This is very good news. It’s not over — the judge may overrule the prosecutors. But this is a crucial step toward sanity in the Netherlands. Let’s hope that Wilders will emerge fully acquitted, and that this will be the end of these efforts to curtail the freedom of speech. But I suspect we will […]
Spencer: Wilders’ Trial: Win One, Lose One
In FrontPage this morning I discuss the ominous implications of one of the prosecutors’ statements in the Stalinist show trial of Geert Wilders: On Tuesday, as his trial resumed in Amsterdam on various charges of offending Muslims, Dutch freedom fighter Geert Wilders won one victory and suffered one defeat. This is welcome news for Wilders […]
Dutch court cuts jail time for jihadist who plotted to kill U.S. troops in Iraq
Maybe they needed to free up a cell for Geert Wilders. “Court Cuts Jail for Plot to Kill US Troops in Iraq,” from AP, October 13: Rotterdam, Netherlands (AP) — Prosecutors say a Dutchman convicted and sentenced to 25 years in the United States for plotting to kill American troops in Iraq is to be […]
Leader of Dutch left-wing party encourages criticism of Islam
This development should help to upset the mainstream media’s apple cart of epithets like “right wing,” “far right,” “hard right,” and so forth for those who criticize Islam. And it goes to show what should be abundantly clear across the political spectrum: this is ultimately not a “right-wing” issue, even though those from that background […]
“No matter whether Wilders’ publications are true or not, this does not mean that he can express those as facts”
I just received this note from Jihad Watch reader Andries in the Netherlands. I’m working on finding confirmation. If it is accurate, and it is illegal in the Netherlands to tell the truth, then the light of freedom is in imminent danger of going out not just in the Netherlands but all over the West. […]
“The West is in a war of ideas against political Islam. If free speech is not protected in Europe, we’re already losing.”
And of course, we are. One freedom-fighter writes about another: “In Holland, Free Speech on Trial,” by Ayaan Hirsi Ali in the Wall Street Journal, October 11 (thanks to Bill): […] How is it possible that a mature European liberal democracy is prosecuting an elected member of parliament for his political opinions on the most […]
Wilders show trial views Fitna
Hate? Judge for yourself Is what Fitna says about Islam and the Qur’an accurate? See here. But it is not clear in the Wilders show trial whether or not truth is an adequate defense. “Court views anti-Islam film in Wilders hate speech trial,” from AP, October 6: The hate speech trial of politician Geert Wilders […]
Spencer: Truth On Trial
In FrontPage today I discuss the Wilders trial: How imperiled is the freedom of speech? Take this passage from Slate magazine: “In 2004, filmmaker Theo van Gogh was murdered after making anti-Muslim remarks, as was the anti-immigrant politician Pim Fortuyn in 2002. Why is there so much anti-Muslim rhetoric in the Netherlands?” If Slate flipped […]
Charges dropped against Gregorius Nekschot, the Dutch cartoonist arrested on suspicion of insulting Muslims
That’s right. The explanation when he was first arrested was: “We suspect him of insulting people.” Insulting whom? The Dutch Reformed Church? No, it wasn’t his equal-opportunity insulting of other religions that got him hauled in. His cartoons poked fun at Islam, and at the time, the double standard kicked in with the full force […]
Misunderstander of Islam arrested at Amsterdam airport
A “British citizen” of Somali descent. Yet he doesn’t seem to have become “British” in any recognizable sense. “British terrorism suspect arrested at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport,” from the Telegraph, September 19 (thanks to Kristian): Dutch police have arrested a terrorism suspect at Amsterdam’s Schiphol airport, the local prosecutor’s office said. The man was from Liverpool, […]