Atheist found guilty of ridiculing the ridiculous

[AshtonBlack]

Ugh, this guy is a moron. He doesn't deserve to go to jail but he was being an ass. Who describes himself as a "militant atheist?"

Richard Dawkins?

Who?

[MissingNo.]

Does Dawkins actually use the words "militant atheist" in that video?

[RuleBritannia]

I don't get it, what was he convicted of?

[Gareth1984]

This guy is clearly an idiot and as an atheist I'd rather not be associated with someone who considers their atheism to be a religion as this man does. However it's ridiculous that he is been prosecuted for this, he's an idiot but if being an idiot was an offence then there would be a lot of christians and Muslims being prosecuted.

[Luis Dias]

Does Dawkins actually use the words "militant atheist" in that video?

Yes. That's the fucking point, DOH.

[MissingNo.]

Does Dawkins actually use the words "militant atheist" in that video?

Yes. That's the fucking point, DOH.

Well, excuse me for not watching a fucking 30 minute video. You could at least give me the time at which he says it.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hate_speech#United_Kingdom

The Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006 amended the Public Order Act 1986 by adding Part 3A. That Part says, "A person who uses threatening words or behaviour, or displays any written material which is threatening, is guilty of an offence if he intends thereby to stir up religious hatred."

[Bella Fortuna]

Ugh, this guy is a moron. He doesn't deserve to go to jail but he was being an ass. Who describes himself as a "militant atheist?"

I call myself a 'rampant atheist' on FB...

[Horwood Beer-Master]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hate_speech#United_Kingdom

The Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006 amended the Public Order Act 1986 by adding Part 3A. That Part says, "A person who uses threatening words or behaviour, or displays any written material which is threatening, is guilty of an offence if he intends thereby to stir up religious hatred."

Although we don't know the exact nature of the material he left in the prayer room, I somehow suspect it wasn't anything that would meet most common sense definitions of the word "threatening".


But then standards of "common sense" tend to be more lapse where religion is concerned, don't they?

[Xamonas Chegwé]

You only ever need to say 'atheist'. The words 'baby-eating, militant, slavering, evil, satanist' appear automatically in the minds of the religious - goddoesit.

[MissingNo.]

Ugh, this guy is a moron. He doesn't deserve to go to jail but he was being an ass. Who describes himself as a "militant atheist?"

I call myself a 'rampant atheist' on FB...

That's a bit different from militant. I dislike "militant atheist" because you can't be militant about something you don't believe in. You can be militantly anti-religious, which is what I think this guy meant but he's doing atheists a disservice by spreading misconceptions about what atheism is.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hate_speech#United_Kingdom

The Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006 amended the Public Order Act 1986 by adding Part 3A. That Part says, "A person who uses threatening words or behaviour, or displays any written material which is threatening, is guilty of an offence if he intends thereby to stir up religious hatred."

Although we don't know the exact nature of the material he left in the prayer room, I somehow suspect it wasn't anything that would meet most common sense definitions of the word "threatening".

But then standards of "common sense" tend to be more lapse where religion is concerned, don't they?

He told how on that occasion Taylor had left similar offensive material in St Anne's Church in the centre of Manchester. A postcard he left featured a picture of a monk with his middle finger raised and the words 'Father f*****'. When he was arrested sexual cartoons were found in his possession.

If it was anything like the postcards mentioned, it doesn't sound threatening to me. Unless the 'Father f*****' one was some kind of proposition. I hope England doesn't consider sex threatening.

[HomerJay]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hate_speech#United_Kingdom

The Racial and Religious Hatred Act 2006 amended the Public Order Act 1986 by adding Part 3A. That Part says, "A person who uses threatening words or behaviour, or displays any written material which is threatening, is guilty of an offence if he intends thereby to stir up religious hatred."

It seems more likely he was charged under Section 31, Crime and Disorder Act 1998, revised Section 4A of the POA 1986 as the quoted charge is 'religiously aggravated intentional harassment, alarm or distress' .

[rab]

Is this so-called crime he committed a misdemeanor? Is there jail time involved? If so, that 's outrageous.

There are fundamentalists in the U.S. who would welcome such laws. The religious right whines about hate-crimes laws because they claim ministers wouldn't be able to preach against homosexuality (which is a bogus claim), but also feel persecuted by secularists who fight for church/state separation.

And why is there a prayer room in Lennon's memory when he was clearly an atheist (by evidence of his song lyrics). That's just WRONG!!

[Valden]

While the atheist is a complete moron, how on earth could he be charged with anything

[Feck]

While the atheist is a complete moron, how on earth could he be charged with anything

Nebulous laws "Behaviour likely to cause a breach of the peace " " Incitement" "Pornography" etc Xian judge Xian jury who the fuck knows ?