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In both Canada and New Zealand it is not blasphemous libel to express in good faith any opinion on a religious subject.
Adding to this, in Canada, there is a bill making its way through Parliament that would repeal the blasphemous libel charge in the Criminal Code. See here, under "Obsolete and/or redundant provisions":
Seems that while the Canadian blasphemous libel charge has not been prosecuted in decades, it would (IMHO) conflict with the freedom of thought, belief, and expressions of the Canadian Charter; and could not be saved by s. 1. Thus, it is effectively redundant--best to just get rid of it.
Last edited by ChevySpoons; 10-09-2018 at 10:24 PM..
Libel isn't criminal in the US, it's civil. Pursuit of a libel charge requires one citizen to sue another, rather than criminal, which is the State or the US vs. the accused.
And you can already sue someone civilly if you think they've harmed you. But no, you can't call the cops and have them taken away in handcuffs for perceived libel.
I gotta say, NJMann, I'm a firm Christian and church goer and I say God Bless You and Merry Christmas and Can I Pray for You but your post is chilling. No, we do not need to be charging people with crimes who don't agree with us.
I agree. It's concerning to me that there are those who seek to shut down free speech simply because we may disagree with each other.
”Blasphemous libel was originally an offence under the common law of England. Today, it is an offence under the common law of Northern Ireland, it is a statutory offence in Canada and New Zealand, and it has been abolished in England and Wales. It consists of the publication of material which exposes the Christian religion to scurrility, vilification, ridicule, and contempt, and the material must have the tendency to shock and outrage the feelings of Christians. It is a form of criminal libel.”
About 25% of the world’s countries and territories has anti-blasphemy law, including several Western nations.
If you cannot discriminate anyone against race, religion, etc. we shouldn’t be allowed to discriminate against religion (Christianity) either. Majority religion should be respected in America.
Prior to independence some American colonies had anti-blasphemy law.
So saying something negative about religion is discrimination? LOL.
I think most Americans would strenuously resist the idea that government should prosecute blasphemy. But then, I’ve noted before that you don’t like the First Amendment. Well, it’s an opinion. Not one I respect, but you have the right to hold it, whether anyone else likes it or not. Thanks to the First Amendment.
Some posters post stuff I wonder if it is even real. The first post in this thread is one of those.
I’ve advanced the idea that the OP is a Poe - someone masquerading as a christian who deliberately posts off-the-wall nonsense in order to make christians look bad. I still think that’s a strong possibility.
Some of these Christers have too much time on their hands. They'd be better off taking care of their families than trying to turn the country into a theocratic police state like 15th century Spain.
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