A certain group of people are very cross about an ice cream parlor:
Canadian ice cream company Sweet Jesus ice cream— currently expanding into the United States— is in the midst of some seriously hellacious controversy … facing calls of boycott from Christian communities over its name and imagery, and is contending with a CitizenGo.org petitionclaiming it “serves up blasphemy” … Ian O’Sullivan, the man responsible for starting the petition, wrote that certain flavors of ice cream (referencing ‘Red Rapture’ and ‘Sweet Baby Jesus’) are “anti-Christ” and “anti-Christian” …
The mind boggles – you could play this out to the hilt
Imagine flavors like
Forty Days of Temptation Chocolate
Rocky Road to Damascus
Roman Delight
Water and Wine Ice
Cursed Fig
Purple Passion
Milk and Honey
Locust Bean
Heavenly Manna
and there would signs in the bathrooms saying “Pilate says everyone should wash their hands.”
This is why I am opposed to the concept of “hate speech” as a restriction on freedom of speech. These folks are welcome to boycott this business and to stir up as many people as they can to also boycott them. They should not be able to use force of law to make them change either their business name or the names of their products because they hurt other peoples’ feelings.
Of course that principle works for anyone’s hurt feelings, including holocaust survivors. As far as free speech is concerned, nothing is sacred.
So all the liberals who want to use the idea of hate speech so that they don’t have to hear stuff that they find offensive, right back at you.
“Our name was created from the popular phrase that people use as an expression of enjoyment, surprise or disbelief. Our aim is not to offer commentary on anyone’s religion or belief systems. Our own organization is made up of amazing people that represent a wide range of cultural and religious beliefs.”
Right, because there was no other expression that conveys enjoyment, surprise or disbelief??!
I don’t like the name, but I say that we shouldn’t use the law to change it. I’d simply not purchase ice cream there.
At least the chain picked a named that, while it might arouse ire, won’t arouse violence. Can you imagine if they’d named it Sweet Muhammed? They’d be burned down, or occupied, like that theater in New York was when they showed a movie about the life of Muhammed. Those protesters though, incorrectly as it turns out, that the face of Muhammed was portrayed in the film.
Well slide over on that bench, there’s always room for another blasphemer !!!
Wailing Walltermelon Sorbet
Gethsemane Grape Swirl
Miraculous Mint Chip
Trinity Triple Fudge
Palm Sundae
Matzoh Crunch Ripple
BetrayalBerry Butternut ( leaves a bad taste in the mouth )
As for the O.P.: I find the name to be mildly distasteful ( no pun intended here ), but can hardly claim to be morally outraged. People need to get a grip.
If, as Jesus said, we are to turn the other cheek, why not do so after spooning some ice cream into said cheek??
Would “Sweet Muhammed” actually cause an uproar, though? Muslims are opposed to depictions of their prophet, but they have no qualms about use of his name (less than Christians do about Jesus, if the number of Muslims named after him is any indication). Heck, if I saw an ice-cream parlor called “Sweet Muhammed”, I would assume that the proprietor named it after himself.
And while I’m not the biggest fan of hate speech laws, I still think there’s room to write them in a way that prohibits “Death to the Jews” but doesn’t object to Jesus ice cream.
