Blasphemy is speech that has been outlawed to prevent religion from losing arguments. I can understand the desire to avoid social disorder, but by coddling and enabling religious extremists, it only makes things worse in the long run. Religion is not entitled to a privileged and protected place in a free society. Religion needs to be able to defend their belief systems in the marketplace of ideas without resorting to violence to silence people they disagree with.
Apparently, Denmark hasn't figured out the fact that blasphemy is a victimless crime. Whether the object is the Quran, the Bible, or the Zend Avesta, IT'S JUST A BOOK WITH PAGES!!! No human being is harmed, no wound is inflicted, and the stupid book can be replaced or reprinted, frequently in the time it takes to talk about it.
This is part of the infantilization that happens with religious indoctrination. It elevates a THING over human beings and gives that thing privileges and priorities which should be ascribed to PEOPLE. Indeed, this is a massive step backward for the Danish, and I fully expect some serious civil disobedience regarding this ruling in the near future.
We are going through something here in the US which has the same roots. All over the country red states are passing laws to make it unsafe to be or talk about being gay. They are all being promulgated by evangelical christians who just cannot stand to have anyone thumb their nose at their religious sensitivities. Being 'woke' in Florida has essentially become a crime and they are dismantling their education system to make sure kids and young adults cannot be exposed to ideas they disapprove of. The people who promulgate or incite these laws have a pathological sense of right and wrong and they are willing to burn down modern civilization to keep other people from insulting their god. I just wonder why these all-seeing, all-knowing, all-powerful, and yet, undetectable gods can't just defend themselves?
Normally, I try to stay on topic an relevant to Hemant's post, but I must admit to the fury I'm currently dealing with. What's going to happen here - and I cannot say how much I hope I'm wrong - is the court system is going to delay until the pregnancy comes to a 'natural' outcome. The mother's life may be in danger, her ability to conceive in the future is certainly in danger, but the AG of Texas has decided that this is a good text case and he knows more about it than the woman's doctors do. The AG has gone so far as to warn local hospitals that he'll go after them if they help this woman.
This has always been the problem with abortion bans: medicine from the judicial bench is deadly when people don't have time. The lawyers act like the wait is no big deal, and for them, it's not - but if you're the one in need of treatment, that wait can and has been fatal. While they wrangle a decision that suits them, they take up valuable time that this woman could have received medical care. Any doctor worth the title will tell you that most medical conditions respond better when they're caught and treated early, so waiting on the court system is not, in fact, reasonable in these matters.
Good luck to Kate Cox. This isn't something that she should have splashed all over the media, and I have no doubt this is painful for her. She's already got two kids, wants to have more, and is having to risk her fertility for some authoritarian jerk who thinks he knows medicine to get his rocks off.
"The burning of religious texts is disrespectful and hurtful..."
I'd call what is found in the pages within those religious texts disrespectful and hurtful. Those texts were certainly used to commit horrors against humankind. They still are to this day. What the fuck are the Danes tying to protect?
Møkk. I have been expecting this. Luckily Norway and Sweden seems to continue to allow people burning their own books. As we should. My Thor, this is frustrating.
When you outlaw something base only on the response that something would get, you are giving those that respond license to be more violent over less offense. Essentially the terrorists win.
It gets worse the more ground is conceded. Today it’s banning burning holy books over marches in the streets, tomorrow it’s drawing cartoons in a newspaper over an attack on a newspaper, then it’s whispering criticism to your family over bands of religious police gangs murdering people in their homes, or not wearing a hijab over acid attacks.
This law only serves to give the most extreme people cover to be more violent and intolerant.
Denmark's government is only centrist in US terms. In sane countries it would be considered so far to the right it would be verging on the openly national socialst governments of countries like Hungary, Italy or Israel.
My ex-father-in-law was a sternly conservative Missouri Synod Lutheran who believed that everything in the Bible, right down to the punctuation marks, were infallible truths. I knew it was pointless to discuss these things with him, but I did point out that the Bible had been translated into many languages, making it difficult to claim inerrancy. His reply to me was that if anything about the Bible was questioned, the entire structure [of Christianity] would come down. End of conversation. It supports oraxx's statement that blasphemy laws are there "to prevent religion from losing arguments."
What if a Dane goes to another country without blasphemy laws, burns the book on camera and returns to Denmark? The "crime" happened outside of Danish jurisdiction.
OT : it's what I feared but having it confirmed is hard "My name is X. I’m a very good friend of Jomicur in X, X, US.
I saw that you had written to Jomicur on November 2nd expressing your concern.
I am so sorry, but Jomicur passed away unexpectedly on October 21st. A terrible shock."
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LIPc1cfS-oQ&pp=ygUJb2huZSBkaWNo
Blasphemy is speech that has been outlawed to prevent religion from losing arguments. I can understand the desire to avoid social disorder, but by coddling and enabling religious extremists, it only makes things worse in the long run. Religion is not entitled to a privileged and protected place in a free society. Religion needs to be able to defend their belief systems in the marketplace of ideas without resorting to violence to silence people they disagree with.
