Gardai brought into NUIG over same-sex marriage row

Lockstep

So this happened in NUI Galway today.

NUIG has a referendum on tomorrow on whether or not the SU should support gay marriage. The Burke family had been giving out leaflets which compare homosexuality to paedophilia.

Stall was set up to give out their leaflets only for pro-marriage equality activists to set up a stall and a ruckus kicked off. Cops got called and NUIG Security shut down both stalls leading to the Burkes clinging to their poster board for a few hours and a few hundred students protesting them.

Fairly interesting seeing so many people standing against bigotry

jjpep

Most arguments don't tend to be as black and white as this one. Therefore it's probaly easier to get frustrated at people who are wrong and then you end up with scenes like this.

hfallada

A majority of young people see nothing wrong with same-sex marriage. They cant see why a person shouldnt be allowed to marry just because of the views of others. I remember my friend came out to one of the lads in college. But was a bit reluctant tell him, as his friend was from a tiny village in west Cork. His friend told him I have seen nothing wrong with you being gay, the only issue I have was that just because I was from West Cork, that I couldnt handle having a gay friend. Thats my only issue

kneemos

Arguing with them makes them stronger I suspect.

Pumpkinseeds

So are they Galways version of the crazy Phelps family then? Whoever they are, they sound like a bunch of ignorant fools.

Lockstep

Pumpkinseeds wrote: »

So are they Galways version of the crazy Phelps family then? Whoever they are, they sound like a bunch of ignorant fools.

Pretty much, like a Westboro Baptist Church in Mayo. With all their kids studying in NUIG.

Da Shins Kelly

Ah, the Westport Baptist Church.

Caught a bit of this. The parents of the kids were there with the rest of their children (a couple of whom looked quite young to me) and were protesting gay marriage, calling it comparable to pedophilia, etc. These are the same people who attempted to smear David Norris during his presidential campaign, and have crazy pro-life campaigns. They're absolute lunatics. I don't remember the Christian Soc being this vocal and extreme before they came along.

It was great to see so many come out and protest them though. Some very reasoned debate going on. Things got a bit confrontational from time to time, but ultimately I think it was handled pretty well. They are very much the minority, which was made very clear today. Laughably, Enoch Burke is running for Equality Officer in the elections. :pac: He's going to get an absolute battering in the voting.

Lockstep

Yeah, when I was doing my undergrad, Christian Union soc were a nice, inoffensive group of Ned Flanders types who loved Jesus and didn't bother anyone else.

Then the Burkes took them over and turned it into Fundamentalist Soc.

Madness, Ted. Madness.

Femme_Fatale

Oh my god, one of them is called Enoch? Can only be the namesake of this guy.

wendell borton

Whatever slight doubts I had about voting yes have definitely evaporated, thanks to the loons on the NO side, just to piss off the Burkes and their ilke is a good enough reason.

El Weirdo

Femme_Fatale wrote: »

Oh my god, one of them is called Enoch? Can only be the namesake of this guy.

I await his Rivers of Semen speech against marriage equality.

saidinmilamber

Original thread here

Santa Cruz

I thought we had free speech and freedom of expression in this country or does that apply only to the Panti lovers

Femme_Fatale

Santa Cruz wrote: »

I thought we had free speech and freedom of expression in this country or does that apply only to the Panti lovers

Knew it!

You're SO edgy!

Yes, they were given a platform for free speech. And so were those who disagree with them. Problem?

Santa Cruz

Femme_Fatale wrote: »

Knew it!

You're SO edgy!

Yes, they were given a platform for free speech. And so were those who disagree with them. Problem?

Those on this site who won't allow others to have a different opinion
p.s. I don't give a ****e about the Burkes or their opponents as long as it doesn't mean a rise in the price of drink

B_Rabbit

Da Shins Kelly wrote: »

Ah, the Westport Baptist Church.

These are the same people who attempted to smear David Norris during his presidential campaign, and have crazy pro-life campaigns. They're absolute lunatics. I don't remember the Christian Soc being this vocal and extreme before they came along.

There wasn't much smearing to be done, he asked for pardon for a convicted paedophile using government headed paper.

P_1

Santa Cruz wrote: »

I thought we had free speech and freedom of expression in this country or does that apply only to the Panti lovers

We do, they're exercising their right to free speech with their 'interesting' views and we're exercising ours by pointing and laughing at them.

saidinmilamber

Santa Cruz wrote: »

I thought we had free speech and freedom of expression in this country or does that apply only to the Panti lovers

They were protesting away out on the street for weeks, and people were ignoring them. They had no right to move that protest into the food hall, especially when most of them aren't students. Also, freedom of speech doesn't extend to slander, which is what calling gay students pedophiles is.

Da Shins Kelly

B_Rabbit wrote: »

There wasn't much smearing to be done, he asked for pardon for a convicted paedophile using government headed paper.

