Don't joke about religion - seriously

[Hermit]

John Lennon Airport sexual image atheist gets Asbo

A "militant atheist" who left explicit images in a prayer room at Liverpool John Lennon Airport has been given a six-month suspended sentence.

Harry Taylor, 59, of Salford, left images of religious figures in sexual poses on three occasions in 2008.

Jurors found him guilty of causing religiously aggravated intentional harassment, alarm or distress in March.

He was also given a five-year Anti-social Behaviour Order (Asbo) at Liverpool Crown Court.

Among the posters, one image showed a smiling crucified Christ next to an advert for a brand of "no nails" glue.

In another, Islamic suicide bombers at the gates of paradise were told: "Stop, stop, we've run out of virgins."

Taylor, of Griffin Street, in Higher Broughton, told jurors he was sexually abused by Catholic priests as a youngster.

Insults to Islam

But he said he bore no grudge against people of faith and claimed he was merely trying to convert believers to atheism.

Some of his cartoons went far beyond exercising freedom of expression, prosecutor Neville Biddle said.

One image showed a pig excreting sausages with insults to Islam, and others linked Muslims to attacks on airports.

The chaplain at the airport was "severely distressed" by the discoveries, the court heard.

Taylor was convicted of similar offences in 2006.

There were dramatic scenes at the sentencing hearing.

While Judge Charles James told Taylor's barrister Brigid Baillie he was considering making him pay costs, the defendant began wheezing.

Judge James adjourned the hearing for 10 minutes for a first-aider to be called.

Taylor left the court room but returned shortly afterwards.

Judge James said: "Not only have you shown no remorse for what you did, but even now you continue to maintain that you have done nothing wrong and say that whenever you feel like it you intend to do the same thing again in the future."

Taylor's Asbo bans him from carrying religiously offensive material in a public place.

The six-month prison sentence was suspended for two years. Taylor was also ordered to undertake 100 hours of unpaid work and pay £250 costs.

The irony of the defendant being nabbed at the John (Imagine ... no religion too) Lennon Airport is not lost on me.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

While I sympathise with him to a degree, his actions were deliberately provocative. Had he posted those images on Facebook, or passed them around in a pub, nothing was likely to happen. But he didn't, he placed them in a prayer room where they were certain to be seen by religious types. He has gained himself publicity at the expense of an ASBO - about right I would say.

We jump down the throat of fundies that turn up here and ridicule them. Many of us immediately cry for them to be banned as trolls. How can we complain when the same reaction is met with when 'one of us' makes a childish protest in a place of worship? Had he simply left reasoned arguments against belief, I would have more sympathy. But his depictions of sexual acts between religious figures (which I am sure were funny as fuck!) went too far in my opinion and in the eyes of the law.

Had he directed his energies towards having the 'prayer room' renamed as a 'contemplation room', or suchlike, he would have my full backing. As it is, I think he was a bit of a twat.

[Trolldor]

As it is, I think he was a bit of a twat.

This.

[Hermit]

Had he simply left reasoned arguments against belief, I would have more sympathy. But his depictions of sexual acts between religious figures (which I am sure were funny as fuck!) went too far in my opinion and in the eyes of the law.

Good point, but until the eyes of the law starts dealing with all loonies in a similar manner, I fully support the defendant in this case. I have yet to hear of ASBOs being slapped on people who actually knock on the doors of people's homes, only to tell the occupants that some sky fairy loves them, but if they don't believe in him, they'll go to fucking hell. But no, those loonies are not even called loonies or emotional blackmailers. They are 'evangelists' and 'missionaries'. You can also crash funeral services holding up big, colourful placards with "God hates fags" written on them and not expect to be arrested.

[Xamonas Chegwé]

You can also crash funeral services holding up big, colourful placards with "God hates fags" written on them and not expect to be arrested.

I would like to see that tried at Wootton Bassett. That is an American phenomenon.

[Trolldor]

You can also crash funeral services holding up big, colourful placards with "God hates fags" written on them and not expect to be arrested.

Actually, you can't. No time left to look it up, they've been banned, have to be X distance away from procession and service at all times.

[Hermit]

You can also crash funeral services holding up big, colourful placards with "God hates fags" written on them and not expect to be arrested.

Actually, you can't. No time left to look it up, they've been banned, have to be X distance away from procession and service at all times.

My point is that the law is too discriminating. Religions are holy cows. The asymmetry is palpable as long as the so-called evangelists are allowed to knock on people's doors and threaten them with eternal damnation while pamphleteers leaving materials in public places ridiculing religions get handed ASBOs, fines, (suspended) gaol sentences and are compelled to do unpaid community work for what they are doing. What is more reprehensible? Insulting people's sensitivities, or threatening them with infinite torture unless they 'accept god'?

