Le Pen found guilty of Holocaust denial

[Clair]

Le Pen found guilty of Holocaust denial

Prison avec sursis pour Jean-Marie Le Pen

Le Pen condamné pour ses propos sur l'Occupation

[woolybananasbrother]

He said that the occupation of France wasnt that bad. For many people it was not. Hard, difficult yes. Others were treated terribly as we all know. Compare with say Poland. So we need to do a bit or revisionism before we judge.

Le Pen is the worst kind of right wing fascist. But just for once he may be a teensy weensy bit right.

[Tony F Dordogne]

Transported French Jews and transported Polish Jews were treated the same and whilst I think WB'sB may be right about Le Pen, for Le Pen to deny the Holocaust is also to deny the treatment meted out to his fellow Frenchmen by an army of occupation and their right-wing collaborators.

Le Pen is another David Irving, the worst kind of revisionist.  When I worked at the Imperial War Museum back in the 1970s, I saw the beginning of the UK's revisionist movement when the various right wing/fascist groups in the UK used to send in their denial documents for the Library to add to their archive.  OK from an archiving point of view but when you read the crap that they wrote made your blood run cold.  I can also remember the 'no platform' policies in the universities in the 80s which stopped the BF/BNF/Powell speaking to open meetings, still not sure whether that's appropriate in the democratic process.

I could see le Pen as a collaborator, denouncing people to the Nazis. But the problem is in a democracy, the le Pens are rightly allowed to hold and express their views, something about being disgusted with what they have to say but fighting to maintain their right to say it.  Except of course, fascists/nazis and fundamentalist clerics or extremist politicians (anywhere in the world, including the USA) who advocate maiming and murder to further their beliefs and aims.

The problem is working out where their rights of self-expression end and where their self-expression endangers the lives or well-being of other people.

Edit:  Of course the joy would be seeing le Pen being banged up in a prison facility full of the 'foreigners', gays and radical lefties that he so despises.

[raindog]

I can't stand Le Pen but the fact that one can serve a prison sentence for "saying something" or having an opinion, however wrong, makes me feel a bit uneasy.

[cooperlola]

[quote user="raindog"]I can't stand Le Pen but the fact that one can serve a prison sentence for "saying something" or having an opinion, however wrong, makes me feel a bit uneasy.
[/quote]I am with you there, raindog, all the way.  No matter how hateful somebody's opinions may be, it's a sad day when holding them is a punishable offence.

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"

[woolybananasbrother]

I take it this excludes incitement which can I guess be stretched to cover just about any statement about a group.

[Gluestick]

[quote user="cooperlola"]

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it"

[/quote]

It was Voltaire, I believe: who of course was French.

I too agree, JE.

However and of course, in the UK now since the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act is scheduled to be revised, a C of E vicar encouraging hetrosexual marriage and dencouncing any other form of sexual union (which is, of course what his calling and Christian teaching requires him to do), would mean him being open to a criminal charge of inciting an homophobic "Hate" crime!

Same with anyone who speaks out with their opinion on various aspects of multiculturalism and argues against the A of C (silly old fool!) and his comments about Shari'a law, can be accused of a Race Hate Crime!

And before one of the "Denyers" bursts forth, no not the Daily Wail and I do know a solicitor who was so accused by Harlow police "Gay Hate Crimes Unit" last year!

When it was not even an offence, but the police didn't seem to either realise this or care or understand, adequately, what factually constituted a crime!

Worse, they released this "fact" to the press!

He is currently working out just how many zeros to put in his case claim for defamation....................................