You should have checked out the website they set up about him, that had little or nothing to do with that. I think it has since been taken offline, but it was pretty much completely focused on the fact that he is gay and nothing else.

sillyoulfool

Lockstep wrote: »

So this happened in NUI Galway today.

NUIG has a referendum on tomorrow on whether or not the SU should support gay marriage. The Burke family had been giving out leaflets which compare homosexuality to paedophilia.

Stall was set up to give out their leaflets only for pro-marriage equality activists to set up a stall and a ruckus kicked off. Cops got called and NUIG Security shut down both stalls leading to the Burkes clinging to their poster board for a few hours and a few hundred students protesting them.

Fairly interesting seeing so many people standing against bigotry

Typical RCC hysteria and hatred.
Endorsed to hilt by the current pope who has dome zilch to change the official hatred of the RCC towards gays.

shruikan2553

Santa Cruz wrote: »

I thought we had free speech and freedom of expression in this country or does that apply only to the Panti lovers

They said what they wanted, comparing homosexuals to pedophiles. A large number of students in the college turns on them. Eventually there was a bit of a debate but with their argument of "ruining" marriage it didnt last long. They got more than they would have given is positions were reversed.

h2005

sillyoulfool wrote: »

Typical RCC hysteria and hatred.
Endorsed to hilt by the current pope who has dome zilch to change the official hatred of the RCC towards gays.

They're not members of the RCC

Lockstep

sillyoulfool wrote: »

Typical RCC hysteria and hatred.
Endorsed to hilt by the current pope who has dome zilch to change the official hatred of the RCC towards gays.

They're evangelical, not Catholic.
Catholicism has major problems but at least the Pope says gays shouldn't be oppressed. Unlike these guys.

Lapin

Pumpkinseeds wrote: »

So are they Galways Mayo's version of the crazy Phelps family then? Whoever they are, they sound like a bunch of ignorant fools.

Corrected.

B_Rabbit

sillyoulfool wrote: »

Typical RCC hysteria and hatred.
Endorsed to hilt by the current pope who has dome zilch to change the official hatred of the RCC towards gays.

Your argument is bullsh!t , the pope has actually done quite a bit regarding the treatment of homosexuals.

P_1

sillyoulfool wrote: »

Typical RCC hysteria and hatred.
Endorsed to hilt by the current pope who has dome zilch to change the official hatred of the RCC towards gays.

Except by all accounts the family concerned are more of the crazy American evangelical sort than your traditional stereotypical rural Irish catholic sort but let's not let those pesky facts get in the way of a good old fashioned rant shall we

c_man

P_1 wrote: »

We do, they're exercising their right to free speech with their 'interesting' views and we're exercising ours by pointing and laughing at them.

Aren't they mad that their campus posters are being torn down though? I remember one of the numerous leftie socs in my time throwing a massive hissyfit over allegations some group was doing it to them.

I think this SU vote is important though, could really affect things *snigger*

Davarus Walrus

Students, gay marriage, protests, lefties, religious nutjobs.

It's like a car crash AH thread. No. 2456.

P_1

c_man wrote: »

Aren't they mad that their campus posters are being torn down though? I remember one of the numerous leftie socs in my time throwing a massive hissyfit over allegations some group was doing it to them.

I think this SU vote is important though, could really affect things *snigger*

I'd imagine that the only people who really care about posters in colleges are those who have connections with the printing industry to be honest...

c_man

P_1 wrote: »

I'd imagine that the only people who really care about posters in colleges are those who have connections with the printing industry to be honest...

They did upgrade from a dedicated printing press company to a campus based, wireless printer solution. Galway isn't a backward hole. Well... it only happened like 5 months ago, but still.

krudler

Davarus Walrus wrote: »

Students, gay marriage, protests, lefties, religious nutjobs.

It's like a car crash AH thread. No. 2456.

Throw in some banker and dole cheats and you got a stew going..

asteroth

Santa Cruz wrote: »

I thought we had free speech and freedom of expression in this country or does that apply only to the Panti lovers

Fcuk your freedom of speech. That's always the curtain that hateful dickheads hide behind. They have every right to spout their crap but should face the same sanctions as anyone who says something offensive. My two beautiful nieces are mixed race and anyone who screams about a white woman loving a black man being an abomination gets an iron bar across the head from me. Anyone likening homosexuality to paedophilia is lining up for the same brute force and ignorance treatment.

jank

P_1 wrote: »

We do, they're exercising their right to free speech with their 'interesting' views and we're exercising ours by pointing and laughing at them.

It is one thing pointing out the fallacies of an argument and another thing to use physical force to remove and rip up posters about views one doesn't like.

Femme_Fatale

jank wrote: »

It is one thing pointing out the fallacies of an argument and another thing to use physical force to remove and rip up posters about views one doesn't like.

