ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE (AP) — Pope Francis said Thursday there are limits to freedom of speech, especially when it insults or ridicules someone's faith.
But he said there were limits.
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But he said there were limits.
I smelled a pious rat when Pope Frankie put a limit on freedom of speech. Exactly what constitutes ridicule? Is gentle humor ridicule? Here is a gentle example to paraphrase H. L. Mencken:
Religion is a pathetic belief in the collective wisdom of individual ignorance.
Is satire ridicule? And how about a cartoon? Frankie does not elaborate; so I have to conclude that he would prohibit it all so the field is left wide open for praising priests with generous donations.
Parenthetically, throughout history how come religion’s true believers —— including Roman Catholics —— did slightly more than ridicule atheists? Nowadays Muslim of faith are still slaughtering the non-believers, yet the pope’s close spiritual relationship with Islam is based on mutual dependence. He will never be closer to atheists —— who, incidentally, do not run around slaughtering non-atheists.
The next one implies that free speech demands speech —— generally defined by sharpshooters who get rich defining the common good for everybody else:
Francis spoke about the Paris terror attacks while en route to the Philippines, defending free speech as not only a fundamental human right but a duty to speak one's mind for the sake of the common good.
How do Muslims define the common good? Since common good is doublespeak for the word moral why not my morals rather than the morals of an ayatollah, a pope, or one of Boo’s guy the Dali Lama?
Note that either the pope got cute, or he missed Muslims doing their killing in the Prophet Mohammad’s name not in God’s name.
. . . Francis by no means said the violent attack on Charlie Hebdo was justified. Quite the opposite: He said such horrific violence in God's name couldn't be justified and was an "aberration." But he said a reaction of some sort was to be expected.
Pope on Charlie Hebdo: There are limits to free expression
Associated Press
By NICOLE WINFIELD
1 hour ago
Vatican Pope s Charlie Hebdo comments do not justify attack - Yahoo News
Associated Press
By NICOLE WINFIELD
1 hour ago
Vatican Pope s Charlie Hebdo comments do not justify attack - Yahoo News
Everything I’ve heard the pope say tells me that he takes America’s Founding Fathers for fools:
In every country and every age, the priest had been hostile to Liberty. Thomas Jefferson
History, I believe, furnishes no example of a priest-ridden people maintaining a free civil government. This marks the lowest grade of ignorance, of which their civil as well as religious leaders will always avail themselves for their own purposes. Thomas Jefferson -- Letter to Alexander von Humboldt, December 6, 1813
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History, I believe, furnishes no example of a priest-ridden people maintaining a free civil government. This marks the lowest grade of ignorance, of which their civil as well as religious leaders will always avail themselves for their own purposes. Thomas Jefferson -- Letter to Alexander von Humboldt, December 6, 1813
Frankie is clever fellow who deliberately confuses God with religion and priests. Fortunately, most Americans know the difference between religion and priests; so the pope should spend some time taking instructions on our First Amendment before he pokes his nose in our freedoms:
Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.
I doubt if Frankie will ever accept America’s meaning of religion, while he should not have trouble understanding absolute freedom of speech among a free people:
“The legitimate powers of government extend to such acts only as are injurious to others. But it does me no injury for my neighbor to say there are twenty gods, or no God. It neither picks my pocket nor breaks my leg. ... Our civil rights have no dependence on our religious opinions, any more than our opinions in physics or geometry.”—Thomas Jefferson
Finally, priests have been at religion for thousands of years. My point is that priests have been acquiring political power using the same techniques for millenniums. That is why I repeatedly cite the Constitution and America’s Founders. So please give me a little leeway because I am bound by proof that is slightly more than two centuries old. It is a tough fight pitting America’s greatness against thousands of years of priesthoods who did more harm than good.
On the bright side a required civics test needs a lot of work showing the importance between severely limited civil government and priesthoods of every stripe who oppose liberty. It is an important beginning for anyone who is paying attention:
Ducey called on the Legislature to make the civics test the first bill to hit his desk as governor. He said studies show that students don’t know enough about basic government to grow into effective citizens.
“These are our children, and not long from now, it will be for them to vote on who sits in your chairs and who stands at this podium,” Ducey said in his State of the state address Monday. “How can we expect them to protect the principles on which this country was founded, if we are not preparing them for that task right now?”
“Requiring that students pass this test is not by any means a silver bullet, but I think is a step, a small step forward,” he said. “And I think we need to encourage the people of America to become more aware of the values of America.”
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“Requiring that students pass this test is not by any means a silver bullet, but I think is a step, a small step forward,” he said. “And I think we need to encourage the people of America to become more aware of the values of America.”
Arizona passes law requiring students to pass civics test
by Breitbart News15 Jan 2015584
Arizona passes law requiring students to pass civics test - Breitbart
by Breitbart News15 Jan 2015584
Arizona passes law requiring students to pass civics test - Breitbart
p.s. If you read the entire article you will see that one Democrat objected to American youngsters becoming good citizens in a limited government. I assume he meant they can only become good little collectivist Socialists.