Freedom Of Speech - Rights And Responsibilities

[the_great_she_elephant]

If we, as a society, accept the concept of freedom of speech, should we also accept the concept that there is a line which must not be crossed, and if so, where do we draw that line?

[i-need-a-martini]

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@nevynreally wrote:

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I don't need to increase or bold any fonts, and I post in English, because I am  Australian. 

The question is, why do they effect you so much? Who seriously gives a toss about all this? Those with an agenda. The average person doesn't care. They are too busy trying to make ends meet, and still getting to spend time with their family.

Most of the posters here seem to live the "good" life. So how dare you?

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You've just given me a glimpse into an uncivilised and horrific world where people like you believe in free speech AND couldn't give a toss about anyone apart from themselves.

The ultimate barbarian state.

I am an average person. I don't have an agenda. And I DO "give a toss" because I am a human being with some empathy for my fellow human beings - that is why the effects of "free speech" affect me.

[aps1080]

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@paintsew007 wrote:

 to OP regards:....decide whether our right to say, publicly, whatever we like about any group in our society outweighs our responsibility to refrain from saying anything that may cause harm to  that same group.

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......I will never support the LNP or anyone who represents them and could not give a toss if my words 'hurt' them

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So paints, you can't object if people insult you or others from the other side ?

That is until you or they call stop, I don't like it. Smells of double standards to me.

By targeting the LNP and supporters with ridicule and hate, you open yourself to the same ridicule and targeting, regardless of how 

personal and vitriolic it becomes.

Yet I have often found that plenty are not quite as thick skinned as they think they are or seem to be when throwing it.

[aps1080]

glee

Take a dose of HTFU pills.

When someone posts this, that means fair game.

......I will never support the LNP or anyone who represents them and could not give a toss if my words 'hurt' them

You ridicule Abbott and the LNP and supporters, I'll ridicule you and others who do it, be it with words or pretty pictures

of a pack of frothing dogs, which is how you seem to like to describe us.

Don't like the low down derogatory descriptions of LABOR supporters or Can't hack it, get out of the fire because while

you keep going like you are, I'll keep going at you.

Have a nice day and don't forget to be goof to your master

[debra9275]

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@aps1080 wrote:

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@paintsew007 wrote:

 to OP regards:....decide whether our right to say, publicly, whatever we like about any group in our society outweighs our responsibility to refrain from saying anything that may cause harm to  that same group.

...................................................................................................................................................................................

......I will never support the LNP or anyone who represents them and could not give a toss if my words 'hurt' them

---

So paints, you can't object if people insult you or others from the other side ?

That is until you or they call stop, I don't like it. Smells of double standards to me.

By targeting the LNP and supporters with ridicule and hate, you open yourself to the same ridicule and targeting, regardless of how 

personal and vitriolic it becomes.

Yet I have often found that plenty are not quite as thick skinned as they think they are or seem to be when throwing it.

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so, you don't believe in free speech then? It is not OK for others to have a different opinion to yours?

[the_great_she_elephant]

Yet I have often found that plenty are not quite as thick skinned as they think they are or seem to be when throwing it.

This raises an interesting point. There are many posters here, myself included, who have hides like  .... well ....  like elephants, and easily shrug off anything that is thrown at us. There are others, though, who have been driven from the boards  by a sustained barrage of personal abuse. In the wider world there are people who have actually committed suicide as a result of bullying.

the question is, when does exercising one's right to freedom of speech become bullying and do we have an obligation to protect society from verbal (or graphic) harrassment, or do we simply accept that it is a dog eat dog world, the toughest survive and the weakest go to the wall?

[the_great_she_elephant]

Freedom of the press and freedom of speech is just that, freedom to say or publish whatever without defaming or libel.

Libel is fairly easy to define. It involves printing something which is known to be untrue, but who defines defamation? There is an infamous cartoon  (probably one of Der Sturmer's) which cirdulated in Nazi Germany depicting Jews as rats swarming out of a sewer. Would this be considered defamatory if it were published in a newspaper today or would it merely be the cartoonist exercising his right to freedom of speech? Given the recent events in France,  would it be considered defamatory if it were published today depicting Muslims rather than Jews as the rats?

[debra9275]

I think this is a pretty good example of the lack of freedom of expression in this country

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2715083/Fairfax-apologises-anti-Semitic-cartoon-Attorney-Gen...

A newspaper has been forced to apologise for publishing a cartoon that showed a Jewish man   watching the bombing of Gaza from his armchair to accompany a column about the Middle East crisis.

The Sydney Morning Herald was slammed by the Attorney-General and the Jewish community for using the drawing of an old man seated in an armchair emblazoned with the Star of David, watching comfortably from a hill as bombs dropped on Gaza.

he did recieve a number of death threats over it and all it was, was just a cartoon taken from an actual photo (both are shown in the link)

[the_great_she_elephant]

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@debra9275 wrote:

I think this is a pretty good example of the lack of freedom of expression in this country

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2715083/Fairfax-apologises-anti-Semitic-cartoon-Attorney-Gen...

A newspaper has been forced to apologise for publishing a cartoon that showed a Jewish man   watching the bombing of Gaza from his armchair to accompany a column about the Middle East crisis.

The Sydney Morning Herald was slammed by the Attorney-General and the Jewish community for using the drawing of an old man seated in an armchair emblazoned with the Star of David, watching comfortably from a hill as bombs dropped on Gaza.

he did recieve a number of death threats over it and all it was, was just a cartoon taken from an actual photo (both are shown in the link)

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The Sydney Morning Herald was slammed by the Attorney-General and the Jewish community for using the drawing of an old man seated in an armchair emblazoned with the Star of David, watching comfortably from a hill as bombs dropped on Gaza.

Might they be the people Nero has refferred to as "easily offended"?

[debra9275]

possibly lol...

personally I didn't find the cartoon offensive.  there was an article about the people sitting on the hill., and it was all true, so why  some people found it offensive enogh to threaten and hound him, I don't know. Pretty tame in comparison to the Charlie Hebdro cartoons I thought

[softail-joanie]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ukt-_LKhd1U