in Baghdad. The photos you posted were from Afghanistan.

Not wiggling out of this one so easily haha ;p

[Born Free]

You call a victorious war in Iraq a "bottomless sinkhole"? No wonder people don't trust the left with foreign policy.

TARP was Bush, dude - so yes a success. Thanks for the link.

No problem Jerry. Its still a trillion spent in that sinkhole and counting.

As far as foreign policy goes, the right have screwed the world up big time. And if that aint enough, they then decided to have a Sarah Palin run for office. You should be proud..

[Born Free]

No you were replying to BC and said your photos were "two blocks" from the one he used. The photo he used was of the embassy in Baghdad. The photos you posted were from Afghanistan.

Not wiggling out of this one so easily haha ;p

Nothing to wiggle about here. Afghanistan is a pile of rubble and Iraq is now busy bombing themselves... live with it Mr Bonham.

[Oleg Bach]

Nothing worse than red neck Islamics- especially the home grown British and American ones..you know those aggressive idiots that remind me of negro lynching terds from Americas' glorious southern past. These red neck jerks with their beards and little hats are about as smart as Nazi youth following some hateful and destructive idea that is not well thought out by the instigators nor the henchmen.

The problem is that there will never be a shortage of dirty unwashed masses of dumb recruits for any nasty cause that comes along..as Christ said the poor will always be with us...I swear he meant the poor in mind and spirit- the stupid..the robots..the suicide bombers- the broken through sodomy--between the Pope and the Mullahs...it seems they need to create the stupid to keep the institutions moving along.

[JerrySeinfeld]

No problem Jerry. Its still a trillion spent in that sinkhole and counting.

As far as foreign policy goes, the right have screwed the world up big time. And if that aint enough, they then decided to have a Sarah Palin run for office. You should be proud..

Hmmm. We walked into a country and created a democracy. "When a guy's life goal is to blow himself up and you beat him to the punch - you are HAULING ASS" (Dennis Miller)

A trillion well spent keeping the country safe and establishing a true democracy in the heart of nutterland. Versus the well used funds in Obama's stimulous plan

BUSH: 2,689 days without a terrorist attack on home soil.

OBAMA LASTS LESS THAN A YEAR

And now Obama wants to give it all back.

And I like Palin - so yes I'm proud. Helluva at least a couple of steps up from *Bleepin* Joe Biden

Anyway we digress. I thought this was supposed to be a thread about insulting Islam. If you want to start a thread about Palin you should do it on your own thread.

[bush_cheney2004]

I'm just singing your lyrics. One more thing...its a trillion and counting to move all that rubble but your tea and crumpets gang say you cant afford to deal with an overdue health care reform....idiots all...

Of course you are singing our lyrics....that's the only song you have ever known. Changing the channel only brings more of the same.

Heres a couple of photos taken two blocks away from the one you used...by the way...I'm refering to Afghanistan..

Bonam has already pointed out your error...no need to pile on here.

[jbg]

Hmmm. We walked into a country and created a democracy. "When a guy's life goal is to blow himself up and you beat him to the punch - you are HAULING ASS" (Dennis Miller)

Now that they're trying to sew bombs deep inside a person's body, query, do we take the terrorist far out onto the runway and then detonate the terrorist?

[Born Free]

Of course you are singing our lyrics....

They're your lyrics....

[Born Free]

Hmmm. We walked into a country and created a democracy. "When a guy's life goal is to blow himself up and you beat him to the punch - you are HAULING ASS" (Dennis Miller)

A trillion well spent keeping the country safe and establishing a true democracy in the heart of nutterland. Versus the well used funds in Obama's stimulous plan

BUSH: 2,689 days without a terrorist attack on home soil.

OBAMA LASTS LESS THAN A YEAR

And now Obama wants to give it all back.

And I like Palin - so yes I'm proud. Helluva at least a couple of steps up from *Bleepin* Joe Biden

Anyway we digress. I thought this was supposed to be a thread about insulting Islam. If you want to start a thread about Palin you should do it on your own thread.

Dennis Miller is a dork to say the least. You should be embarassed for admitting you like Palin.

Lastly, I didnt start the digression...I merely picked up on your misconceptions.

[Argus]

From the National Post article, it wasn't about being insulted but...

They used a variety of synonyms but it basically does come down to being indignant at a percieved lack of respect - or insult.

You on the other hand make a blanked statement that Islam is a political project.

That's not much of a stretch given Islam comes complete with a set of laws designed for nation states to operate under, a set of laws the majority of Muslims in polls seem to want to put in place as official legal codes in their countries. Islamism is most certainly political, and their main goal appears to be to force governments to put Sharia and other laws from Islam into place.

[Argus]

So it`s a simple fact that if Steyn had lost the case it would be illegal to insult Islam in Canada ?

Simply ridiculous.

Would you agree that had Steyn lost the case it would be necessary for anyone saying anything which might be interpreted as insulting to Islam to be very, very, very careful about their subject matter? And that news media would be very, very reluctant to carry any kind of analyses which might offend the easily offendable Muslim?

