|
|
|
tomk80
SFN Regular
Netherlands
1278 Posts |
 Posted - 03/02/2009 : 16:41:51 [Permalink]
|
Originally posted by filthy
Is blasphemy a crime? Evidently, a great many of the visitors to American Atheist think so. From PZ: Yes: 3268 96%
No: 94 2%
Sure, it's going in a strongly sensible direction, but wouldn't a short paragraph explaining why blasphemy is not an actionable crime be more informative? Just asking atheists to state that their existence is not criminal is a no-brainer. And I sure hope they never try to claim that these results support the contention that blasphemy is not a crime. |
PZ adds: | Oops, wait...as is pointed out in the comments, I read this wrong — the poll was going in the wrong direction. I guess I just couldn't believe that such a strong majority was actually endorsing such a ridiculous position. |
This caused me to go back and read it again. I saw nothing that went astray from his original statement.
In my less-than-humble opinion, blasphemy is an obligation, criminal or not. 
The question is ridiculous.
|
Hmmm, apparently Christian fucktards have discovered poll-crashing. I didn't think they had the intelligence for it. Figure that. Surprises everyday. |
Tom
`Contrariwise,' continued Tweedledee, `if it was so, it might be; and if it were so, it would be; but as it isn't, it ain't. That's logic.'
-Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Caroll- |
 |
|
|
Simon
SFN Regular
USA
1992 Posts |
Posted - 03/02/2009 : 19:22:49 [Permalink]
|
| Or votebots, they are very popular on youtube these days... |
Look again at that dot. That's here. That's home. That's us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every "superstar," every "supreme leader," every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there – on a mote of dust suspended in a sunbeam.
Carl Sagan - 1996 |
|
|
|
Zebra
Skeptic Friend
USA
354 Posts |
Posted - 03/02/2009 : 21:08:45 [Permalink]
|
This is interesting, from the Wikipedia page on blasphemy:
The last U.S. conviction for blasphemy—at least that of any significance—was of atheist activist Charles Lee Smith. In 1928 he rented a storefront in Little Rock, Arkansas, and gave out free atheist literature there. The sign in the window read: "Evolution Is True. The Bible's a Lie. God's a Ghost." For this he was charged with violating the city ordinance against blasphemy. Because he was an atheist and therefore couldn't swear the court's religious oath to tell the truth, he wasn't permitted to testify in his own defense. The judge then dismissed the original charge, replacing it with one of distributing obscene, slanderous, or scurrilous literature. Smith was convicted, fined $25, and served most of a twenty-six-day jail sentence. His high-profile fast while behind bars drew national media attention. Upon his release, he immediately resumed his atheist activities, was again charged with blasphemy, and this time the charge held. In his trial he was again denied the right to testify and was sentenced to ninety days in jail and a fine of $100. Released on $1,000 bail, Smith appealed the verdict. The case then dragged on for several years until it was finally dismissed.[21]
The US Supreme Court in Joseph Burstyn, Inc v. Wilson, 343 U.S. 495 (1952) held that the New York State blasphemy law was an unconstitutional prior restraint on freedom of speech. The court stated that "It is not the business of government in our nation to suppress real or imagined attacks upon a particular religious doctrine, whether they appear in publications, speeches or motion pictures." |
Way to go, 1952 Supreme Court! |
I think, you know, freedom means freedom for everyone* -Dick Cheney
*some restrictions may apply |
|
|
|
HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 03/03/2009 : 01:36:50 [Permalink]
|
Originally posted by filthy
Is blasphemy a crime? Evidently, a great many of the visitors to American Atheist think so. From PZ: Yes: 3268 96%
No: 94 2%
Sure, it's going in a strongly sensible direction, but wouldn't a short paragraph explaining why blasphemy is not an actionable crime be more informative? Just asking atheists to state that their existence is not criminal is a no-brainer. And I sure hope they never try to claim that these results support the contention that blasphemy is not a crime. |
PZ adds: | Oops, wait...as is pointed out in the comments, I read this wrong — the poll was going in the wrong direction. I guess I just couldn't believe that such a strong majority was actually endorsing such a ridiculous position. |
This caused me to go back and read it again. I saw nothing that went astray from his original statement.
In my less-than-humble opinion, blasphemy is an obligation, criminal or not.
The question is ridiculous.
|
My take on that poll is that it's essentially somewhere between meaningless and trivial.
The poll doesn't ask, "Is blasphemy a good thing, or a bad thing?" It simply asks if it is or is not against the law. People's knowledge of whether or not a law against blasphemy exists isn't a compelling issue. It's not even clear if this is asking whether or not one exists in their own jurisdiction, or just somewhere in the world.
My impression is that the results seem skewed because people are simply and honestly reporting, "Yes, laws against blasphemy exist."
|
“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
| Edited by - HalfMooner on 03/03/2009 01:39:35 |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
UN adopts binding measure to ban blasphemy!
