Open letter to all TDs

Please oppose this silly legislation. Thank you.

http://www.carobit.com/Forum/ShowThread/YouTube%20Discussions/20090704130605P...

Dear TD,

I am writing you to protest against the Blasphemous Libel legislation that was recently passed by the Justice Committee.

This arcane piece of legislation has no place in a modern western society that values basic human rights such as freedom OF and freedom FROM religion, and that enshrines Western civilisation's ideal of separating Church and Stage.

Whilst I appreciate that the current Irish constitution does criminalise the act of blasphemy, and that the constitution must be supported by law, the fact that the constitution contains this throwback to an archaically theocratic Irish society should prompt the Minister to re-evaluate the constitution, and to ask the Irish people by referendum to remove this aberration from the most important legal document of the State.

The "solution" that Mr. Ahern is in the process of enacting is farcical at best, introducing into the Irish statute books a law that is unenforcable and that will make Ireland once again the laughing stock of Europe.

Please join all freedom loving people on this island in opposition to this law. Ireland must move forward into the 21st century, not back into the 19th.

I am counting on your support.

Yours faithfully,



Some responses:

1) Liz McManus, Labour:

Thank you for your email.

I fully support your view. Its farcical to have such legislation. The Labour Party Spokesperson on Justice, Pat Rabbitte TD has voiced our strong opposition to it in the Dáil.

Regrettably the government refused to listen.

Yours sincerely,

Liz.

Liz McManus, T.D.
Spokesperson on Communications, Energy and Natural Resources

2 Charles Flanagan (Fine Gael)

Voted against.


3 Senator David Norris

Dear Roze,

I have already as you may know spoken out vigorously against the blasphemy
situation as quoted quite extensively in last week's Irish Times.
Best wishes
David Norris

4. Thank you for your email. I share your concern about the proposed introduction of the blasphemy offence and have already expressed my opposition to this in the Seanad. I will continue to oppose it at every opportunity.
Best wishes,
Ivana

Senator Ivana Bacik

5. Eugene Regan

Thank you for your recent email in relation to the Defamation Bill and the proposals of the Minister for Justice in relation to the issue of Blasphemous Libel.

I'm sure you are aware that the Bill is at Report Stage in the Seanad tomorrow having come back from the Dáil.

I am emailing you to assure you that I have tabled amendments to the Bill which vigorously oppose the Minister's proposal in relation to blasphemy.

I will send you a copy of the Seanad debate upon its conclusion tomorrow.

Thank you for getting in touch in relation to this issue.

Kind regards,

Eugene

Category:

People & Blogs

Tags:

• open
• letter
• td
• oireachtas
• blasphemous
• libel
• dermot
• ahern

[Pippitypopify]

So what happens if Al Quaeda for some reason ever takes an interest in us? Will us calling them crazy Muslim psychopaths get us fined? Ridiculous law, stupid government and I can not wait to get arrested or fined for using Gods name in vain! What happens if I can't pay the fine? Prison?

[rozeboosje]

Who knows?

[EncompassedRunner]

thanks for having tried, *sigh,* foolish dhimmis

[rozeboosje]

Dhimmis? Dermot is caving in to pressure - not even REAL but perceived pressure - from the Christian lunatic fringe here in Ireland.

[EncompassedRunner]

whoa...that's not the danger I had in mind...I'm over here in Florida & didn't even know you had a Christian lunatic fringe over there, theocracy types?...am seeking out more info... I'd heard about this legislation in the context of it's abuse potential by hypersensitive Muslim stealth jihadists...thanks for the info!

[rozeboosje]

That's the thing, we don't actually have a Christian lunatic fringe worth worrying about here. Ireland has become increasingly secularlised and most people here are scratching their heads wondering wtf is wrong with him for pushing this arcane piece of nonsense at this juncture.

[EncompassedRunner]

thanks for the education

[subsoil007]

exactly!!!

[rozeboosje]

I've often thought that if I had a choice between being tried by 12 people who could be legal ignoramuses, and a few judges who understand the legal system, I'd know what *I* would choose.

[subsoil007]

it was passed a few days ago which entails a member of a criminal gang can be on trial without a jury, its to prevent jury intimitation which pat rabbite claims does not exist in ireland.