ITALIAN police have arrested six Moroccan men, accusing them of planning a hate campaign against Pope Ratzinger. The six reportedly got the hump over the conversion to Catholicism of Egyptian-born journalist Magdi Allam in 2008.
Taking the biscuit: Magdi Allam gets a communion wafer from Ratzinger
Allam caused outrage among many Muslims when he accepted a magic cracker from Pope Ratzinger, then changed his name to Magdi Cristiano Allam. He had built a career in Italy as a newspaper commentator and author attacking Islamic extremism and supporting Israel.
According to this report, Stefano Fonsi, head of Brescia police’s anti-terrorism squad in northern Italy, said the suspects allegedly banded together and met privately with the goal of stirring up religious hatred against Ratzinger, and other non-Muslims.
Investigators say they found literature exhorting Muslim immigrants not to integrate into Italian society and saying the Pope should be punished for having baptized the journalist during an Easter vigil ceremony in St Peter’s Basilica.
The investigation grew out of security checks ahead of a pastoral visit by Benedict to Brescia in 2009, but curiously authorities insisted that their probe revealed no plot against the pontiff or other terrorism aims.
Brescia Prosecutors Fabio Salmone said there was “absolutely no” indication that the group had attacks in mind. “I rule that out,” he told reporters. “There wasn’t even a plan” to organise attacks, he said.
The Freethinker was founded in 1881 by GW Foote, an outspoken critic of religion. After the publication of 
February 27th, 2011 at 12:51 pm
It always amazes me how anyone can grow up with one indoctrination and then, as an adult, reject it, only to adopt another. Seems a lost opportunity to embrace freedom.
This reminds me of Tony Blair’s conversion to Catholicism. I recall being amazed that someone, apparently (reputedly) intelligent, could hold such beliefs.
February 27th, 2011 at 1:54 pm
It occurs to me that because Allam had been in Italy so long he had made many Italian friends. They, of course, would be primarily Catholic. This leads me to suspect that he is conflating his friends with their religion. His current love affair with Catholicism is really more a love for his friends.
That said, it seems to me that the Italian prosecutor has a pretty weak case. At least, he would in the U.S.
February 27th, 2011 at 2:09 pm
He moves from belief in one nasty piece of fiction based on the dictat of a tyrannical super being to another. And, understandibly, the followers of one exemplar of the ideal want to sort him out in his new home with the followers of another exemplar of the ideal. There is nothing like religious belief to provoke one lot of faithdements to kick the crap out of another.
February 27th, 2011 at 2:18 pm
Tozza,
It isn’t merely about indoctrination, it’s a moral issue, a question of personal character.
If you lack personal and intellectual integrity, you’ll believe something in the absence of good evidence for, and/or in the face of good evidence against the belief.
To believe something is to tell yourself that something is true, but truth is “a fact which has been verified”.
Understood like this, “faith” is simply baseless assertion, which we’re taught as children is lying. Believing something without (at minimum legal) proof is a form of dishonesty.
Once we understand that faith is synonymous with lying, we can then understand people like Tony Blair and his “Faith Foundation”.
He’s a person of deep dishonesty, but by calling this dishonesty “faith”, he then regards this form of lying as a virtue and a point of pride.
February 27th, 2011 at 5:43 pm
The first thing that struck me is that the Italian police arrested these men for what appears to be a non-violent protest, with calls for civil disobedience. WTF? Is catholicism the state religion now, and the Italians are arresting people for blasphemy? Shades of Galileo.
Religion throughout history has whored itself to rebellions and dictatorial governments to extort political influence. Under the camouflage of any war, you find the festering stinch of religious conflict. Both sides think the have a link to the true god, and the other side is deceived by the devil. There is nothing new here, same shit, different day. But, I understand BDuke’s determination to keep reporting it in hopes it will open someone’s eyes.
As far as the journalist’s conversion, I tend to have patience with him. After I escaped the JW’s, I tried Japanese buddhism and calvary chapel, before I realized they are all the same. Sell you the promise, enslave you with fear, steal your money. Modus operandi. Same gullible humans, same tactics.
NeoWolfe
February 27th, 2011 at 6:40 pm
If they didn’t do or incite to violence then I find this prosecution disturbing to. No matter what I otherwise think of their activities.
February 27th, 2011 at 6:40 pm
I don’t care what they want to do about the pope in the way of civil disobedience or propaganda, but it’s in the best interests of everyone for Muslim immigrants to adopt the general customs of their new country, preferably dropping the god-bothering altogether. I like Italy being Italy, not Saudi Arabia.
