What are your thoughts on Alex Aen's release from prison?

It’s no different than other countries like China doing the same thing.

Trivial matter? Blasphemy is a crime in a land where the very idea of separation of mosque and state is blasphemy beyond treason. And what greater blaphemy can there be than denying the existence of God. The man’s imprisonment was absolutely required once he went very public with his pronouncement. No state can tolerate open displays of sedition and expect ANY of its laws to be regarded as meaningful. Rulers of Muslim countries are painfully aware of the glaring handicaps which saddle their lands linked to outdated customs ill suited to ruthless global evonomic realities. This tacit recognition is in fact the only reason the man wasn’t executed post haste, and certainly the only reason he was released after serving a sentence one might expect to receive for petty theft.

@stanleybmanly From a humanist point of view it was a trivial comment. I don’t support blasphemy laws, I deem them to be inhumane.

Of course they’re inhumane. But 20 years ago, the man would surely have been put to death for his offense.

I think we can all agree that what the man said was trivial (to us). What the State did was not. And the fact that China or any other State also does it, is no excuse for complacency nor does that fact give what happened in Indonesia legitimacy.

@NerdyKeith. You don’t support. You deem them inhumane. You. Do you see what I’m getting at? People don’t like their beliefs questioned. They feel the need to punish those who do. They feel the need to belittle those who believe differently. If you think that it is only religious people who do this, go back and read posts on the recent question about “would people change their beliefs under certain circumstances.” It’s easy to assume our way of thinking is correct and others are wrong. It is easy to assume that other people are assholes when they believe differently. It’s easy to assume a superiority for having an “enlightened” view. Another time when you’re feeling more superior and enlightened than someone of faith, try to remember this; If you had been born as that exact same person in those exact same circumstances, you would behave in that exact same way.

@Jak i don’t think it’s only religious people who do this. If this was an article about communist extremism, I’d be objecting to that too. But using religion as an excuse to attack free speech is unacceptable to me. It is utter oppression.

I don’t think I’m superior, westernized society has its faults too. But that’s not really any reason to support this inhumane behavior. I don’t support it, and I make no apologies for not supporting discrimination against atheists.

@NerdyKeith. You’re missing the point but I can’t type all I would like to say with one finger on this phone. Maybe I will pm you later.

@Jak Would I be correct in saying your point is basically that the behavior I am opposed to is part of their culture?

Many laws in Communist countries and countries run by dictators are inhumane and oppressive. I doubt you’ll find anybody on Fluther in support of those laws and that kind of oppression.

The law is obtuse, but no one was surprised by the speedy arrest and conviction. The arrest was required and necessary to maintain the legitimacy of the state. Even stupid laws cannot be permitted to be openly violated.

It’s good that he’s out, but it will be better if those blasphemy laws were written out of the law books. If god can’t protect its religion, why should the law?

@reijinni I agree. Regardless to what their culture is. My point would be that this particular aspect of their culture (i.e. punishing the infidels) is dehumanising.

Muslim countries like Indonesia don’t have the same concept of “free speech” that we have—to them, blasphemy is not free speech. You don’t have the freedom to say something like that in a place like Indonesia, Bangladesh, or Saudi Arabia. I do not see anything changing any time soon as this is just how the cultures of those countries are; it’s ingrained and would take a long time to change.