Teen girl arrested for burning Koran

[Provost Harrison]

I do wish the current government would repeal these stupid f**king laws that our previous politically-correct, autocratic Labour dictators saw fit to dictate. It is because of this kind of politically correct bullsh*t that the current government is in power (well, one of many reasons).

Who gives a sh*t from a philosophical perspective if someone burns a book? The only concerns should be based around those which are environmental, health and safety...

[MOBIUS]

Exactly, burning religious books is a carbon neutral act, assuming you're using them for fuel.

[KrazyHorse]

If he was right, a firm in New York would have received an interesting email.

And nobody there would have cared, you twit...

[Elok]

Exactly, burning religious books is a carbon neutral act, assuming you're using them for fuel.

Burning literature of any kind, up to and including Mein Kampf, is a jackass, ignorant thing to do.

[Provost Harrison]

What if you had an iPad or some such device, downloaded The Bible onto it, and then burnt it. Would this also count?

[Elok]

I don't even want to know what kind of toxic materials are found inside an iPad. Burning one would be unwise and irresponsible. However, as no actual book is destroyed, just an expensive gadget, I don't feel quite the same horror, no. It's not the destruction of stored knowledge, just the destruction of some thingy Steve Jobs wants you to buy. I haven't constructed any grand moral theory here, but that makes a difference in my, uh, book.

[Provost Harrison]

But the concept is, in fact, the same. Environmental issues aside...

[Elok]

Yeah, well, I like books and I don't like Apple gadgets, so bite me.

[Provost Harrison]

Well maybe the iPad was a bad example...I don't like Apple either. Let's say it was a Kindle instead eh?

[Elok]

Hmm. Come to think of it, both of those devices have a reasonably high dollar value, so burning either one would seem to be a foolish decision. I feel worse about the Kindle because it's designed specifically to read books, whereas I understand the iPad uses "apps" to do douchebag things like "tweeting." But I'm not clear on what all these newfangled gewgaws do, being fairly luddite at heart. I don't even own a cell phone, if you can imagine.

[Cort Haus]

I downloaded the Koran, and deleted it. HA!

No-one found out.

[giblets]

I downloaded the Koran, and deleted it. HA!

No-one found out.

Is that stealing? No one is receiving money so it must be.

[Solomwi]

European? You mean like the Brits who just arrested the firebrand in the OP (she's not actually from/in Oregon; AFAIK our limits on free speech in the context of stupid protester stunts are all but nonexistent)?

The introduction of a speech aspect can't make an illegal act legal (e.g., no burning puppies to protest increased bus fares), but other than that, you're pretty much right.

[MikeH]

I downloaded the Koran, and deleted it. HA!

No-one found out.

[MOBIUS]

Burning literature of any kind, up to and including Mein Kampf, is a jackass, ignorant thing to do.

Not if you're freezing your tits off and it's the only source of fuel available.

Though you are right, religious books should be kept for posterity so you can point and laugh at the backwards beliefs of gullible people and make sure you don't make the same mistake yourself.

Or as doorstops...

Maybe we could come up with a list: 101 uses for a dead bible...?