As I said before, Xamonas Chegwé made a good point. I do agree with the sentiment, but as long as the law is applied lopsidedly - making it a tool of repression rather than justice - I take sides.

[Trolldor]

Now that I'm not running like a pig on mud - Evangelists knock on your door but can't come in uninvited, you can close the door on them.

I'm pretty sure if they'd gone in to, say, an atheist group room and drawn pictures everywhere the same law would be applied. But they haven't. The law is not lop-sided, not until I see equvialency. The man did not go from door to door knocking, so your counter-examples are irrelevant, they are not equal.

[Hermit]

Evangelists knock on your door but can't come in uninvited, you can close the door on them.

Pamphlets are in the prayer room, but you don't have to look at them.

The law is not lop-sided

It is while evangelists are not equally subject to be slapped with ASBOs, fines, community work and the prospect of spending time in gaol for threatening eternal damnation if you don't believe in their particular sky daddy. I regard those threats as a great deal more offensive than sexually explicit insults left in a public prayer room.

For the third time: I agree with XC, but what's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander. Apparently that does not apply to the holy cows, also known as religions, and while the exception applies I side with people who insult christian and islamic doctrines rather than the blackmailers defending those religions.

[RuleBritannia]

A prayer room in an airport doesn't really fill me confidence. But I'll probably keep flying until they start putting prayer rooms on the planes.

[Trolldor]

Evangelists knock on your door but can't come in uninvited, you can close the door on them.

Pamphlets are in the prayer room, but you don't have to look at them.

The law is not lop-sided

It is while evangelists are not equally subject to be slapped with ASBOs, fines, community work and the prospect of spending time in gaol for threatening eternal damnation if you don't believe in their particular sky daddy. I regard those threats as a great deal more offensive than sexually explicit insults left in a public prayer room.

For the third time: I agree with XC, but what's sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander. Apparently that does not apply to the holy cows, also known as religions, and while the exception applies I side with people who insult christian and islamic doctrines rather than the blackmailers defending those religions.

Unless the prayer room is particularly imposed, it WAS his choice to go in there. Again, your examples do not equate.

for threatening eternal damnation

Well, they're threatening you for what's going to happen after your death, not during your life, and they're not threatening you with physical violence nor psychological tortment. As has been shown, unless you already believe in it, there's not much enternal damnation can do to dissuade you.

[Hermit]

I am not saying that my examples "equate". When all is said and done, though, the undeniable truth is that, as far as the law is concerned, religions are considered holy cows. Ridiculing them places you at risk of being prosecuted, but those using religion to indulge in blackmail, which is much worse an offense in my opinion, are not only not risking prosecution, they are not even regarded as obnoxious. They're called "evangelists". Hallelujah!



I'll leave it at that for now.

[Deep Sea Isopod]

I agree with XC.

[Trolldor]

Well, 'round these parts 'evangelists' is equitable to 'twatting cunt'. Also, that guy is on the public domain shouting noisy things, no different to the mad hobos, animal activists, green groups, political fanatics etc. you see in Hyde Park/on the streets in Sydney/foreign equivalent. If they can get away with their retarded rantings then so can the god-botherers.

[Dmack]

Xamonas Chegwé says '... had he (Harry Taylor) posted those images on Facebook... nothing was likely to happen.

Readers may recall that, in 2007, a British school teacher working in Sudan, Gillian Gibbons, named a classroom teddy bear 'Muhammad', and that, for having committed this 'criminal offence' she was promptly arrested and put on trial by the Sudanese authorities. At the time, and in protest, I changed the photo on, my then, Facebook account to one of John Cleese during the 'Life of Brian stoning scene'. I also changed my Facebook 'tag line' to say that I was renaming myself Yaweh Zeus Wotan Mohammad Tooth Fairy Jesus Christ Almighty (or words to that effect). A few hours later that evening, to emphasise the point further, vis-à-vis the dangerous consequence of religious bigotry, I changed the photo to one of the twin towers being attacked on '9/11'. The next day, I went to sign in to my Facebook account only to find that I had been banned for, it was later put to me in an extremely curt email, my having 'harassed' other users of Facebook (presumably, the terrorist community/Sudanese government). No further discussion or debate was entertained by Facebook. They refused all further correspondence - I was banned and that was, they said, 'final' (quite ironic, given the context, I thought/think). So while Harry Taylor could have, I'm sure, done all manner of things with any Facebook account he may have, I suspect that ridiculing religion by suggesting that there may be a connection between its more enthusiastically ignorant advocates and appalling bigotry/criminality, isn't one of them.