Great Britain fines free speech during Olympics

[High_Gravity]

Well the Brits tolerate all those Muslims walking around screeching DEATH TO THE UK and demanding Sharia law, so I would say they are pretty tolerant with free speech.

Juxtaposing that with this story, I'd say you have that wrong. I'd say they are selectively tolerant with free speech.

Selective would be the correct word, yes.

 

[L.K.Eder]

Well the Brits tolerate all those Muslims walking around screeching DEATH TO THE UK and demanding Sharia law, so I would say they are pretty tolerant with free speech.

Juxtaposing that with this story, I'd say you have that wrong. I'd say they are selectively tolerant with free speech.

Selective would be the correct word, yes.

selective regarding the juxtaposition.

 

[High_Gravity]

Well the Brits tolerate all those Muslims walking around screeching DEATH TO THE UK and demanding Sharia law, so I would say they are pretty tolerant with free speech.

Juxtaposing that with this story, I'd say you have that wrong. I'd say they are selectively tolerant with free speech.

to really juxtapose it, the "death to the uk" chanters would have to have been at an olympic event, duh

Did this man get fined just because he was at an Olympic event? I thought this was English law across the board regardless of the venue?

 

[L.K.Eder]

Juxtaposing that with this story, I'd say you have that wrong. I'd say they are selectively tolerant with free speech.

to really juxtapose it, the "death to the uk" chanters would have to have been at an olympic event, duh

Did this man get fined just because he was at an Olympic event? I thought this was English law across the board regardless of the venue?

all these stories have been about the olympics.

according to swagger:

But, like I said, the London Olympcis is being used as a tool by the parasitic UN to impress upon everyone the importance (in their opinion) of "diversity" and "enrichment" because they're afraid of all the mounting support the European right-wing is enjoying as a result of the Eurozone collapsing for all to see.

The whole event has been politicised beyond compare. Any dissenting voices are being stamped on and the shame lies at our door for allowing it to happen.

i repeat:


hahaha

 

[Swagger]

Juxtaposing that with this story, I'd say you have that wrong. I'd say they are selectively tolerant with free speech.

to really juxtapose it, the "death to the uk" chanters would have to have been at an olympic event, duh

Did this man get fined just because he was at an Olympic event? I thought this was English law across the board regardless of the venue?

No. It's more than likely he was made an example of due to fears that his behaviour may encourage others to do the same. It was all carried-out in the name of political correctness, rather than due to any legal violation, because unlike in Germany, it isn't actually illegal to do a Nazi salute in the United Kingdom.

 

[Sallow]

Apparently a Lithuanian fan said something that the Great Nazi Britain didn't like and he has $4K less (plus legal fees).

News from The Associated Press

And?

 

[mal]

The UK is known around the world for its respect for and tolerance of free speech. Although free speech has long been recognised as a common law right in Britain, it also has a statutory basis in Article 10 of the European Conventionon Human Rights (the "Convention"), which has been incorporated into UK law by the Human Rights Act 1998.

In fact, Article 10 of the Convention goes beyond free "speech" and guarantees freedom of "expression," which includes not only the spoken word, but written material, images and other published or broadcast material.

When, however, you begin to consider the possible range of expression --including, say, hate speech that incites violence -- it becomes apparent thateven a tolerant society has to put some limits on freedom of expression.Therefore, much of the law relating to free speech is concerned with trying to strike the right balance between freedom of expression and the use (or abuse) of that freedom in a way that harms society.

Article 10 of the European Convention on Human Rights itself recognises the need for some limits on free expression. It provides, however, that limits can only be imposed in order to achieve certain specified aims, and only insofar as is necessary to achieve those aims. The Convention lists several permitted reasons for limiting free speech, including national security, the protection of health or morals, and protection of peoples' rights and reputations.

Free speech - Law and Government

Unless it's "Go and Kill or Harm..." then it shouldn't Concern you.

Do you really Need Government Intruding that much and Protecting you from Words?...

Sad.



peace...

 

[TheGreatGatsby]

Apparently a Lithuanian fan said something that the Great Nazi Britain didn't like and he has $4K less (plus legal fees).

News from The Associated Press

And?

And there's 8 pages. Read some.

 

[mal]

Apparently a Lithuanian fan said something that the Great Nazi Britain didn't like and he has $4K less (plus legal fees).

News from The Associated Press

And?

You want some of that Action here in the States?...



peace...

 

[Ravi]

The British government has a duty to protect the people participating in and watching the Games. They thus have a very pronounced, legitimate say in matters of SECURITY. But hateful speech (like Nazi salutes and racist grunts) doesn't truly represent any security risk.

No. They didn't fine the guy on the basis of the notion that his "speech" constituted a security risk. They fined him on the basis that his KIND of speech was deemed hateful or otherwise worthy of suppression on a NON-security basis.

"This is about respecting their opponents, it is about respecting the games, the Olympic values, and it is a celebration of friendship between people from all over the world." -- quoting, evidently, International Basketball Federation secretary general Patrick Baumann in the article cited in the OP: News from The Associated Press.

