Category Archives: Free Speech

Public Service Announcement: Fitna

March 29, 2008 – 3:21 am

For those who’ve been following the developing debate over Dutch film Fitna, it’s now finished up all over the internet (as I expected it would). Pommy over at the Australian Libertarian Society has a link, as does Saint at Dog Fight at Bankstown. Once I’ve watched it, I’ll update this post. In the meantime, your [...]

By skepticlawyer | Also posted in Religion | Comments (38)

The Oxford Union does its thang…

November 28, 2007 – 1:43 pm

Not sure if this has made the news in Oz, but it’s been front page news over here for nigh on a week. I’ve written a piece for the Telegraph (not the Oz version, the British version), to which you’re free to add your comments (it seems to be similar to the Guardian’s ‘Comment is [...]

By skepticlawyer | Comments (53)

LDP at APEC (and lots of other goodies, too)

September 12, 2007 – 12:02 am

Catallaxy regular Fatfingers showed just how dexterous he can be at the APEC protests last week. If you follow the links below, you’ll be able to take a gander at the photographs he took, with some pretty decent video footage to follow. He’s in the process of editing the latter, so if anyone wants copies, [...]

By skepticlawyer | Also posted in Events | Comments (7)

(Drumroll) and the Winner is…

February 8, 2007 – 11:19 pm

A while ago, we here at Catallaxy decided that the best way to respond to Australia’s very own thick sheik was to take the piss out of him. Jason started referring to him as Australian Islam’s Sir Les Patterson, while I went a step further and launched a funnies competition. Regular commenter JC kicked in [...]

By skepticlawyer | Comments (13)

The Chronicles of Hilalia

January 16, 2007 – 12:40 am

Tanja from Poligoths has contributed a very special Thick Sheik Competition entry. She informs us she originally had a better tagline, but wanted to avoid both a fatwa and libel suit.
All I can say is it must have been a bloody ripper, because this one is damn good.
Other entries so far are here and here. [...]

By skepticlawyer | Comments (24)

Sheiks on a Plane!

January 14, 2007 – 3:14 pm

Our Thick Sheik Comedy Comp is going great guns - so much so I’ve officially run out of room to add graphics to our call for entries page. Here’s another entry from gun Photoshopper Heath G.
Should also let you know that Kitty has also contributed an entry - a very nice riff on James Bond. [...]

By skepticlawyer | Comments (11)

Thick Sheik: A Catallaxy Comedy Comp

January 13, 2007 – 1:13 pm

A few people suggested on our most recent Hilaly thread that the best way to deal with the thick sheik is to take the piss out of him. It’s pretty clear the guy gets his jollies when the MSM - and bloggers, by and large - take him so seriously. To my mind, any response [...]

By skepticlawyer | Comments (80)

Catch the Fire Ministries v Islamic Council of Victoria Inc: Free speech wins - just

December 14, 2006 – 11:16 pm

We supporters of free speech can thank our lucky stars that the drafters of Victoria’s Racial and Religious Tolerance Act 2001 were appallingly bad at their craft. In cobbling together the criminal law conception of ‘incitement’ with the law of defamation’s ‘ordinary reasonable reader’, they have produced a statute so incapable of interpretation that Pastors [...]

By skepticlawyer | Also posted in Law | Comments (161)

Denying the Holocaust in Iran

December 14, 2006 – 12:41 am

Last weekend, Tehran played host to the International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the Holocaust. The gabfest saw anti-semites, cranks, fascists and, disturbingly, a few western academics from reasonably well credentialled universities - turn up to deny the Holocaust. Or minimise it. Or argue that it was a ‘European problem’ for which the [...]

By skepticlawyer | Also posted in General | Comments (72)

Freedom of speech

September 25, 2006 – 4:42 pm

When does something become so offensive that it should be banned? It’s a thorny question. As readers of this blog will know, I have expressed discomfort with the portrayal of women in music videos and with the “turkey-slapping” incident in Big Brother. My knee-jerk reaction to the Big Brother incident was that the show should [...]

By Legal Eagle | Also posted in Law | Comments (4)