“As long as the insult doesn’t lead to violence”
So as long as the guy you are calling queer doesn’t punch you you are not in trouble. If he comes over and slaps your face then you go to jail, whether he follows you or not isn’t mentioned.
Things that make you go Hmmmmmmm...
I may not support any haterful speech but according to our constitution liking to hear something isn’t part of the right. This ruling is spot on and I would hope that if congress ever decided to take up hate speech that they would be shot down in a heartbeat by the SC!
It’s a good decision if we can express opposition to the politically correct agenda.
Does everyone know that people like Dr. Dobson from “Focus on the Family” and Dr. Laura Schlessinger have been censored in Canada because of their alleged “hate” speech in opposing the homosexual agenda? Our freedom of speech may be limited in the future if that attitude seeps south of the border. Glad to see a court case such as this re-affirming our right to speak in opposition to the politically correct agenda. And that simply speaking out doesn’t mean that it’s inciting violence.
Yep, good point. Is there any other kind of criminal activity where A can get charged for B’s crime?
In the opinion by Justice W. Michael Gillette, the court noted that, despite the epithets, Johnson "did not verbally threaten the woman with violence and no actual violence took place."So I'm inferring that the court's position is you can yell out "Look at that A-hole" as long as you don't say "Hey, look at that A-hole, let's beat him up!". I.e., you can call somebody names as long as the speech does not threaten or imply a desire for you or others to commit violence against them
Which means that carrying posters saying "Behead those who insult Islam" would still be actionable, if you had a police dept with any guts
What if he prances over and scratches your eyes out?