Teen arrested for 'blasphemous T-shirt'

ok every one who thinks that the tee shirt in the OP is legintimate free speech please do 2 things

pm me your real name and picture

and a picture of your mother

then i can commishion tee shirts that say < insert name > is a [ CENCORED ]

an photoshop the pic of your mothers head onto a porongraphic image

hey free speech right ???

IMHO being prevented from wearing that shirt in public is not a REAL infringment of liberies - but rather acceptance that in a civilised society we all have to modify our behaviour slightly to get along

when i am walking alone in a vast wilderness - and develope the urge to urinate - i just stop immediatly and do the business , when i am walking down a busy street i do not pull the same trick - i ` hold it in ` and start looking for a public convenience or a shop with toilets

what do you do ???????????

are my liberties infringed - no of course not - i am behaving responsibly in company by not simply pissing in the street as soon as the urge takes me

people need to dress responsibly too - if they do not they shoud expect consequences

The problem I often notice is that there are so many people who seem to go around in life looking for the slightest of reasons for which to take offense. I'll be damned if I'll give people the power to ruin my day over some percieved offense. As a result I am not easily offended and it rarely happens.

I swear, some people are never truly happy until they are completely pissed off...

The kid needed his as* kicked but not arrested. The arrest are getting out of control lately. And notice they always have a "law" to back up the arrest with, even if the act isn't close to the offense they make something up.

Remember that guy that got arrested because he was "overheard repeating conspircy theories" and they arrested him and their excuse was that he was "mentally unstable and a threat to society"

There is a whole thread here about it, I'll try to dig it up.

reply to post by SystemiK



yes those folks are anoying .....................

almost as anoying as those who deliberatly do things calculated to cause offence

Originally posted by ignorant_ape
almost as anoying as those who deliberatly do things calculated to cause offence

A sixteen year-old male puts on a heavy-metal tshirt to go walking down the street. Maybe he's seen the band live? Maybe he just likes their music? Maybe he just likes the tshirt?

How is any of that deliberate? The only deliberatly offensive aspect, was the fact that he was arrested for it!

Still, if naysayers want to promote censorship and idly watch our right to freely express ourselves slip away...

No matter what i think of the t-shirt, i don't think arrest was neccessary.

Maybe a warning or giving the lad a chance to remove it, but not arrested.

I think that anything that could be seen as inflammatory, especially in todays state of affairs, should be nipped in the bud whenever possible.

Picture this, change the image of Jesus to the Prophet Mohammed. If you want attention for your t-shirt, heaven knows you'd get it then!

Just as offensive, just as unnacceptable, except in todays climate you could quickly find yourself in a nasty situation which can involve everone around you. Situations snowball, first you'll have a lad getting beaten up for wearing a shirt like this, then you'll have a few of his friends beating up the guys that beat thier mate up.......then you'll have a mini religous war on your hands......all over a t-shirt which could have been removed in the first place.

Remember the Dutch cartoons anyone?

Maybe we should'nt be focusing on the young lad wearing the t-shirt, but the companies and bands who produce them?

Theres enough uproar about rap bands using the "N" word in thier songs, and then moan when someone uses the term in coversation, so why not clamp down on offensive merchandise?

I'm not saying any of this should happen by the way, just an opinion.

CX

[edit on 25-6-2008 by blueorder]

I agree, the T-shirt is not nice, But:

We (uk/usa,et al) let some of the most hate filled and nasty people out on our streets with messages of hate and ignorance.

K.K.K. marches/speeches, B.N.P. speeches/leaflet campaign, Godhatesfags spouting their hatred through banners/flyers/media, Religious fundamentalists preaching hatred streets/leaflets.

All in broad daylight,All perfectly legal and possibly legally protected, all with equally despicable views and outlooks and they don't get arrested??

All in the name of free speech......and the kid wears a t-shirt?

think about it.

[edit on 25/6/08 by blupblup]

Originally posted by Britguy
Ok, leaving aside the "freedom of speech and expression" issue, there is still common decency, or at least that is something that should be enforced.

Wearing a transformers T-Shirt is not offensive, wearing a T-shirt with that wording and graphic is most definitely offensive to a great many people and exceeds, IMHO, what should (or at least used to be) accepted levels of decency.

"Decent" behavior means that you will not arrest other humans because of what they say, or write. You do that you are way worse than them. O wait, you do not arrest them, some invisible hand called "Police" does it. You can feel good about yourself now.
Anyway, what would Jesus do ?

Originally posted by blupblup
Godhatesfags spouting their hatred through banners/flyers/media, Religious fundamentalists preaching hatred streets/leaflets.

All in broad daylight,All perfectly legal and possibly legally protected, all with equally despicable views and outlooks and they don't get arrested??

Good point there.

These people are causing just as much offence by displaying thier hate filled signs, and spouting thier offensive views, but they don't get arrested.

