Reply #12: WHAT ? NO " 1st AMENDMENT" ? CM'ON !!!!

[tocqueville]

1) Europe is not a country, there are different constitutions

The French constitution in its preamble include the "declaration of man an citizen" which states

11. The free communication of ideas and opinions is one of the most precious of the rights of man. Every citizen may, accordingly, speak, write, and print with freedom, but shall be responsible for such abuses of this freedom as shall be defined by law.

2) France has an efficient separation of Church and State translated in "laicity"

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Laicity

The term "laïcité", in its current sense, implies free exercise of religion, but no special status for religion: religious activities should submit to the same set of laws as other activities and are not considered above the law. The government refrains from taking positions on religious doctrine and only considers religious subjects from their practical consequences on the inhabitants' lives.

Laïcité does not necessarily imply, by itself, any hostility of the government with respect to religion. It is best described a belief that government and political issues should be kept separate from religious organizations and religious issues (as long as the latter do not have notable social consequences). This is meant to protect both the government from any possible interference from religious organizations, and to protect the religious organization from political quarrels and controversies.

3) Privacy :

laws about privacy are explicit in many European countries to the difference from the US where it is a "penumbral right"

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in article 12, states:

No one shall be subjected to arbitrary interference with his privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to attacks upon his honour and reputation. Everyone has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks. (note that this international declaration is incorporated in many European constitutions to the difference from the US and incorporated in the French constitution). Try to take a picture of my cat without my consent and I'll sue your ass. And my phone number is not for sale unlike in the US.

Countries such as France protect privacy explicitly in their constitution (France's Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen), while the Supreme Court of the United States has found that the U.S. constitution contains "penumbras" that implicitly grant a right to privacy against government intrusion, for example in Griswold v. Connecticut (1965). Other countries without constitutions have laws protecting privacy, such as the United Kingdom's Data Protection Act 1984. The European Union requires all member states to legislate to ensure that citizens have a right to privacy, through directives such as Directive 95/46.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privacy

so please check your sources before you start ranting.

The religious frenzy of mixture between State and Church like it can be seen in the US today is pratically impossible in Europe and specially in France, Germany, Scandinavia... God belongs to Church and privacy, the State belongs to free independent citizens. So we pledge on the Constitution and not the Bible and don't ask God for help.

What do you mean by "majoritarian" ? There are of course "mainstream politically correct" opinions
dominating the media, but where is the difference from the US ? Specially today ? But we have a whole array of different dissenting voices and they ARE heard. Show me the "dissenters" thrown in European jails for their opinions... We are even reluctant to put them in jail when they damage property.... Chirac doesn't need to have speech protected meetings and we can say fuck and show nipples on TV without national outrage.

The US Democrat opposition in Congress and Senate doesn't even use 5% of the heavy rethorics and accusations that oppositions use in Europe. Have you ever witnessed a parliamentary debate on a big issue in France, UK, Italy, Spain ?

"Religion used to be a progressive tool in the US" ? Of course it's the pastors that opened the way for religious freedom, abortion, women's rights, workers rights, social security etc... How many WHITE reverends where against slavery and segregation (the later still constitutional 1964)...

You must be kidding