Hate Speech
The Punch has asked me for some examples of offensive speech that might be caught out under Attorney-General Nicola Roxon’s proposed ‘1984’ amendments to create a brave, new, Speak-Easy world of proposed anti-discrimination (A-D) laws.
The first thing that comes to mind is that “Juliar” is offensive to some… but an example of free speech we ought to retain for those who don’t like the lady. If you said the word to Ms Gillard’s face, she might take you to court under proposed A-D laws for she would surely find it personally offensive.
Do we have a right to be offensive towards our Prime Ministers? I hope so, for they often offend many of us by their cross words!
Continue reading "Time to go on the offensive against the Thought Police" »
Human beings can be offended in a myriad weird and wonderful ways. I recently learned that to describe someone morbidly obese as fat is ‘fattist’ and that it’s a no-no to describe someone as suffering from HIV, instead of as someone living with HIV, for example.
We’ve all heard examples of political correctness gone MAD; the phrase itself is so hackneyed that some may find it a bit offensive. And actually we probably shouldn’t use the word ‘mad’, that’s quite likely to offend people with mental health issues. Problems. Disorders. People living with mental health challenges. Consumers of mental health services.
Crud.
Continue reading "You should never, ever have the right to not be offended" »
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DOB says:
Marley and Greg, no youve not really got the point. If the Punch can censor things: posts of posters - presumably so your sensitive little souls dont get offended - then that is most defenitely an exercise of a right not to be offended. A right deosnt come into existence… Read more »
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maria says:
100% CORRECT Free speech for all = direct democracy a la Switzerland in which only the people are sovereign and not just a few autocrats. Read more »
Like a lot of people, I’d rather eat cardboard for breakfast than tune into Alan Jones in the morning.
Listening to someone spray his microphone with such vitriol as you’re waking up isn’t just bad for your eardrums – it’s bad for the country.
The reason I say that is because bullyboys and whingers like Alan Jones and his poster boy Tony Abbott are trashing our country and filling our national debate with bile, aggression and needless personal abuse.
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Ted says:
@K2 The Queen has been superseded by an act of parliament like the people, she is irrelevant like all of us. And what is an act of parliament , a document in which the political paries have agreed between themselves regardless if the people like it or not . We… Read more »
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RJT - says:
The only people trashing the country are Labor!! Thats a fact and I just wish I could give myself a payrise like Gillard and Swan or have a permanent job….Go into any Australian pub on a Friday night and youll hear far worse about yourself and the red headed liar… Read more »
As you might’ve heard, the US ambassador to Libya, Chris Stevens, and three other embassy staff were killed in Benghazi. Angry crowds had descended on the embassy, apparently after hearing a vile video about Islam produced by an Israeli-American filmmaker.
There’s all sorts of issues here: about hate speech, about religious overreaction, about the wave of protest and violence in the Middle East. What do you reckon?
It’s Friday. What’s on your mind?
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Zac says:
@ Chris L, “Hey, wanna remind me how many people in the history of the world have been killed in the name of atheism? What’s that? No-one ever?!” I can remind you of heaps of people who have been killed in the name of Atheism but let’s start with this… Read more »
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SydneyGirl says:
Inky!!!!!!!!!! That cannot be, you are at least a decade younger than me I am sure-mind you tumblr make me feel ancient. Its all the Cumberbatch talk that is confusing perhaps?! You have to be initiated into the Cumbercult to understand. Tumblr has a theme by Inky, I use it… Read more »
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