Don’t insult my Padmashree

Honestly. Can this be real? A criminal case was filed in a court on Thursday accusing Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and off-spinner Harbhajan Singh with ‘hurting’ fans by staying away from the Padma awards function. Dhoni and Bhajji were to be honoured with the Padma Shree by President Pratibha Patil in New Delhi [...]

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Where are the demonstrations for liberty?

The Mumbai terror attacks were remarkable, not just for their audacity and horrifying elements, but also for the spontaneous reaction it elicited from the public. Citizens across India demonstrated in massive numbers and expressed their outrage against terrorists and politicians. There were posters and sloguns and an atmosphere of common purpose. The numbers were massive, [...]

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Harry and PC hypersensitivity

So apparently there is a raging controversy about Prince Harry’s use of politically insensitive terms during his military stint (he jokingly called a friend a ‘raghead’ and referred to another of Pakistani origin as a ‘our little Paki friend’). The army has announced it will commence an inquiry and newspapers are calling for Harry to [...]

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The slippery slope effect of hate-speech laws

David Bernstein has a fine post where he explains the perils of having ‘reasonable restriction on free speech’ such as hate speech laws: When I was in law school, advocates of weakening First Amendment protections to restrict “hate speech” pointed to Canada as a shining example of how egregious expression could be banned without threatening [...]

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Bhajji dragged to court for Ravana act

Here’s the link. The following sequence occured in an alternate universe that I would love to belong to: Judge: Before I ask for the other evidence I would like to ask you a question that I always do; what was, in summary fashion, the intent and purpose of the Ravana dance that you did with [...]

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Cracking down on hate speech

After Canada, it is Australia. Australian gun lobbyist Ron Owen has been told he is entitled to express his homophobic views, but that he went too far with the bumper sticker: “Gay Rights? Under God’s law the only rights gays have is the right to die.” Queensland’s Anti-Discrimination Tribunal found Owen guilty of inciting hatred [...]

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Political correctness is degenerating into farce

… says Quirky Indian. I agree.

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“Legitimate to kill owners of immoral satellite channels”

No, it’s not the Taliban saying this, but the senior-most judge in Saudi Arabia. The most senior judge in Saudi Arabia has said it is permissible to kill the owners of satellite TV channels which broadcast immoral programmes. [...] “There is no doubt that these programmes are a great evil, and the owners of these [...]

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Jailed for making an politically incorrect joke

This is what happens when political correctness is taken too far. The ordeal began last week when Hensley’s wife sent him to a local grocery store to buy ground beef. While there, Hensley encountered a woman with her two nieces, ages 11 and 13. “I offered to trade her a fattening hog for those girls,” [...]

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Efforts to criminalize defamation of religion

Check out Ilya Somin’s post at Volokh about the United Nations campaign to create a new international law norm banning “defamation of religion.” Money quote: Given the broad scope of religious ethics, almost any political or ideological statement might be seen as offensive to the values of one religious group or another. To some theologically conservative [...]

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On Myers and crackers

When I first read about P.Z. Myers’ decision to destroy a consecrated communion wafer (which he followed up with actual action), I was appalled at his lack of regard for the feelings of a billion people who had never personally offended him. I was inclined to agree with Andrew Sullivan’s characterisation of his action: It is one [...]

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On displaying nooses and free expression

Hanging a noose has been a symbolic expression of hatred towards blacks since the days of the Ku Klux Klan. However, noose incidents have increased substantially over the last year, prompting some states to pass hate-crime style laws against it. According to DiversityInc, To date, three states have passed laws to punish those who use [...]

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On political correctness and pseudo-politeness

Ed Winkleman writes: My personal take on political correctness is that it’s an artificial construct that has benefits in the short run, but will outlast its usefulness and eventually become harmful. What I mean by that is shaming people into considering others’ feelings (or at least keep their hurtful opinions silent) long enough for those [...]

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Eight year old charged with discrimination for not inviting classmates to party

I have seen a lot of absurd things but this one is king. The last sentence of the excerpt below is possibly the greatest example of WTF-ness ever. An eight-year-old boy has sparked an unlikely outcry in Sweden after failing to invite two of his classmates to his birthday party. The boy’s school says he has [...]

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Porn producer gets it, one law professor doesn’t

Adult film producer John Stagliano — facing up to 40 years in jail if convicted in a currently running obscenity case – debates Pepperdine Law School’s Barry McDonald on free speech vs obscenity. Money quote from Stagliano: Barry, your point is that people must be forced to not think things that you don’t like, and for [...]

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