Here's an interesting legal analysis from the British "Crown Prosecution Services" web site. Racist and Religious Crime: Legal Guidance: The Crown Prosecution Service

The basketball federation secretary general doesn't have any police powers, so his opinion is merely an opinion.

The federation spokesman was articulating the basis of the policy and the reason for that arrest, regardless of the fact that he was neither a cop nor a prosecutor.

So your quibble is utterly beside the point -- which is kind of your SOP.

It certainly addresses the point: the arrest was not made in the interest of "security." It was made in the interest of political correctness. And while lots of us detest what the fucking asshole did and said, we can still disagree that political correctness is ever a valid ground to suppress free speech.

No offense, but I'll take Scotland Yard's version over yours any day of the week.

The 36-year-old fan, who has not been identified, was arrested "on suspicion of a racially aggravated public-order offence," according to a Scotland Yard spokesman. It is just the latest among several racially tinged incidents to have arisen in London over the past week.

Lithuanian fan arrested for making monkey chants

 

[Swagger]

Jesus wept, it's even worse than I thought. From Ravi's Yahoo article:

Undercover police infiltrated the crowd and seized the man during the game between Lithuania and Nigeria at the basketball arena in the Olympic Park

 

[Ravi]

Jesus wept, it's even worse than I thought. From Ravi's Yahoo article:

Undercover police infiltrated the crowd and seized the man during the game between Lithuania and Nigeria at the basketball arena in the Olympic Park

Yeah, I guess paying attention to the assholes after an hour of assholiness is infiltration.

 

[Swagger]

Forgive me if I'm wrong, Ravi, but undercover officers (who I'm assuming are Special Branch) are supposed to be on the look-out for threats posed to the security of the audience and the structure the event's being held in; not some drunken idiot making a fool of himself.

 

[Ravi]

Forgive me if I'm wrong, Ravi, but undercover officers (who I'm assuming are Special Branch) are supposed to be on the look-out for threats posed to the security of the audience and the structure the event's being held in; not some drunken idiot making a fool of himself.

Drunken idiots get ejected from our stadiums on a regular basis. They usually ARE a threat to security.

 

[manifold]

Forgive me if I'm wrong, Ravi, but undercover officers (who I'm assuming are Special Branch) are supposed to be on the look-out for threats posed to the security of the audience and the structure the event's being held in; not some drunken idiot making a fool of himself.

Drunken idiots get ejected from our stadiums on a regular basis. They usually ARE a threat to security.

How many have to plead guilty to a crime and pay a fine to avoid jail time?

 

[Valerie]

When, however, you begin to consider the possible range of expression --including, say, hate speech that incites violence -- it becomes apparent thateven a tolerant society has to put some limits on freedom of expression.Therefore, much of the law relating to free speech is concerned with trying to strike the right balance between freedom of expression and the use (or abuse) of that freedom in a way that harms society.

Hate speech that incites violence...would that include someone stating that Islam condones violence? Or, that Christianity is an oppressive religion? Or even that "the Virgin Mary was actually a whore?"

Is the quoted text "newspeak" for: It's cool for government to squash politically, religiously, and racially unpopular views in the guise of protecting us?

Yeah, fuck that. That kind of protection I do not need.

Despite all the histrionics, it's simply the kind of protection where specifically you can't go the Olympics and act like an asshat in the crowd without being removed and fined. The creep's still free to go about his life as an asshat and you could always join him at the asshat club and give him a high five for freedom.

 

[High_Gravity]

Jesus wept, it's even worse than I thought. From Ravi's Yahoo article:

Undercover police infiltrated the crowd and seized the man during the game between Lithuania and Nigeria at the basketball arena in the Olympic Park

Well to be fair I figured there would be undercover security at this thing.

 

[Ravi]

Forgive me if I'm wrong, Ravi, but undercover officers (who I'm assuming are Special Branch) are supposed to be on the look-out for threats posed to the security of the audience and the structure the event's being held in; not some drunken idiot making a fool of himself.

Drunken idiots get ejected from our stadiums on a regular basis. They usually ARE a threat to security.

How many have to plead guilty to a crime and pay a fine to avoid jail time?

Here's just one, there are tons of them out there.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1U_wbfl2mV0]Red Sox fans ejected from Yankee Stadium - 2 - YouTube[/ame]

Have you ever actually been to a sporting event???

 

[Valerie]

Good Lord, what is the world coming to when I can't blatantly mock Nigerian basketball players with ape gestures at the Olympics! *sob*

 

[manifold]

Drunken idiots get ejected from our stadiums on a regular basis. They usually ARE a threat to security.

How many have to plead guilty to a crime and pay a fine to avoid jail time?

Here's just one, there are tons of them out there.

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1U_wbfl2mV0]Red Sox fans ejected from Yankee Stadium - 2 - YouTube[/ame]

Have you ever actually been to a sporting event???

That's actually zero.

Try again