Holocaust-denying bishop is fined

A German court fines renegade British bishop Richard Williamson 10,000 euros for denying the Holocaust.

BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/europe/8625543.stm

He should be allowed to deny the Holocaust took place.

Agree or disagree?

Agree. I don't see the point of this kind of law.

Originally posted by FMF
A German court fines renegade British bishop Richard Williamson 10,000 euros for denying the Holocaust.

BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/europe/8625543.stm

[b]He should be allowed to deny the Holocaust took place.

Agree or disagree?[/b]

The bishop is free to deny that the holocaust took place. It will just cost him 10,000 euros to do so. The Bishop is free to do as he likes just as I am in my own country. In fact, I am free to not buy health insurance even though it will provide me a similar fate. 😛

What is really going on here is censorship. You could argue one of three things. You could argue that they are censoring the bishop so that he cannot persuade others to believe as he does, or you could argue that they are doing this to hide the fact that people actually believe this garbage, or you could argue that they are merely trying to reduce those who are offended at such beliefs. I don't think that any of these goals is justifiable. People should be free to express their opinions, no matter how skewed we believe them to be. We can either provide an atmosphere where societies ills are out in the open or hidden under a blanket. I think the former is the most healthy way of dealing with societal ills and is the best chance at addressing them. Also, why not let the masses decide for themselves rather than Big Brother? Then again, Big Brother knows what is best for me regarding my health care, so perhaps he knows what is best regarding my "free speech". Hmm. I will have to think more about it I suppose.....NOT!!

This Richard Williamson is under the wings of the Pope himself. This says a lot of the Vatican.

Originally posted by FMF
A German court fines renegade British bishop Richard Williamson 10,000 euros for denying the Holocaust.

BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/europe/8625543.stm

[b]He should be allowed to deny the Holocaust took place.

Agree or disagree?[/b]

He should be allowed to deny the Holocaust took place. By fining and imprisoning Holocaust deniers it just martyrs these idiots and gives credence to their claims that there is an international conspiracy to silence them.

These kinds of laws have turned people like Ernst Zundel from being a crackpot who barely made $500 a year selling his crap to someone who is now an international icon of the movement.

Originally posted by PsychoPawn
He should be allowed to deny the Holocaust took place. By fining and imprisoning Holocaust deniers it just martyrs these idiots and gives credence to their claims that there is an international conspiracy to silence them.

These kinds of laws have turned people like Ernst Zundel from being a crackpot who barely made $500 a year selling his crap to someone who is now an international icon of the movement.

Well, technically there is a conspiracy to silence them...

Originally posted by shavixmir
Well, technically there is a conspiracy to silence them...

You mean to tell me that the fine is a conspiracy to silence them? I thought it would cause them to speak out more. What am I missing here? 😛

Originally posted by FMF
A German court fines renegade British bishop Richard Williamson 10,000 euros for denying the Holocaust.

BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/europe/8625543.stm

[b]He should be allowed to deny the Holocaust took place.

Agree or disagree?[/b]

Germany has either made it against the law to tell the truth or made it against the law to tell a falsehood.

Either possibility is horrifying.

Originally posted by shavixmir
Well, technically there is a conspiracy to silence them...

Yeah, I meant that there is a conspiracy to hide the truth by silencing them.

Right now there's just a conspiracy to hide their lies by silencing them.

Originally posted by FMF
A German court fines renegade British bishop Richard Williamson 10,000 euros for denying the Holocaust.

BBC: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/low/europe/8625543.stm

[b]He should be allowed to deny the Holocaust took place.

Agree or disagree?[/b]

In a country like the US with a First Amendment, Holocaust denial should be legal and not punishable.

However, in a society where expression can be prohibited in cases like:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leyla_%C5%9Eahin_v._Turkey

And where political speech can be criminalized as hate speech in cases like:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/20/geert-wilders-dutch-lawma_n_429495.html

... it makes perfect sense to criminalize Holocaust denial.

Originally posted by PsychoPawn
Yeah, I meant that there is a conspiracy to hide the truth by silencing them.

Right now there's just a conspiracy to hide their lies by silencing them.

You are in on it arn't you? 😠

Originally posted by sh76

... it makes perfect sense to criminalize Holocaust denial.[/b]

Well then, who shall arrest the President of Iran?

Originally posted by whodey
Well then, who shall arrest the President of Iran?

The British, under their universal jurisdiction rule.

Originally posted by sh76
The British, under their universal jurisdiction rule.

Go gett'em Brits, and God save the Queen.