Why is racistic talking is punishable by law?

[Deleted]

I don't get it really.
Why can you be charged for saying to someone "nigger" or "snowflake" or "gipsy" (in my country)?

I get it when it comes down to discrimination at work, at public institutions or anywhere (not being served in a restaurant, etc.).

But why does not the normal guy has the right to speak up his opinion, even if it is a jerk opinion? When whatever the guy is sayin hold no water and leads to no kind of mistreatment or harm other than personal feelings?

Even more so, some people are actually benefiting from being of a racial minority. They always play victims and get special attention or even social benefits.

For instance, in my country (Bulgaria) in some towns we have entire districts populated by gipsies. They don't pay for electricity or running water, but are provided with that nonetheless, just because they have human rights.
On the other hand if i don't pay my electricity bill this month, they will come and detach me from the network until i pay up. All that happening to a guy who's taxes are going to pay the electricity of said gipsies.
And i cannot even go out and say "fuck you gipsies". Because they will arrest me and throw me in jail.

[Ina]

Probably because they deem it harmful enough to be punishable?

[Deleted]

you sure that's the whole story?

If whoever he got a argument with called the police and the offender then went all batshit crazy shouting at the police about his right to insult people, police often have the discretion to "let you cool off" for a night. especially if the offender also forgot his ID or it's a repeat situation or some such.

[Lazuli]

Those dang o' gypsies! I tell ya whut

[Deleted]

it's not

/10char

[Aucald]

I don't know the laws of Bulgaria myself, but I believe such speech shouldn't alone be a criminal offense. Yes, it's offensive, crass, and tends to say far more about the speaker than the subject - but I fully support a person's right to have any given opinion even if I don't agree with it. The only instance in which racist diatribes skirt the boundaries of law, I believe, is when they're part and parcel of "hate speech": an attempt to incite violence or a direct threat to the safety of others.

[Acidbaron]

Because it's hate speech, because it passes on intolerance to others and creates a vicious cycle if let unchecked. Open op a bloody history book or even google and type in holocaust, apartheid. etc.

What a dumbass question. No wonder you are out of one of those countries.

[Wildtree]

I don't get it really.
Why can you be charged for saying to someone "nigger" or "snowflake" or "gipsy" (in my country)?

I get it when it comes down to discrimination at work, at public institutions or anywhere (not being served in a restaurant, etc.).

But why does not the normal guy has the right to speak up his opinion, even if it is a jerk opinion? When whatever the guy is sayin hold no water and leads to no kind of mistreatment or harm other than personal feelings?

Even more so, some people are actually benefiting from being of a racial minority. They always play victims and get special attention or even social benefits.

For instance, in my country (Bulgaria) in some towns we have entire districts populated by gipsies. They don't pay for electricity or running water, but are provided with that nonetheless, just because they have human rights.
On the other hand if i don't pay my electricity bill this month, they will come and detach me from the network until i pay up. All that happening to a guy who's taxes are going to pay the electricity of said gipsies.
And i cannot even go out and say "fuck you gipsies". Because they will arrest me and throw me in jail.

Cherish them.... Don't hate em...

Even more so, some people are actually benefiting from being of a racial minority. They always play victims and get special attention or even social benefits.

Could be said about your entire country too, to some degree....
After all, once your nation was able to break free from the Soviet Union, and exit the Warsaw pact, it's been welcomed and included into the European collective and can enjoy the social benefits that come along with it.
So, it's all a matter of perspective...
When you're from a country that greatly suffered from oppression, I think you should be more sensitive towards minorities, and stop oppressing others yourself.

[Ina]

Because it's hate speech, because it passes on intolerance to others and creates a vicious cycle if let unchecked. Open op a bloody history book or even google and type in holocaust, apartheid. etc.

What a dumbass question. No wonder you are out of one of those countries.

I think that's exaggerating it a lot.

[Ina]

I think you should go read some studies on how words can control perception.

We have no such laws here and it's not anywhere similar to the holocaust or apartheid.

[Stormdash]

Anywhere it's punishable as a crime... really is kidding themselves if they regard themselves as a free society. It's rude, it's ignorant, it's whatever else... but it's also not a crime; it's one's own thought, opinion, belief.

[Acidbaron]

I think that's exaggerating it a lot.

It's not and anyone educated by history knows this, Asia never faced what i'm defining here so your unintentional ignorance on that matter is to be expected.

[Wildtree]

We have no such laws here and it's not anywhere similar to the holocaust or apartheid.

And your country suffered from a split....
Maybe, just maybe.... such laws in place could have prevented the Korea war before it even began..

Food for thoughts about the powers of words:

"Naturally the common people don't want war: Neither in Russia, nor in England, nor for that matter in Germany. That is understood. But, after all, it is the leaders of the country who determine the policy and it is always a simple matter to drag the people along, whether it is a democracy, or a fascist dictatorship, or a parliament, or a communist dictatorship. Voice or no voice, the people can always be brought to the bidding of the leaders. That is easy. All you have to do is tell them they are being attacked, and denounce the peacemakers for lack of patriotism and exposing the country to danger. It works the same in any country."

- Hermann Goering at the Nuremberg Trials

And war is the ultimate exaggeration of aggression.. Yet, it can be triggered by nothing else than words..

[Kuntantee]

It's counter productive, dividing and such way of conduct is prone to violence. Depending on the level of hate involved in the speech, I see no problem punishing racists.

[The One Percent]

You can't just go around hurting my feelers.

[Rukh]

Anywhere it's punishable as a crime... really is kidding themselves if they regard themselves as a free society. It's rude, it's ignorant, it's whatever else... but it's also not a crime; it's one's own thought, opinion, belief.

...unless they made it a crime, then it's a crime.

Whether something is legal or not in whatever jurisdiction is not a judgment of morality.

- - - Updated - - -

Stop worrying about what other people are getting that you're not and just enjoy your life. Most of the problems in this world would be solved if everyone would stop being so butthurt that Joe Snuffy over there got over on something that they didn't.

No I am ENTITLED to everything, including on shitting on entire groups of people if I feel like it. I would care about other people but they're not me, so fuck them.

[Triest]

Simple racism shouldn't be against the law just specific threats and calls to harm people.

[Deleted]

Could be said about your entire country too, to some degree....
After all, once your nation was able to break free from the Soviet Union, and exit the Warsaw pact, it's been welcomed and included into the European collective and can enjoy the social benefits that come along with it.
So, it's all a matter of perspective...
When you're from a country that greatly suffered from oppression, I think you should be more sensitive towards minorities, and stop oppressing others yourself.

Welcomed and included in the EU - yeah, it has been, while paying all it's fees and taxes and following all of it's regulations to the letter. Which cannot be said for many of EU's founding members.
Not like we hang on anyone's back. We pull our own weight. Just because we are rather poor, does not mean anyone's breastfeeding us.

I am all about fair cooperation with the poor and minority, but i don't accept them to have more rights than me while they lean on my hard earned money.

And yes, saying to someone "gipsy", if he really is one, can lead you to be charged by that person for insulting and then you will have to pay him.

[Acidbaron]

Simple racism shouldn't be against the law just specific threats and calls to harm people.

If you hate an entire race there is something wrong with you since you just skipped the rational part of yourself and moved to labeling an entire group on the actions of a few.

Didn't you ever got taught in language classes that stereotypes are always wrong when applied on an individual level?

[Triest]

If you hate an entire race there is something wrong with you since you just skipped the rational part of yourself and moved to labeling an entire group on the actions of a few.

Didn't you ever got taught in language classes that stereotypes are always wrong when applied on an individual level?

This should be outlawed on insult basic and not on hatespeech basic.