Yeh I agree there. It's always a big face-palm when the voice of reason lets itself down with crap like that.

PopePalpatine

I'm just waiting for a drive-by post from Manach to get this thread really started.

Santa Cruz

Lets see what Helen Loveday thinks about it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qh2sWSVRrmo

dr.bollocko

Yay. Student politics.

jank

asteroth wrote: »

Fcuk your freedom of speech. That's always the curtain that hateful dickheads hide behind. They have every right to spout their crap but should face the same sanctions as anyone who says something offensive. My two beautiful nieces are mixed race and anyone who screams about a white woman loving a black man being an abomination gets an iron bar across the head from me. Anyone likening homosexuality to paedophilia is lining up for the same brute force and ignorance treatment.

Eh? Really. One should be 'sanctioned' if you saying something offensive. You realise that is another way of saying censorship. Also, threatening people with an iron bar because you don't like what they have to say will not win many friends here I would say. What you are talking about is just plain fascism tbh. Using physical force to shut people up.

kneemos

jank wrote: »

It is one thing pointing out the fallacies of an argument and another thing to use physical force to remove and rip up posters about views one doesn't like.

To day gays are pedophiles is not a view it's bigotry and a possible incitement to hatred and violence which is illegal.

jank

Femme_Fatale wrote: »

Yeh I agree there. It's always a big face-palm when the voice of reason lets itself down with crap like that.

Of course those advocating and encouraging destroying their stall would think of themselves as 'liberal' and 'tolerant' people.

jank

kneemos wrote: »

To day gays are pedophiles is not a view it's bigotry and a possible incitement to hatred and violence which is illegal.

A classic 2+2=5.

To say gays are 'bad' and should all be killed or phyiscally harmed is incitement of hatred.
To compare gays to pedophiles (even though its distasteful) is not incitement of hatred (unless you of course approve of violence against pedophiles, well cause their pedophiles)

steddyeddy

homosexuality to paedophilia

Comparing consensual sex between two adults to a desire to have sex with young children? I really hope whoever set up that stall got a severe hiding.

jane82

How did that pro palestinian fella let these goons on his campus. Hes been there ten years. Hed have shifted them quickly.

Femme_Fatale

jank wrote: »

A classic 2+2=5.

To say gays are 'bad' and should all be killed or phyiscally harmed is incitement of hatred.
To compare gays to pedophiles (even though its distasteful) is not incitement of hatred (unless you of course approve of violence against pedophiles, well cause their pedophiles)

But paedophiles are hated and it's accepted that you're at risk if people think you could be a paedo.

jank

Ah, so it starts……. Peter Hitchens was right after all.

kneemos

jank wrote: »

A classic 2+2=5.

To say gays are 'bad' and should all be killed or phyiscally harmed is incitement of hatred.
To compare gays to pedophiles (even though its distasteful) is not incitement of hatred (unless you of course approve of violence against pedophiles, well cause their pedophiles)

Everybody hates pedophiles so it's an incitement to hatred and probably the purpose of the statement.

jank

Femme_Fatale wrote: »

But paedophiles are hated and it's accepted that you're at risk if people think you could be a paedo.

You are missing the point. Comparing a person or group to a person or group whom society doesn't have high regard for (e.g. paedophile, a traveller, an immigrant, a banker, a developer, a TD..etc...) does not in of itself lean to an incitement of hatred unless of course the population at large think that it is ok to go around beating up paedophiles (or bankers, or travellers..). I don't think the general population of Ireland never mind those students in NUIG think that is OK so to use the logic and conclude that to compare one with the other is an automatic incitement of hatred of a group. Its an entirely lazy emotional argument that has not rational behind it but for some reason it sticks cause its easy to 'understand'

WilyCoyote

Femme_Fatale wrote: »

Oh my god, one of them is called Enoch? Can only be the namesake of this guy.

Thanks for the enlightenment Femme Fatale. In my haste I read Eunuch

jank

kneemos wrote: »

Everybody hates pedophiles so it's an incitement to hatred and probably the purpose of the statement.

See above. It is a lazy argument.

The Th!ng

Enoch Gowell

shruikan2553

jank wrote: »

You are missing the point. Comparing a person or group to a person or group whom society doesn't have high regard for (e.g. paedophile, a traveller, an immigrant, a banker, a developer, a TD..etc...) does not in of itself lean to an incitement of hatred unless of course the population at large think that it is ok to go around beating up paedophiles (or bankers, or travellers..). I don't think the general population of Ireland never mind those students in NUIG think that is OK so to use the logic and conclude that to compare one with the other is an automatic incitement of hatred of a group. Its an entirely lazy emotional argument that has not rational behind it but for some reason it sticks cause its easy to 'understand'

Grand so, people can start putting up posters claiming youre involved with paedophiles. They have the right of free speech.