Remember that Steyn's article wasn't designed to insult Islam. His article dealt with the low birth rates in the West, the complications this meant for the welfare state, and the surge in youth and zealtry in the Islamic world, as well as overcrowding that, as he says, will have yemen with a greater population than Russia. There was nothing in the article that I recall which said anything about Islam itself as a religion. Instead it dealt with Islamism and mentioned that a goodly number of Muslims, while not directly supporting terrorism, generally support many of the aims of the terrorists, especially concerning wanting to live under Islamic law. and, of course, that their numbers were rising very rapidly in western countries. This is politcal analyses, not racist or ethnic hate speech, and if that sort of commentary were to be ruled as hate speech then nothing anyone said in opposition to Islamism would be safe from the courts and human rights boards.

[Born Free]

Would you agree that had Steyn lost the case it would be necessary for anyone saying anything which might be interpreted as insulting to Islam to be very, very, very careful about their subject matter?

If the Queen had balls she would be King....

[bloodyminded]

Indeed. Those who still insist on 2006 thinking on Iraq mustn't havee read a newspaper sincce then. The odd car bomb aside (nothing Paris, Israel, London don't experience), Iraq is a changed place from 4 years ago. Some people don't wish to recognize that fact.

I agree. Some people don't wish to recognize that the newspapers have been consistently underplaying the catastrophic violence and profound poverty, including severe childhood malnutrition that has escalated in alarming ways; and some people don't wish to recognize that the refugee problem--both internally and out-of-country--has remained at epic proportions since quite early in the conflict; and some people definitely don't wish to recognize Sir Bandelot's excellent point that Iraq is becoming closer allied to influential and radical mullahs. Including the more hardline Iranians.

[Muddy]

Would you agree that had Steyn lost the case it would be necessary for anyone saying anything which might be interpreted as insulting to Islam to be very, very, very careful about their subject matter? And that news media would be very, very reluctant to carry any kind of analyses which might offend the easily offendable Muslim?

Remember that Steyn's article wasn't designed to insult Islam. His article dealt with the low birth rates in the West, the complications this meant for the welfare state, and the surge in youth and zealtry in the Islamic world, as well as overcrowding that, as he says, will have yemen with a greater population than Russia. There was nothing in the article that I recall which said anything about Islam itself as a religion. Instead it dealt with Islamism and mentioned that a goodly number of Muslims, while not directly supporting terrorism, generally support many of the aims of the terrorists, especially concerning wanting to live under Islamic law. and, of course, that their numbers were rising very rapidly in western countries. This is politcal analyses, not racist or ethnic hate speech, and if that sort of commentary were to be ruled as hate speech then nothing anyone said in opposition to Islamism would be safe from the courts and human rights boards.

[Muddy]

That was very well said Argus, I wish I could put into words so eloquently those thoughts.The impact if Islam had won would eventually lead to an imbalance in rights and a resentment that would fester in the minds of those less privaledged.

[Born Free]

That was very well said Argus, I wish I could put into words so eloquently those thoughts.The impact if Islam had won would eventually lead to an imbalance in rights and a resentment that would fester in the minds of those less privaledged.

Baloney. The case was tossed because it didnt have any merits. Free speech is still alive..

Edited April 19, 2010 by Born Free

[Michael Hardner]

Would you agree that had Steyn lost the case it would be necessary for anyone saying anything which might be interpreted as insulting to Islam to be very, very, very careful about their subject matter?

Insulting a religion is free expression, and it will never be otherwise.

Jerry uses incendiary language like 'one step closer to Sharia law' but it's a big nothing of course.

[JerrySeinfeld]

Michael all you need to do is look at the head of the anglican church agreeing that we will soon see elements of sharia law in England to see where Canada is headed if we pursue the same path of multiculturalism.

That;s the scariest part about sharia - it creeps in while apologist moderators are busy making excuses for Islam.

Need I provide a cite?

Edited April 20, 2010 by JerrySeinfeld

[Muddy]

Baloney. The case was tossed because it didnt have any merits. Free speech is still alive..

The case had no merit ,that is correct . But ordinary folks without resources would have to capitulate ,pay the fine or go bust.So Levant`s and Steyn`s victory was very important to all people who believe in free speech and expression.

[jbg]

The case had no merit ,that is correct . But ordinary folks without resources would have to capitulate ,pay the fine or go bust.So Levant`s and Steyn`s victory was very important to all people who believe in free speech and expression.

And very important to a free Canada.

[bloodyminded]

I think Steyn's case was meaningful, mostly because it should never have gotten to the point where he was forced to defend himself. His elitist ugliness should not be grounds for any sort of state interference.

Hell, Levant was put into the strange situation of expressing admiration for Chomsky over this mess, when Chomsky called the HRCs "outrageous."

[Argus]

Baloney. The case was tossed because it didnt have any merits. Free speech is still alive..

If the board believed the case had had no merits it would not have been accepted as a complaint. Macleans and Steyn would not have had to hire lawyers, and there would not have been five days of hearings.

[Argus]

Insulting a religion is free expression, and it will never be otherwise.

That simply is not true. There is ample room for interpretation of HR and hate speech rules and laws to cause a conviction for saying nasty things about Muslims or Jews or whatever, depending on context. Even the Hr boards which dismissed the complaints were not adamant about that dismissal. For example, the Canadian Human Rights Commission used words like " overall, "the views expressed in the Steyn article, when considered as a whole and in context, are not of an extreme nature". Thus it can be fairly obviously inferred that they considered segments of the article to be considered less easy to dismiss if taken on their own.