To hope the Pope does indeed punch his assistant...

[PausingFlatly]

... and get arrested for assault.

Seems he thinks it's clever to state that people who insult his mother should be punched.

As an example of how to treat people who insult him or religion.

And I'd thought this Pope wasn't dim. Looks like I was wrong.

Mocking religions or communism or capitalism in a cartoon or joke is not the same as mocking or harassing an individual for being Catholic or Chinese or a merchant banker.

Whereas saying people shouldn't mock religion and those who do must expect violence

No whiff of bullying about that, no sirree.

So would that be the entire Catholic church Simon who are wankers? All 1.2 billion of them?

Hmm I seem to remember something about how the Nazi's started their campaign of hate against the Jews with cartoons.

I'm sure Jews at the time were told to 'get over it its just satire'

Respectfully expressing any opinion should be allowed.

Being nasty for the sake of it should not be

Charlie Hebdo has frequently featured the Catholic Church, simontowers

You are confusing Mumsnet where "nasty" comments are banned with the real world. You'd have nowhere to put all the arrested football crowds for a start.

I'm not having a go a Charlie Hebdo specifically. And I have no problem with cartoons to make points at all.

I am just saying all the pope is saying is don't be deliberately nasty about other peoples faiths. And I agree with him.

I can see both sides but I do agree with you CatsEyes to some extent.

'Scuse me, but I maintain my right to occasionally be VERY nasty about people's faiths.

Usually when they are using their faith to try to harm me or someone else.

As people so very often do.

Yes people in all walks of society do and say nasty things.

Historically Britian banned homosexuality and allowed slavary. There are plenty of british murders and violent criminals. Thank goodness we as a society arn't made to apologise for our ancestors/idiots in our societies actions.

Apparently this doesn't apply to Catholics and Muslims

You know, if you've grown up in a place where liberal freedoms are a reality and you don't feel your life is affected by other people's beliefs, then that's great.

It also means you won't know what it means to NOT have those freedoms.

I've lived in places where I was accosted in the street and told wearing trousers was immoral and I was failing to show respect to the accoster's (Christian) religion.

Do you think I should have covered up?

Whose beliefs should be offended against, mine or the accoster's?

Actually, maybe it was "failing to show respect to the accoster" rather than to their religion.

It was all rather merged.

When I rome I was asked to cover up to go into the museum. Didn't bother me in the slightest - I was being respectful.

Actually I have been victim to racist and nasty remarks and it had made me more tolerant and respectful

Do you think I should have not worn trousers in the street?

In the town I lived in, not "here are the rules of entry to a private building".

sounds like an attitude in the 1950s about not wearing trousers for women.

Well it depends - in Africa boobs on display are not a problem but sitting with your knees showing is offensive. In an African community I would not show my knees, I would expect an African lady to wear a top in a western town.

I would not deliberately wear clothes the locals found offensive no.

Other women were wearing trousers.

This bloke (actually, blokes, happened more than once) was explicit it was his religious belief that I should not be wearing trousers. And came up and told me not to.

Should I have "shown him respect" and never gone out in trousers again?