

Russian punk group Pussy Riot sentenced to three years in jail for hooliganism  - andr
http://rt.com/news/pussy-riot-verdict-updates-907/

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cavedave
Gary Kasparov arrested at the trial. Here he is in custody looking like he is
being strangled

<https://twitter.com/obk/status/236423940975779840/photo/1>

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_delirium
The role of the Russian Orthodox Church in denouncing blasphemy and calling
for it to be criminally punished has been one of several disconcerting aspects
of the case. The Patriarch's anger and calls for vengeance against "the devil"
seem to lack a certain forgiving aspect of Christian character, and instead to
recall a more medieval idea of Christianity.

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throwa
I think the issue is could the girls have done this inside a mosque or near
it? Why do people treat Christian sacred places with levity and fear the
mosque or anything near it? Is it because Christians won't declare fatwa on
such a person? and is disrespecting worship places the best way to gain
attention aimed at selling your own music?

that is the food for thought?

~~~
_delirium
Well, they did apologize for doing so, and say that in retrospect choosing the
church as a protest venue was a mistake. Part of the issue with the Church in
Russia is that it is not really just another religion, but closely tied to the
state, so they probably thought of protesting there as a way of protesting
against the state (their song was against Putin). It doesn't help that the
Patriarch has close ties to Putin.

I don't have a problem with citing them for trespassing, in any case. It's
more the over-the-top response of the Patriarch in calling for the State to
root out devilry and blasphemy that I find slightly troubling, especially
given the Orthodox Church's historical role in actually using the resources of
the state for such purposes.

I don't doubt they would fare no better in many conservative Muslim countries
if they ran into a mosque and started playing music deemed offensive to the
government. But that's a fairly low bar to match. I don't think they would
receive a jail sentence in North America or Western Europe if they did
something similar. I can't imagine the Danish courts giving a jail sentence to
someone who ran into a church of the Danish National Church, and played
blasphemous or anti-Queen music. They'd probably just get a fine for
trespassing or disorderly conduct, if anything more than a warning.

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smegel
I am bemused by the coverage of this. I imagine if the BNP staged a protest in
St Paul's cathedral during Easter it would be less about free speech and more
about trespass and violating a sacrosanct place and causing great offence to a
religious community.

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waterlesscloud
They clearly intended to offend and cause controversy, no doubt at all about
it.

But the punishment is way, way, way out of line.

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gecos
the penalty has not been issued yet. misleading headline.

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bootz
2 years, not 3.

