Today I read a brief account of how authorities in the Czech Republic are kicking David Duke out of their country. You know – that hateful little former KKK leader who keeps running for political office, and was actually elected once by crazy people in Louisiana. Seems he was invited by neo-Nazis to hawk his new books. Seems he was suspected of running around telling the converted that the Holocaust never happened. Seems he thought Prague had speech protections like those enforced by the American South of the 1950s.
It doesn’t.
Actually, the Czech Republic is still smarting from the atrocities of World War II. They are so sensitive to this issue that they nurture an active dislike for people who deny the holocaust (against all evidence to the contrary) and “promote the suppression of human rights.” And, this dislike for people who claim that the wholesale slaughter never occurred manifests in an actual law against such denial. A law that they actually enforce.
They arrest you, and then they kick you out. Or jail you for three years. I guess three years of David Duke was not at all appealing, because they gave him until midnight to leave. I’d imagine he is high-tailing it back to the good ol’ USA right now, where we tolerate his views, because our laws protect nearly everything that spills out of the mouths of the crazy, the cruel and the hateful.
Good for us.
Don’t get me wrong. I am completely committed to our First Amendment, and quite partial to its protection of free speech. Say what you want. Say what you want to my face and I will respond in kind. Unless you really piss me off, and then I will either scream or ignore you, depending on how much you annoy me. That’s our mutually enjoyed right, right? To speak and not to speak. Yea!
But, I have to respect a country that remembers the extermination of their Jewish and Romany populations with horror, and will not tolerate anyone who seeks to bury the evidence of evil through denial, or who who sign on as producer for Holocaust, Part II.
Good for them.
.jpg)
3 comments:
Wonderful! You're back - your blog buddies notice and miss you when you're gone for a few days. Another great catch Fe. David Duke. It is sickening to see his book listed on Amazon. See, this is where I start to choke on a massive sized ethical conflict. We have free speech, one of our most essential rights, needing to be fiercely protected. When I see something so precious protecting something so vile . . . choke . . .
There I go again. I would calm myself by trying to believe that Duke is so ridiculous there is little harm he can do. But the good folks at the Iran Holocaust Denial Conference didn't think he was so silly, they loved him. And let us all remain awake to the reality that more than 100 days into Obama's administration, there are still a whole lotta folks who take Duke absolutely seriously, they love him and his message of hate. Still got some work to do.
Sometimes I wish we could shut up despicable hate-mongers like David Duke, but I, too, enjoy my freedom of speech and freedom to say he's despicable.
Cherie!
I know. Work and school are kickin' my arse. One final down; one to go! I will be more vocal soonest, and hope all is well! So, shall we say that Duke and his ilk provide us a sizable ethical hairball? Everyone can say anything, but ... grrrr! I read today about hate groups going all soft and mainstreamy, so SOMEBODY'S listening. Grrrr... I suppose there is nothing left to do but talk back.
Janie!
Tes! Talking back like that! Sometimes, though it feels like talking to a wall, or the wind, or a begonia. Well, the begonia prolly would appreciate it more!
Post a Comment