AmericanPapist Comments
If I'm not mistaken, that 1929 treaty was signed with Mussolini. I'm sure they'll have a field day with that...
The sad thing, Thomas, is that trying to tell a professional comedian why their jokes are offensive is just about useless. I agree that we shouldn't jail people for what they say, and that something needs to be done, but how do you make a comedian feel sorry?
I think this socially-challenged woman suffers from low self-esteem, and she needs to be affirmed in her own eyes before she can be that special light to others she was always meant to be.
That failing, toss her in jail and throw away the key.
How about a chat first at Starbuck's, Dr.Ed? The merciful will receive mercy. Nah, that wouldn't line up too well with today's Gospel now would it? Nobody really listens to them anyway, right?
Italy is not the U.S.A. and we should not seek to impose our mores (or laws) on them. That being said, what was said was offensive and in the most awful poor taste. As far as I'm concerned (a) if the comic KNEW the law and chose to ignore it then (b) her happy ass needs to suffer the consequences.
Off to jail with her and good riddance to someone who is so bereft of talent and/or imagination that the only way they apparently can get a reaction is to indulge in offensive suggestions vis-a-vis a man like the Excellent Benedict, a man whose holiness and intellect are to be revered, not mocked.
hi hitler
The sad thing about this is this social misanthrope will probably receive more exposure because of the government's prosecution than for anything else she has done as a comic.
The perception is that Ms. Guzzanti is attacking the Catholic Church and its teachings through its most visible leader by making offensive and inflamatory remarks. The Church has dealt with worse. By all means put her on an interview and let her expose her ignorance.
J,
Just to be accurate, isn't it 'Heil Hitler.'?
Are you gonna post that on all the comboxes?
On topic: LOL. Some unwell comic followed modern tradition and attacked the pope. How rebellious of you. You're not funny, and not shocking us any more. Get over yourself already!
Who is this woman anyway? She has no authority to condemn the pope, and in fact those who condemn should worry about themselves instead. Again, LOL.
According to the article the same type of law applies to the Italian president as well. On one hand, that makes me a little more comfortable with the law - it's grounded in a respect for authority rather just an outdated law about the Pope that got left on the books. On the other hand, as an American I'm still very disturbed by the thought of a comedian serving jail time for her comments.
j,
You probably won't come back, but in case you do:
Sometimes tossing someone in jail is an act of mercy. Sometimes punishment is the thing they need most. The little chat over Starbucks would probably be her railing at whoever is trying to talk mercifully to her. Oh, and you can take the Vatican's response as analogous to a starbuck's chat. Didn't work.
What I find funny is that people who feel that all forms of punishment are cruel and unusual are the first to send someone to hell. Those who rally against hate crimes are the first to be hateful. The ones proclaiming tolerance are the least tolerant of those with another view.
And the ones who accuse others of being Nazis are the ones most likely to act like Nazis to people who oppose them. Over at WDTPRS (or was it here? you guys are quoting each other so often I lose track), there was a story about Obama wanting to form a Brown-shirt-like "civilian" security force.
Bear in mind that freedom of speech laws are far more latitudinarian in the United States than in Europe, where comments such as that may routinely subject the speaker to civil slander liability.
The Lateran Treaty (the 1929 concordat in question) is still fully recognized by the Italian government, and with good reason---it's the treaty by which the Italian state returned a tiny piece of what it had viciously stolen from the papacy and made various pledges in consideration for the Holy See's agreeing to acquiesce to the loss of the rest. It also took place against a backdrop of widespread public agitation led by ninnies on soapboxes who started out saying incendiary things and wound up getting lots of people killed in various uprisings and street fighting that afflicted parts of Europe following WWI.
So an Italian law that makes one criminally liable for slandering the pope is, premises considered, eminently reasonable.
LOL
If Mizz Guzzanti was baptized a Catholic, then Canon 1369 can be applied to her: A person who in a public show or speech, in published writing, or in other uses of the instruments of social communication utters blasphemy, gravely injures good morals, expresses insults, or excites hatred or contempt against religion or the Church is to be punished with a just penalty.
I also advocate this canon's use against pro-abortion or pro-gay-marriage Catholic politicians.
The Church's law states that words do matter and certain misuse of them is a canonical crime (or would delict be more precise).
To paraphrase a famous saying: For those who love Papa BXVI (or any pope) no explanation is necessary. For those who don't, no explanation is sufficient.
What a zany story. The penetecostals from Latin America are very very aggressive in Italy. They hold rallys right outside catholic churches and say outrageous and incrediably insulting things about the pope and catholic church etc. To my knowledge no one has never threatened them with jail. Last I heard they still hold rallys. Probably the most famous place they rally is the Milan Catedral but I've seen them in other places.
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