seems the arab who filed the complaint wants to withdraw it.  something about it turning into a media circus.

Or the sheer stupidity of the complaint - and being held up to public ridicule -  in the first place. Perhaps that was the reason that Shirleen McGovern of the Alberta Kangaroo Inhuman Human Rights Court - and the one in the original Ezra Levant interview with arms so haughtily crossed across her chest in sheer anger at being challenged by Levant - withdrew so ingloriously?

 

 

swhitebull

could be the thought of continuing to deal with ezra's grandstanding is too much to deal with.  i know watching his youtube video brought on a considerable urge to box his ears.  ezra has turned this into an exercise in self promotion.  you do remember how many people died over those damn cartoons in the first go round?

I certainly DO remember -  as in  -  those friggin morons are so insecure in their own religion that they have to resort to violence to justify that they are the Religion of Peace.

What does that say about a prophet or God that requires help in defending themselves? Or that the religion's adherents MUST resort -  live a Pavlovian dog - to violence and rage every time it is held up to public critcism? Sounds like a required part of the 5-times daily headbanging on the floor should be Ridalin or Paxcel as well, with a dose of Laudanum thrown in for good measure. Pretty pathetic to be so thin-skinned.

 

 

swhitebull-  again, whether Levant was grandstanding or not is not the issue - the issue is the right to free speech - with NO buts.

Of course the US National Endowment for the Arts can underwrite the picture of a crucifix in urine brilliantly tittled "Piss Christ" and a New York Art museum's desire to exhibit a painting of the Virgin Mary splatted with dung can be supported by the leftist art world with the pictures of both works of art displayed in the NY Times bravely fighting against censorship. On the other hand the NY Times refused to print the Dutch cartoons for fear of offending anyone. Don't you just love the hypocrisy of the left.  

comes down in the end to where you draw the line tween fair comment and being offensive for the sake of being offensive. 

In terms of Freedom of Speech, does it matter?  NO ONE has a Constitutional right NOT to be offended. It's curious that liberals are SUPPORTING the suppression of free speech, Not Defending it.

 

 

From Mark Steyn, National review 2/22/2008:

All my improbable rainbow coalition needs now is a bit of a hand from the Canadian government. C'mon, Prime Minister, why be the last guy to jump on the bandwagon?

 

 

From Stanley Kurtz, National Review:

 

 

Mark Steyn is Winning   [Stanley Kurtz...]

Mark?s post on the rallying of liberal Canadian opinion-makers against abusive Human Rights Commissions is the most important and heartening development I?ve seen since this whole shameful case began. The dangers to Steyn — and all of us — are still great, yet an opportunity is now present for a truly landmark achievement on behalf of free speech. Stand with Steyn: Abolish Canada?s Human Rights Commissions! Up to now, Mark Steyn has been losing. But maybe, just maybe, he?s now on track to a genuinely historic victory.

At any rate, if Canada doesn't do something fundamental to rein in its out-of-control HRC's before Steyn is actually dragged in front of one, Canada will find that it has left an ugly, very public, and perhaps permanent stain on its reputation as a free country.

 

02/22 02:19 PM...

I  guess if your commentary follows the left wing pc orthodoxy it is "Fair" but if you differ, God forbid, your commentary is "Offensive". How rational.

Canadian publisher Ezra Levant threatened with new lawsuit

The Cartoon Jihad never ends. Canadian publisher Ezra Levant, who staved off... an attempt by a Muslim critic to haul him up on ?human rights? violations for printing the Mohammed Cartoons, faces another new lawsuit.

Levant writes...:

In 2006, I was hit with two identical human rights complaints because I published the Danish cartoons of Mohammed in the Western Standard magazine. We were simply doing what news magazines do ? publishing the news. But an anti-Semitic Calgary imam named Syed Soharwardy and the intolerant Edmonton Council of Muslim Communities complained to the Alberta Human Rights Commission that I ?discriminated? against them, and demanded cash and an apology from me. Since then, their fatwa has been prosecuted by the Government of Alberta, using taxpayers? dollars and government bureaucrats.

Instead of bowing my head in submission, I decided to fight back, publicizing the Alberta government?s January, 2008 interrogation of me in videos that have now been seen well over 500,000 times on YouTube.

Over the past month, the public?s reaction to seeing their government interrogate a journalist has snowballed into a national discussion about freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and the separation of mosque and state. What started out as an issue reserved to the blogosphere and talk radio has jumped into the mainstream media, and even into Parliament. To my delight, the Canadian public ? across the political spectrum ? has been overwhelmingly supportive of free speech and critical of these Orwellian commissions, and groups like the Canadian Association of Journalists and PEN Canada have recently weighed in, too, and very vigorously.

We?re winning in the court of public opinion ? and I say ?we?, because it was the blogosphere that moved this story from the ?undernews? to where it is today.

Well, now I?m being threatened with a lawsuit because of our campaign for freedom.

Just before the weekend, I received an e-mail from Richard Warman, the former investigator for the Canadian Human Rights Commission, who quit the commission in 2004 to become the commission?s biggest customer. Approximately half of all complaints filed under the Canadian Human Rights Commission?s section 13 ?idea crimes? provision have been filed by Warman. The CHRC has a 100% conviction rate under that section, and besides ordering the poor shleps Warman complains about to pay fines to the government, they?re often ordered to pay thousands of dollars to Warman himself, too, for his ?hurt feelings?. Unlike the paycheque he got when he used to work there, the cash he gets from commission fines is tax free.

Warman and his friends at the CHRC aren?t hitting me with a human rights complaint ? not yet, anyways. But he is threatening me with the most bizarre defamation lawsuit I think I?ve ever encountered.

Levant vows to ?fight like Hell? and he could use help. Donate here ...(scroll to the bottom for PayPal button or direct contribution info). His battle is our battle.