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They couldn't touch him because arresting him for reading a Quran would cause world wide outrage and riots in Afghanistan at worst, just like when that pastor threatened to burn a Quran.
Since when is free speech limited to being something we all want to hear?
In front of the DMV? Holy crap Caifornia has really gone to shit. Occupy movement can sit anywhere they want on public lands before midnight and not be arrested unless they get violent, but this guy gets arrested for reading the bible. Californians, you guys better wake up And start doing something about this stupid shit.
Taking Liberties: Arrested For Reading The Bible? | Fox News
The title "arrested for reading the Bible" is misleading; it makes it sound as if the guy was sitting in a park reading to himself and then police came and threw him in jail.
What the guy was doing was speaking directly and (arguably) aggressively to an (arguably) captive audience, in front of a government-run building, about a very controversial subject that not everyone wanted to hear.
People have no choice but to go to the DMV; people take time off to the DMV. The guy is making it difficult for people to take care of their official government business in peace.
Why couldn't he have just gone to a park? Not sure why the guy needed to be arrested, but he's annoying nonetheless.
If the guy was speaking out of random doomsday prophecy, and other controversial and aggressive topics to the crowd (non-biblical), I'm sure he would have been arrested just the same; don't take this as an "attack against Christianity".
Since when is free speech limited to being something we all want to hear?
I've read the first amendment. It doesn't say anything against speaking aggressively or that the audience must have the ability to leave or that the speech may not be controversial in nature.
I don't care what the guy was reading. If he wanted to read in public then he has the right to read in public in front of a DMV, in front of a public restroom, in front of an audience at a ball game. It doesn't matter where he reads especially on public property. Now, if he were trying to read at a movie theater, the owners of the theater would have the right to have him removed, but, not in this case.
Immie
They couldn't touch him because arresting him for reading a Quran would cause world wide outrage and riots in Afghanistan at worst, just like when that pastor threatened to burn a Quran.
They most certainly could touch him and, now that the precedent has been set, definitely would, riots in Afghanistan or no.
However, as I said the most likely outcome would have involved violence directed against the reader, who would therefore not have been the only person arrested.
He wasn't simply reading his bible to himself waiting for the DMV to open. I do wonder if the arresting officer gave him the chance to stop reading out loud to the people in the line........
He's creating an intimidating situation for people who simply want to get their drivers licenses renewed, says Conaway, who says its OK to preach in public, but not when your listeners cant leave.
He does not have the right to intimidate others and force them to listen and impede their ability to do normal business activities such as going to the DMV.
Many in the OWS movement have been arrested.
Since when is free speech limited to being something we all want to hear?
The right of free speech is not unlimited. This arrest is comparable to arresting someone for blaring a portable stereo at top volume with heavy metal or rap or whatever in the same location.
He wasn't simply reading his bible to himself waiting for the DMV to open. I do wonder if the arresting officer gave him the chance to stop reading out loud to the people in the line........
He's creating an intimidating situation for people who simply want to get their drivers licenses renewed, says Conaway, who says its OK to preach in public, but not when your listeners cant leave.
He does not have the right to intimidate others and force them to listen and impede their ability to do normal business activities such as going to the DMV.
Many in the OWS movement have been arrested.
The preacher was not charged with creating an intimidating situation, or for reading the Bible in public. He was charged with trespass. He was improperly arrested on a bogus charge by a misguided cop, and the trespass charge is nothing more than a save face move by the state.
The statute in question was enacted to prevent protestors from threatening customers at a place of business. It does not protect the public from irritating speech or noise.
what law says that you cannot read in public?
There has to be more to this than reading a book.
(p.s. This should be in the religion and ethics thread. It will probably get more responses there also.)
they said he had a "captive" audience. Like he took hostages because of the "captive" audience. That's how far out they went to justify his arrest. Ridiculous.
i guarantee you if he were reading a quran and had a captive audience, nothing would have happened.
He picked the closed DMV knowing that we have a crazy and totalitarian government that was likely to arrest him.
He picked the about-to-open DMV knowing that we have a responsible government that would arrest him, but that he could turn it into a propaganda point encouraging religious-right-nutcases to spin it exactly the way you just did.
So a responsible government is one that arrests people for exercising their religious beliefs in public?
He wasn't simply reading his bible to himself waiting for the DMV to open. I do wonder if the arresting officer gave him the chance to stop reading out loud to the people in the line........
He's creating an intimidating situation for people who simply want to get their drivers licenses renewed, says Conaway, who says its OK to preach in public, but not when your listeners cant leave.
He does not have the right to intimidate others and force them to listen and impede their ability to do normal business activities such as going to the DMV.
Many in the OWS movement have been arrested.
The preacher was not charged with creating an intimidating situation, or for reading the Bible in public. He was charged with trespass. He was improperly arrested on a bogus charge by a misguided cop, and the trespass charge is nothing more than a save face move by the state.
The statute in question was enacted to prevent protestors from threatening customers at a place of business. It does not protect the public from irritating speech or noise.
Even if he had been reading the newspaper, loudly at people waiting in line, that would have been disturbing the peace and law enforcement was right to stop him.
Your right to preach in public ends where my ears begin. That's what gives me the right to close my door in your face. It also gives me the right to conduct my business without you yelling your religion in my face.
Frankly, I would find this situation threatening. Bible thumpers can be fruitier than nutcakes. But, this story came from faux so, without corroboration, we have no way of knowing what really happened.
Tea party and ows allowed to exercise 1st amendment rights in public places and this guy can't?
they were in line to get in once it opened.He was 50 yards away from the door to a closed business, hardly in anyone's face.
typical leftist answer ... should the black panthers shouting out racial slurs and intimidating voters at the ballot box in 2008 have been arrested ??He wasn't simply reading his bible to himself waiting for the DMV to open. I do wonder if the arresting officer gave him the chance to stop reading out loud to the people in the line........
He's creating an intimidating situation for people who simply want to get their drivers licenses renewed, says Conaway, who says its OK to preach in public, but not when your listeners cant leave.
He does not have the right to intimidate others and force them to listen and impede their ability to do normal business activities such as going to the DMV.
Many in the OWS movement have been arrested.
typical leftist answer ... should the black panthers shouting out racial slurs and intimidating voters at the ballot box in 2008 have been arrested ??He wasn't simply reading his bible to himself waiting for the DMV to open. I do wonder if the arresting officer gave him the chance to stop reading out loud to the people in the line........
He's creating an intimidating situation for people who simply want to get their drivers licenses renewed, says Conaway, who says its OK to preach in public, but not when your listeners cant leave.
He does not have the right to intimidate others and force them to listen and impede their ability to do normal business activities such as going to the DMV.
Many in the OWS movement have been arrested.
