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Tuesday 8 March 2011

I don't care what The Sun says

I have to admit that I admire The Sun and in particular its content.  Not I hasten to add, for its pictures or even the sentiments that it expresses, but for the pithiness of its writing. It manages to get to the point very quickly, and it doesn't mince its words, but I have to disagree with its opinion on the £50 fine meted out to some Islamic protesters, supposedly for the burning of poppies.

The Sun argues that a £50 fine is insufficient, but I have to say it is £50 too much for just burning poppies, although I accept that it seems about right for deliberately disturbing a Remembrance Day Service and causing offence thereby.  £50 for a breach of the peace seems about right.

But I would defend Mr Choudhury's right to burn as many poppies as he likes, or even to tell our boys that they "will burn in hell".  It's an opinion, not one with which I agree, but still an opinion.  And we have been burning poppies in Afghanistan for the last 5 years and I don't remember any body making a fuss about that. At this point I might be tempted to quote Voltaire, but as any Sun reader knows, he didn't actually say it, so I won't.

1 comment:

Alex said...

"Andrew Ryan, 32, from Summerhill, Carlisle, has been charged with religiously aggravated harassment and theft of the Koran."

He hasn't been convicted yet as far as I can tell, so we can't comment. The religious harrassment is straight out of he statute books - on a par with a breach of the peace - but theft is theft.