Russia - threadbanned users in OP

It's not an unfettered right. You do realise that, don't you? Balancing of competing rights is a pretty basic concept in every democracy and not the most complicated concept to grasp. Or are you just being a contrarian?

I believe it goes back to ancient Islamic art.

If they are aren't allowed to live here (visas cancelled, not granted for more Russians), this instance of the "paradox of tolerance" (people using rights they have while here to stage an offensive fascist gathering in praise of the Russian military) might go away or at least reduce.

More serious potential problems that could end up taking up a lot of the time of our not very competent and quite badly underresoured police force/intelligence etc. go away too. They can exercise human rights to freedom of expression in Russia.

Are they not allowed to live here?

What do you think would happen if peoples fundamental rights are going to be squashed just because it doesn't fit in with the going narrative?

I have said it to myself plenty of times "if you hate the west and like Russia so much then **** off right back to that shithole" But luckily we live in a place where people are allowed to express themselves without repercussion, and sometimes that flies against everything I believe to be morally right, but "Bigger picture"

Supporters of ISIS can be arrested in Ireland. These people are walking a very fine line. They chose to make a spectacle of themselves for reaction. The reaction may very well see Z supporters arrested in future.

I said I did read them….Did you not read my reply ?

They are (permitted to live here) until they aren't.

Visas for the wealthy, free + nice to live in European countries that are under attack from Russia (even if we don't seem to want to admit it or say it out loud here) are not a human or a fundamental right. If the risk for us outweights any benefits, they can and should be taken away imo. It should be treated transactionally, not as some "right".

Now I admit there could be people who are citizens doing this stuff, that is much more of a thorny problem (probably why country should not go handing passports out easily like cornflake box prizes the way we do here…edit: maybe ignore that last, trying not to get sidetracked!).

You cannot express yourself "without repercussion" here either. There are some obligations I think, and freedom of speech is not as absolute as it seems to be in the US. Even without breaking any laws, response of others to your "speech" may not be good.

Not if their intention is incitement. Not when you consider Russia's long history of meddling in other nations' internal affairs. None of this can be viewed in isolation, so it's not necessarily a case of simple "freedom of expression" therefore I can say what I like.

It's a bit like your man who drives around the city centre with a "Trump was Right" flag on the back of his motorbike… leave him off. But if you've got a group of people doing the same thing, we're well within our rights to question their motivation and intentions if the context demands it.

Here we're dealing with group of people supporting a war waged by an violently anti-democratic tyrant responsible for undermining the very human rights which democracies - including ours - exist to protect. A man whose modus operandi is to destabilise other democratic nations with the aim of normalising infringements of civil liberties. That needs a close eye kept on it, not a blasé dismissal under the banner of "freedom of expression".

It's nothing to do with anti-Russian sentiment. Quite the opposite in fact. There are people on here cheerleading for the expulsion of Russians in Ireland. Whereas I know at least three Russians well enough to say that they are appalled by Putin and his butchering of individual freedoms in their country. People like those dressing up in support of Wagner terrorists only serve to further drive a wedge between decent Russians in this country and Irish people outraged at the war in Ukraine.

Not to mention freedom of expression is not limitless. There are restrictions on freedom of speech such as inciting hatred and or violence against protected groups for example.

Very much agree with you. If there are Russians here on visas behaving like this then they should have said visa's revoked and sent on their way. If they are actual citizens here then that is a different matter but even then freedom of expression is not limitless and if they have broken our laws in promoting their love for a murdering authoritarian dictatorship then they should be prosecuted for such.