Maybe the 16 year old should be asking why?

CX.

i used to always get in trouble for wearing heavy metal tshirts

reply to post by pai mei


Incorrect, a basic understanding of what constitutes decent behaviour should dictate that deliberately causing offence just isn't right. There are many things we may feel we have a right to do or say but do not do so in public as it would offend. At least, there used to be some level of decorum and decency but it seems to have vanished now. Is the idea of simple decency so very hard to grasp? Is going out of your way to offend and shock really the right way to act in public? Just because you may have a right to say and do things doesn't automatically mean it's ok to do so.

Hell, I'm no prude at all and have no real religious beliefs but I do know how to act responsibly and with decency and do not deliberately try to shock or offend others.

Not the first time either... 2005 UK arrest

This really offends me! Not the T-shirt but the arrest.

Religion offends me, it offends my intelligence. Furthermore it kills people and it destroys lives, I would like to see it banned. People who takes offense offends me (yes, I see the contradiction). But most of all, the authorities taking the side of easily offended people offends me. I am sick of moralists and religious idiots feelings being given more credit than me and my friends feelings.

Every time I walk past Oxford circus and have some christian nut-case shout to me that I´m scum and will burn in hell for eternity, I´m deeply offended! However, I accept his RIGHT to be offensive. I am grown up enough to shrug it off (and not punch him in the face as someone on this thread would suggest as a solution). Hell, I wouldn't even be to bothered about explaining to a child why some people aren't very nice!

Please answer me this: Why should my offense count less then yours?

/rant

Peace

g

reply to post by Britguy


I understand decency. Police should not be involved. If someone makes me angry because of what he says, or writes or does at least I must go and tell him myself
From my point of view nobody should care about these things as long as the "indecent person" does not hurt another person. Emotional trauma caused by some "indecent person" is an invention for the modern baby adults.

Calling the police when the other person did not even touched you, and was not even addressing you is wrong

After reading the news I couldn't help but google up the image of the T-shirt

I does look pretty offensive. I'm not a Christian but I still feel disturbed to see such a sight.

Who in the right mind would want to wear something like that.

Arresting the kid was probably taking the matter a bit too far though.

I'm not at all disturbed by the t-shirt (I looked it up, too) BUT it's the image of a nude woman masturbating. That's pornography. I don't believe it's legal (in the US) to publicly display pornography, though I'm not sure about Australian law.

So, if this WERE in the US, I'm on the law's side on this one. Not because it's blasphemous, but because it's pornography.

I actually own the T shirt in question.

This T shirt is very old (design and print date wise) and has caused many problems before (including arrests..not of myself).

The worst trouble I got from wearing it was being thrown out of a shop. That happened only once though.

The only problem I see is profanity - nothing more and there's not really laws about it. I don't mean blasphemy...just profanity by the use of the 'C' word that is used as an alternative name to the female genitalea.

It's not as if the text is small either! The text in question is a full back print in white lettering on a black t shirt.

I do support freedom of speech. I'm not a fan of profanity but I don't have a problem with it (or using it). However, I believe other people do.

Hypothetically: The T shirt says Allah is a **** and has a picture of a Sheikh or whatever pleasuring himself.

It would make front page of the Daily Star (news with boobs and more outlandish than your girlfriends favourite magazines) and you'd be considered a national treasure.

This really offends me! Not the T-shirt but the arrest.

Religion offends me, it offends my intelligence.

hark at him/her, and you just something else, so intelligent

Furthermore it kills people and it destroys lives,

so the person doesn't kill someone, the person who decides to follow some alleged prophet from 1300 years ago and takes that as an excuse to behead a film maker in Holland is not to blame then, just let him walk free?

I would like to see it banned.

They tried that under Stalin, never worked, oh yeah, millions still died

People who takes offense offends me (yes, I see the contradiction). But most of all, the authorities taking the side of easily offended people offends me. I am sick of moralists and religious idiots feelings being given more credit than me and my friends feelings.

yeah, the "intelligent" ones har har

]

Hypothetically: The T shirt says Allah is a **** and has a picture of a Sheikh or whatever pleasuring himself.

It would make front page of the Daily Star (news with boobs and more outlandish than your girlfriends favourite magazines) and you'd be considered a national treasure.

think you've got that arse about tit, you would be pilloried by the liberal, politically correct establishment, never mind the fact that you would be much more likely to be physically assaulted wearing the Allah one than a Jesus one

Originally posted by Britguy
Ok, leaving aside the "freedom of speech and expression" issue, there is still common decency, or at least that is something that should be enforced.

Wearing a transformers T-Shirt is not offensive, wearing a T-shirt with that wording and graphic is most definitely offensive to a great many people and exceeds, IMHO, what should (or at least used to be) accepted levels of decency.

Star for you. I whole-heartedly agree with you Britguy.