The president of English PEN (the UK arm of the worldwide writers’ organisation) Â says the law of blasphemous libel is not only obsolete but contravenes our rights to freedom of expression under the European Convention on Human Rights.
Lisa Appignanesi (pictured below), writing in the Guardian, quotes the Satanic Verses author Salman Rushdie, who said, “If [...]
And what a feat in modern time here upon England’s mountains green! Well, in Leicestershire and Rutland, to be exact. For that is where a brave soul from the Women’s Institute has dared to declare that prayers shouldn’t be said at WI carol concerts.
Carols are OK, she says, because it’s one thing joining in with [...]
Britain’s Mr Secularism says he often finds his perceived enemies to be “personable, charming and friendly”.
Terry Sanderson (pictured), president of the National Secular Society, makes his comments in what he calls his “Mid-Winter Message”.
“Since I became president of the National Secular Society,” he writes, “I have been aware that some religious people, who only know [...]
NOT all Americans are Bible-totin’, scripture-quotin’, Republican votin’ rednecks who think they have a hotline to Jesus, though you might be excused for harbouring such an image when the right-wing Bible Belters get going.
Indeed, as this story is published during a Sunday morning, a bunch of kids in the USA will soon (we’re allowing for [...]
IT’S just a story. Let’s say it again, louder: it’s just a storr-eeee!
Hmm. Doesn’t seem to have done much good. They’re still obsessing about Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials trilogy, wondering if it’ll poison the impressionable minds of schoolkids and turn them against God.
To judge by the current brouhaha, you wouldn’t think the first book [...]
AT LAST, it may go to court. The preposterous and risible law of blasphemy could be put to the test – and taken out of the reckoning entirely.
Stephen Green, the man who brought us the laughable Christian Voice – although most communications issuing from this obscure little organisation seem to emanate from Green himself – [...]
I AM a frequent visitor to Muslim websites. In this job one needs to keep abreast of what’s happening in the collective orthodox Muslim mind - especially nowadays when so many of our freedoms are under assault from Islamic fundamentalists.
Trawling through page after page of mindless ranting, paranoia, and gripes about ‘Islamophobia’ is bad enough, [...]
