June 04, 2008
Think only happy thoughts or we'll sue you for hate.
Despite often heated rhetoric about the supposed destruction of Free Speech in the US by the "Bush Junta", the rights granted by the second amendment seem to stagger on in that country, none the worse for wear.
Not so in a certain frosty northern neighbour....
Canada is well and truly suckered into the great silliness of our age - politically correct speech codes and absurdities that seek to criminalise what Orwell would have termed thought crime.
Journalist Mark Steyn discovered the reach of such "human rights commissions" when he wrote one too many articles on a certain religion that shall remain nameless. (It sounds like "Whiz-Arm").
"I saw Mark Steyn with the devil!"
Curiously the actual person who has decided to subject him to this kangaroo court is not being presented as the plantiff (possibly because he's an entirely unsympathetic anti-Semitic bigot) and instead the Canadian Islamic Congress has decided to use as props three far more attractive and telegenic plantiffs. These are affectionately known as the "Sockpuppets".
Steyn has a summary of the events leading up to these events on his blog but here's a basic rundown.
These three complain because the Macleans magazine printed an article of Steyn's that expressed "hate" (whatever that means), the magazine should open up its editorial space for them to have a "right of reply" (including choice of cover) - basically demanding rights over what the magazine should and shouldn't print. When Macleans told them to take a running leap, the sockpuppets took him to kangaroo court.
Anyway, the proceedings are getting increasingly farcical, as you can read here. Personally my favourite is the Koran expert they brought in to refute Steyn's claims....who basically ended up confirming them as true. Oops.
And the tired old strawman of "Islamophobia" gets thrown out again and again. Yawn.
More on this absolutely preposterous case here and here.
And even more at Free Mark Steyn.
Posted by Quentin George at June 4, 2008 10:15 PM