Teh One Who Knocks
09-19-2013, 10:55 AM
By Nina Kate - Opposing Views
Bacon may hardly qualify as a lethal object, but cured pig carcass was the weapon of choice for Wayne Stillwell, who was sentenced to 10 months in jail after hurling bacon into the Central Mosque in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Stillwell, 25, wrapped the door handles with the meat product and then threw it through the doors and onto the ground because, in his words, “Muslims regard bacon as unclean."
The Mosque had a security camera in place, which captured the incident. Stilwell was later taken into police custody, and was finally sentenced on Tuesday after pleading guilty to causing a breach of the peace.
Sheriff Gordon Liddle called Stillwell’s actions "grossly offensive,” and noted, "a custodial sentence is inevitable."
Defense solicitor Matthew Nicholson told the court that Stillwell was sorry for the offense, and was prepared to spend time behind bars.
Foysol Choudhury, chairman of Edinburgh and Lothian Regional Equality Council, was content with the sentence. He said, “I really welcome the sheriff’s decision to impose a jail sentence in this case. We live in what is always called a ‘multi-cultural society’ and I think we need to work together and prove that is true. We need to respect everyone’s religion or culture, whatever it may be.”
In the United States, some anti-Muslim activists have taken Stillwell’s idea one step further with the invention of bacon-laced bullets — which brought record sales for the North Idaho manufacturer.
Jihawg Ammo, designed to send Muslims “straight to hell,” assumes that because Muslims shun pork, their “god” (why would it be different than the Christian god if there is only one true lord?) will punish them by sending them to hell.
Novel as the idea may be, religious study professor Shannon Dunn of Gonzaga University told the Religion News Service, “There is no penalty for coming into contact with pork given by the Quran … To my knowledge, Muslims, especially unknowingly, would not be banned from heaven for eating or getting hit by pork.”
Bacon may hardly qualify as a lethal object, but cured pig carcass was the weapon of choice for Wayne Stillwell, who was sentenced to 10 months in jail after hurling bacon into the Central Mosque in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Stillwell, 25, wrapped the door handles with the meat product and then threw it through the doors and onto the ground because, in his words, “Muslims regard bacon as unclean."
The Mosque had a security camera in place, which captured the incident. Stilwell was later taken into police custody, and was finally sentenced on Tuesday after pleading guilty to causing a breach of the peace.
Sheriff Gordon Liddle called Stillwell’s actions "grossly offensive,” and noted, "a custodial sentence is inevitable."
Defense solicitor Matthew Nicholson told the court that Stillwell was sorry for the offense, and was prepared to spend time behind bars.
Foysol Choudhury, chairman of Edinburgh and Lothian Regional Equality Council, was content with the sentence. He said, “I really welcome the sheriff’s decision to impose a jail sentence in this case. We live in what is always called a ‘multi-cultural society’ and I think we need to work together and prove that is true. We need to respect everyone’s religion or culture, whatever it may be.”
In the United States, some anti-Muslim activists have taken Stillwell’s idea one step further with the invention of bacon-laced bullets — which brought record sales for the North Idaho manufacturer.
Jihawg Ammo, designed to send Muslims “straight to hell,” assumes that because Muslims shun pork, their “god” (why would it be different than the Christian god if there is only one true lord?) will punish them by sending them to hell.
Novel as the idea may be, religious study professor Shannon Dunn of Gonzaga University told the Religion News Service, “There is no penalty for coming into contact with pork given by the Quran … To my knowledge, Muslims, especially unknowingly, would not be banned from heaven for eating or getting hit by pork.”