Word: britain
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There's usually not much common ground between a boy-band singer and a far-right politician who would like to bar Muslim immigrants from his country. But in Britain this week, both have been at the center of fierce debates over freedom of speech...
...Outrage over Moir's column was instantaneous and - thanks to Twitter - widespread. More than 22,000 people protested to Britain's Press Complaints Commission (PCC), an independent body that investigates and rules on complaints about newspapers and magazines. (For reference, that's nearly the same number of protests that the PCC received about all stories over the past four or five years.) Complainants alleged that Moir breached Britain's press code because what she wrote was inaccurate, intruded into grief or shock and was discriminatory. British police say they have received complaints alleging that the column incited hatred against gays...
...right politician is Nick Griffin, leader of the British National Party (BNP), who has called for an end to immigration to Britain and told BNP rallies that Muslim men are plotting to defile underage British girls. Griffin is in the spotlight because the BBC invited him to take part in a television debate on Oct. 22. Critics of Griffin and the BNP - and there are millions of them - argue that giving him and his party airtime simply accords his racist views a legitimacy they do not deserve. The BBC says that because the BNP recently won two seats...
...Britain, thankfully, has laws in place that stop people from inciting racial hatred or hatred on the basis of sexuality. This week's controversies are powerful reminders that authorities and citizens need to remain vigilant and call out anyone guilty of extremist behavior. It is worth being extra vigilant about those who have a track record of making statements that offend. And if people commit a crime, they should be charged and convicted. But in getting the balance right between fighting small-minded men and women and protecting freedoms that we hold dear, principles matter. Arguing that some people should...
Tehran immediately blamed outsiders - the U.S., Great Britain and Pakistan - for Sunday's suicide bombing because it cannot admit that it has its own homegrown Taliban. Whatever Iran says about Jundallah, the ethnic Baluch group that claimed responsibility for the attack, it's an indigenous movement. The body of its financing comes from Baluch expatriates, many in the Gulf, and Islamic charities. Its weapons and explosives are readily available in the mountains that span the border between Iran and Pakistan. (Read "Pakistan: Behind the Waziristan Offensive...