Can someone please explain this to me? What weight do decrees from the European Union carry? Is it up to individual countries to enforce them? Does being a member of the union obligate countries to follow any measures that have been passed like this one? How often is the charter updated with shit like this?
The way to look at it is that Europe used to be a bunch of independent countries, but then they all joined together to make one big country. And now places like France and Italy can be thought of as states or provinces within the EU.
In the US, California can make some laws that are different than the laws Texas makes. But they still have to follow federal laws. Same with the EU. Spain can make some of their laws different from German laws, but they still have to follow and enforce EU laws. They're no longer independent countries, but instead are like states within a big country.
In this case, an Austrian woman said, "... A 56-year-old and a six-year-old? ... What do we call it, if it is not pedophilia?" Austrian courts, using Austrian laws, charged her with breaking the law. The woman disagreed with the verdict and appealed to a higher court. In her situation she appealed to the European Court of Human Rights (who ended up agreeing with the Austrian court). - The same thing can happen in the US. Where someone can disagree with a Texas court's decision and appeal to a higher court. With the highest court being the Supreme Court.
And as for this case, there is now precedent set in the EU. You cannot call Muhammad a pedophile. It's now illegal to use the word pedophile to describe him because it "could only be understood as having been aimed at demonstrating that Muhammad was not worthy of worship,". Not because it does that, but because it could be "understood as" doing that. And because an EU court ruled on it, the precedent is set for the entire EU instead of only Austria.
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RedditSureDoesSuck ago
Can someone please explain this to me? What weight do decrees from the European Union carry? Is it up to individual countries to enforce them? Does being a member of the union obligate countries to follow any measures that have been passed like this one? How often is the charter updated with shit like this?
birds_sing ago
The way to look at it is that Europe used to be a bunch of independent countries, but then they all joined together to make one big country. And now places like France and Italy can be thought of as states or provinces within the EU.
In the US, California can make some laws that are different than the laws Texas makes. But they still have to follow federal laws. Same with the EU. Spain can make some of their laws different from German laws, but they still have to follow and enforce EU laws. They're no longer independent countries, but instead are like states within a big country.
In this case, an Austrian woman said, "... A 56-year-old and a six-year-old? ... What do we call it, if it is not pedophilia?" Austrian courts, using Austrian laws, charged her with breaking the law. The woman disagreed with the verdict and appealed to a higher court. In her situation she appealed to the European Court of Human Rights (who ended up agreeing with the Austrian court). - The same thing can happen in the US. Where someone can disagree with a Texas court's decision and appeal to a higher court. With the highest court being the Supreme Court.
And as for this case, there is now precedent set in the EU. You cannot call Muhammad a pedophile. It's now illegal to use the word pedophile to describe him because it "could only be understood as having been aimed at demonstrating that Muhammad was not worthy of worship,". Not because it does that, but because it could be "understood as" doing that. And because an EU court ruled on it, the precedent is set for the entire EU instead of only Austria.
RedditSureDoesSuck ago
Thank you for the in-depth answer fellow goat.