February 27th, 2011 at 6:47 pm
Yes, but it all helps to take the spotlight of Berlusconi.
February 27th, 2011 at 10:23 pm
AngieRS said:
“Yes, but it all helps to take the spotlight of Berlusconi.”
Berlusconi is a politician, as such one can assume is guilty of corruption. As I understand, he is accussed of hosing some underage prostitute. I am reminded of Clinton getting his dick sucked by Monica Lewinsky. Then, I wonder how that relates to their ability to do their job. Is it because they violated a moral standard established by religion? If you convict Berlusconi, you surely convict Muhammed. Double, triple, quadrupal standards of judging. Humanity is not a puzzle, it’s more like an explosion of idiots’ opinions without fact or reason.
NeoWolfe
February 28th, 2011 at 1:20 am
No, sorry Neo Wolfe, whoosh, went right over my head. Not sure how this man reminds you of Clinton seeing as the sexual act Clinton had was not with either an under-age girl or a prostitute and was therefore not criminal. Time will tell if Berlusconi perjures himself if he hasn’t already done so in relation to this matter, in which case he will be also guilty of under-age sex.
February 28th, 2011 at 8:53 am
Of course, in the UK, that would have been a very bad career move for the police. The death cultists would have been out on the streets waving their gold plated victim cards. The(who needs evidence?) BBC would produce a documentary showing that torture was involved. Even if the guilty were filmed actually throwing grenades, the police would have been told that they should have looked the other way, as the didn’t they would have lost their pensions and been thrown out of the force as “racists”. Ho Hum.
February 28th, 2011 at 10:42 am
VeridicusX,
Well put.
I’m certainly no Blair supporter but, before WMD and Iraq, he seemed to be doing a passably decent job as PM (by recent historical standards). It struck me as a little (!) crackpot of him, though, to come out and announce his religiosity so publicly. Looking back, it puts a whole new slant on his behaviour, and may explain the ill-judged reasoning behind a lot of his actions. Perhaps an unstated / subconscious element of crusades mentality.
February 28th, 2011 at 3:21 pm
Don’t mention the child abuse. I mentioned it once but I think I got away with it. At least I don’t think I have had any Italian police cars pulling up outside my door just yet.
“but curiously authorities insisted that their probe revealed no plot against the pontiff or other terrorism aims”.
It would seem that the Catholic church priests get away with their probes all the time.
March 1st, 2011 at 12:16 am
Angie RS,
I understand your point. There is a difference between violating the law of the land, and the dogma of the church. And I admit that I failed to make myself clear, that in the same country, a politician who every rational person realizes is PR facade, is held to the highest moral and legal standard (thus the Clinton analogy), while the pope is allowed to cover up priests butt fucking little boys, and, yet, it’s a crime to spread propaganda against him. To quote myself:
“Double, triple, quadrupal standards of judging. Humanity is not a puzzle, it’s more like an explosion of idiots’ opinions without fact or reason.”
As a freethinker, I am skeptical of the laws of the land, as well. I think that’s okay because, without such freethought, what is now America would be a British colony.
Teenagers want to fuck each other. I know, because I was one. Idiots that think that a law in some volume on a dusty shelf can legislate away the affects of hormones, are mental amoeba. YET!!!,the state of Washington, USA, has a law, fairly recent, that makes it illegal for anyone to have sex under the age of eighteen, under penalty of prison time. I would laugh my ass off, if it weren’t so pathetically naive. How many deluded fundies did it take to pass that measure?
I guess my point is, that humanity is swimming around in a pool of gray, searching for black and white. Another reason why fundies reach for their scriptures. When it gets difficult to sort out, they ask their god to make it clear. But, all that does is make it caveman.
Oh well, without human stupidity, what would the comedians have to work with? I wouldn’t like to see Stephen Colbert run out of material.
NeoWolfe
March 1st, 2011 at 2:53 am
I was a bit concerned about this too. If no violent threat or violent exhortation was made why the hell are they being arrested.
Is Dawkins next?
March 1st, 2011 at 3:52 am
Jay asked:
“Is Dawkins next?”
Do you know the story of Galileo? If you don’t, good stuff. Discovered that the earth is not the center of the universe. Instead, he realized it was one of several bodies rotating the sun. After publishing his theories, the roman catholic hierarchy sentenced him to house arrest for life for heresy.
Does that answer your question, “Is Dawkins next?” Answer: It will be if we don’t continue fighting.
NeoWolfe
March 1st, 2011 at 4:21 am
http://4thefirsttime.blogspot......es-to.html
NeoWolfe