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Dear shadowminister,

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You wrote :

1. « How about "Racial intolerance is a fact of life, … or "Gender intolerance is a fact of life, … etc." »
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Yes, shadowminister, regrettably, intolerance, in all its forms, is a fact of life.

To quote Amnesty International :

« We all have the right to be treated equally, regardless of our race, ethnicity, nationality, class, caste, religion, belief, sex, gender, language, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex characteristics, age, health or other status »

And Article 1.4 of UNESCO’s “Declaration of Principles on Tolerance” states:

« Consistent with respect for human rights, the practice of tolerance does not mean toleration of social injustice or the abandonment or weakening of one's convictions. It means that one is free to adhere to one's own convictions and accepts that others adhere to theirs. It means accepting the fact that human beings, naturally diverse in their appearance, situation, speech, behavior, and values, have the right to live in peace and to be as they are. It also means that one's views are not to be imposed on others ».
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Social intolerance (as opposed to medical intolerance) is a psychological phenomenon that has its roots in fear, prejudice, narrow-mindedness, ignorance, mental rigidity, ultra-conservatism, bigotry, and various forms of superiority complex. Taken to its extreme level, it can lead to hate, discrimination, violence, colonisation, ostracism, dehumanisation, war, and genocide.
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2. « … savvy people would realise that this is a political wedge issue. Labor in blocking this bill would not gain any votes from atheists but would seriously piss off believers »
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Political cynicism. I am inclined to agree with you, shadowminister. Quite disgusting really.

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BP

Your last post appears to make the case for the religious discrimination bill?

Valley Guy,

<<The Bible is either the word of god... or it isn't

Kill disobedient sons (Deuteronomy 21:18-21)
Kill those who work on the Sabbath (Exodus 35:2)
Kill blasphemers (Leviticus)
Kill non-virginal brides (Deuteronomy 22:20,21)
Kill homosexuals (Leviticus 20:13)
Kill adulterers (Leviticus 20:10)>>

I think you ought to stick to your day-time job. With this comment, you demonstrated you don't have a clue about the differences between the commands of the Old Covenant for Israel and the New Covenant commandments for Christians. All of the commandments you quoted are for the Israelites only, to keep them a holy nation. They are not in force today for Christians.

None of the Old Testament law is binding for Christians today. When Jesus died on the cross, He put an end to the Old Testament law and its application to Christians(see Romans 10:4; Galatians 3:23–25; Ephesians 2:15).

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Dear shadowminister,

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Not if you interpret it through the lens of my previous posts.

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BP,

I disagree strongly. Your last post made a clear and cogent argument for protecting religious rights.

That in a previous post you flippantly claimed that there is no religious discrimination in Aus thus no need to enshrine the right is both intellectually lazy (as that would indicate that the bill should have no resistance) but also substantially incorrect, as there have been several actions taken against those that state their religiously based opinion. Israel Folau and a cleric in Tasmania are well-known examples.

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Dear shadowminister,

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You wrote :

1. « Your last post made a clear and cogent argument for protecting religious rights. »
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Not just religious rights, shadowminister, all human rights. I have always had and continue to have the utmost respect for human rights – all human rights, including religious rights.

Perhaps you missed it, but this is what I wrote to Greg (the author) on page 2 of this thread :

« The bill is blatantly unethical.

It states that contrary to international human rights law, the manifestation of religious belief must be privileged over other human rights. It allows religions to discriminate against people who do not share their beliefs as well as those they consider to be unacceptable because of their sexual orientation, disability, race, etc.

Freedom of religion or belief is enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and reaffirmed in article 18 of the ICCPR (International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights) signed by over 160 States, including Australia.

In addition to freedom of religion, this right includes the right to adopt, change or abandon a religion or belief, and to profess no religion or belief.

“Freedom of religion and belief” and “Freedom of opinion and expression”, are two intrinsically linked and mutually reinforcing principles founded in the universal, indivisible and interrelated nature of all human rights, whose purpose is to protect individuals – not doctrines of thought such as religions and their symbols, which do not constitute subjects of law.

In sum, Australia (or any other country, for that matter) does not need the proposed Religious Discrimination Bill 2021.

What we need is what every other democratic country in the Western world already possesses, i.e., a comprehensive Bill of Rights embedded in our federal Constitution ».
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(Continued …)

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