Pussy Riot - set them free!

[quisquose]

I hate the harsh punishment the Pussy girls were given,i think they should have been fined,but why did the girls choose a Cathedral to make that protest,a church that was once like many more (including the one in St Petersburg) closed down by Stalin.

 

It wasn't by accident that these girls chose this Cathedral. You may recall that the head of the Russian Orthodox Church is the guy with the 30,000 EUR watch, and it has been claimed that he is in the pockets of Putin and the chief of the Moscow police. He went to see both of them to demand the arrest and prosecution of Pussy Riot.

 

I suspect the the closeness of the Russian Orthodox hierarchy to the Putin regime is precisely why they chose the Cathedral. The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, demolished by Stalin and recently rebuilt (allegedly with help from the Russian mafia) is deeply symbolic both of the reemergence of Orthodoxy after the collapse of Soviet communism and of the unhealthy closeness between the church hierarchy and the Kremlin. The Pussy Riot "prayer" called upon the Virgin Mary to cleanse Russia of Putin, and the women in their statements to the court repeatedly criticised the links between Orthodox hierarchs and the government, especially the way in which Putin has used the religion for his own political benefit.

[VideoPro]

Good old Sheffield Forum!

 

Some of you who have posted in this thread have also posted in support of "free speech" in the past. Or do you only support it when it fits your agenda? Stroppy feminists don't fit, so let 'em get what they had coming, right?

 

Free speech is not only a basic right, it is our duty to criticise the government and its associated institutions like the established church. Did you know that the head of the Orthodox Russian church is one of Putins ex KGB cronies? No wonder they share a common interest.

 

Yes Rupert, the Russian state is well known for its ruthlessness. All the more reason to call for change -- some people are sick to death of getting kicked in the teeth again and again. These women wanted to make their point. They tried and now they are in jail. You should be defending their basic right to make that point. Or are you just going to sit there with your stiff upper lip, adjust your monocle and pretend it never happened?

 

Their's so much terrible **** going on this planet that we don't have time to take care of it all personally. But at the very least, we should support the right of others to to protest.

Edited August 17, 2012 by VideoPro

[quisquose]

They showed no respect or consideration for the millions they upset with their childish prank,let them rot in jail.

 

And myself, and millions of others, are offended at their vain display of offence. So what?

 

What is offence in to comparison to the real harm that has been bestowed upon these girls and their families, and the glee of it evidenced by yourself and others?

[VideoPro]

They showed no respect or consideration for the millions they upset with their childish prank,let them rot in jail.

 

This just in. Verily, Jesus did not care a fig, he would most likely been up there with them. Cherry pickin' the bible. It's easy when you know how.

[cressida]

I find it disrespectful to say the least...dont you??

 

I think it disrespectful and surely they must have realised it wouldn't go down well with the authorities but they were prepared to risk it for the publicity it seems or why choose a cathedral

 

Still I think the sentence was too harsh

[Rupert_Baehr]

Were I to jump off of a tall cliff, then there would be considerable damage 'bestowed' upon my body.

 

My family might be upset, too.

 

If I knew what was likely to happen if I leaped off said cliff, then although that wouldn't make things any easier for my family, neither I nor they would expect people to hop up and down and complain that the ground I landed on was hard.

 

Nobody forced them to make their (offensive to very many of their countrymen) demonstration.

 

They knew what might happen.

 

It did.

 

So?

[quisquose]

So?

 

I'm glad that there are people like them, in the past and now, that protest injustice when they see it.

[Guest sibon]

Nobody forced them to make their (offensive to very many of their countrymen) demonstration.

 

They knew what might happen.

 

It did.

 

So?

 

So, they should be able to speak their minds, as you and I can.

 

They should be able to do so without fear of oppression, or the actuality.

 

Anyone who believes that freedom of expression is important should support them.

 

I do, because I believe in freedom of expression. How about you, Rupert?

[tinfoilhat]

I don't think anyone (well I'm not) is saying they shouldn't have free speech. But in Russia at the moment, you don't have free speech. Either pick your battles or take the (overly harsh) punishment and use it to highlight injustice and lack of free speech. I don't really get the last bit from them, it seems more like self pity.

[Harleyman]

]They'll not be rushing to slag anyone off in the near future and then when they get out I would imagine they will fade into the obscurity their foolishness has earned them.[/b]It seems as most pro posters on here seem to forget Russia is not Britain' date='like em or hate em their rules and laws differ to ours,the same posters are very quick to defend Islamic countries and their laws as being no business of ours...maybe its time to stop being so hypocritical and remember the times when you have stated the same to protect certain factions, funny but I dont see them disagreeing with the statements on what would happen if they had done what they did in a mosque..they would probably have condemned the singers as Islamaphobists and called for their "heads"..so to speak.[/quote']

 

So if a punk rock group walked into Westmisnter Abbey and played a number slagging off Cameron it would be okay to throw em in jail for two years also?