Blasphemy laws: since God can't punish you for hurting his feelings, we have to.
So if I go to Denmark to burn mein kampf would I get punished ? After all it's an important book for nazillons.
Apparently, Denmark hasn't figured out the fact that blasphemy is a victimless crime. Whether the object is the Quran, the Bible, or the Zend Avesta, IT'S JUST A BOOK WITH PAGES!!! No human being is harmed, no wound is inflicted, and the stupid book can be replaced or reprinted, frequently in the time it takes to talk about it.
This is part of the infantilization that happens with religious indoctrination. It elevates a THING over human beings and gives that thing privileges and priorities which should be ascribed to PEOPLE. Indeed, this is a massive step backward for the Danish, and I fully expect some serious civil disobedience regarding this ruling in the near future.
We are going through something here in the US which has the same roots. All over the country red states are passing laws to make it unsafe to be or talk about being gay. They are all being promulgated by evangelical christians who just cannot stand to have anyone thumb their nose at their religious sensitivities. Being 'woke' in Florida has essentially become a crime and they are dismantling their education system to make sure kids and young adults cannot be exposed to ideas they disapprove of. The people who promulgate or incite these laws have a pathological sense of right and wrong and they are willing to burn down modern civilization to keep other people from insulting their god. I just wonder why these all-seeing, all-knowing, all-powerful, and yet, undetectable gods can't just defend themselves?
OT: So Texas has apparently decided that the pregnant person with a nonviable fetus can't have an abortion: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/dec/09/texas-supreme-court-temporarily-blocks-woman-from-abortion-for-non-viable-pregnancy
Normally, I try to stay on topic an relevant to Hemant's post, but I must admit to the fury I'm currently dealing with. What's going to happen here - and I cannot say how much I hope I'm wrong - is the court system is going to delay until the pregnancy comes to a 'natural' outcome. The mother's life may be in danger, her ability to conceive in the future is certainly in danger, but the AG of Texas has decided that this is a good text case and he knows more about it than the woman's doctors do. The AG has gone so far as to warn local hospitals that he'll go after them if they help this woman.
This has always been the problem with abortion bans: medicine from the judicial bench is deadly when people don't have time. The lawyers act like the wait is no big deal, and for them, it's not - but if you're the one in need of treatment, that wait can and has been fatal. While they wrangle a decision that suits them, they take up valuable time that this woman could have received medical care. Any doctor worth the title will tell you that most medical conditions respond better when they're caught and treated early, so waiting on the court system is not, in fact, reasonable in these matters.
Good luck to Kate Cox. This isn't something that she should have splashed all over the media, and I have no doubt this is painful for her. She's already got two kids, wants to have more, and is having to risk her fertility for some authoritarian jerk who thinks he knows medicine to get his rocks off.
"The burning of religious texts is disrespectful and hurtful..."
I'd call what is found in the pages within those religious texts disrespectful and hurtful. Those texts were certainly used to commit horrors against humankind. They still are to this day. What the fuck are the Danes tying to protect?
Møkk. I have been expecting this. Luckily Norway and Sweden seems to continue to allow people burning their own books. As we should. My Thor, this is frustrating.
Liberalism is under attack everywhere. Including here.
https://www.rawstory.com/vance-trump-doj-probe-demand/
Republicans have stupidly called every election since 2012 a “Flight 93” election even though their opposition was just regular old Democrats.
2024 really is one.
When you outlaw something base only on the response that something would get, you are giving those that respond license to be more violent over less offense. Essentially the terrorists win.
It gets worse the more ground is conceded. Today it’s banning burning holy books over marches in the streets, tomorrow it’s drawing cartoons in a newspaper over an attack on a newspaper, then it’s whispering criticism to your family over bands of religious police gangs murdering people in their homes, or not wearing a hijab over acid attacks.
This law only serves to give the most extreme people cover to be more violent and intolerant.
Denmark's government is only centrist in US terms. In sane countries it would be considered so far to the right it would be verging on the openly national socialst governments of countries like Hungary, Italy or Israel.
My ex-father-in-law was a sternly conservative Missouri Synod Lutheran who believed that everything in the Bible, right down to the punctuation marks, were infallible truths. I knew it was pointless to discuss these things with him, but I did point out that the Bible had been translated into many languages, making it difficult to claim inerrancy. His reply to me was that if anything about the Bible was questioned, the entire structure [of Christianity] would come down. End of conversation. It supports oraxx's statement that blasphemy laws are there "to prevent religion from losing arguments."
Something is rotten in Denmark, indeed.
Suppose I smash a thumb drive or a CD that has “scripture” saved on it?
What if a Dane goes to another country without blasphemy laws, burns the book on camera and returns to Denmark? The "crime" happened outside of Danish jurisdiction.