Wow. This thread got quite ridiculous, didn't it?
Existentialist, I agree that the things you listed should not be considered crimes by anyone, anywhere... but if a government declares any act to be 'illegal', then committing that act is a crime within the jurisdiction of that government. That doesn't make them right, but it does make said action a crime. That's the problem with declaring something to be illegal. When something is declared illegal... crime is created, as people will still commit the act despite the laws against it. Every time. If you do not understand that, then I contend that you do not understand what makes something a 'crime'. Put simply... if it is against the law, it is a crime. The rightness or wrongness of the law is irrelevant. When a law is broken, a crime is committed... whether one agrees with that law or not.
Blasphemy is against the law in some places, which makes committing blasphemy a 'crime' in those places. That 'crime' has no victims beyond god and the sensibilities of those that worship him, but it is a crime nonetheless. Thankfully, such laws against blasphemy are dying out, because they remove freedom of thought and expression from those that do not believe in and/or worship this god character. Being insulted or disagreed with does not make one a victim.
Existentialist, I agree that the things you listed should not be considered crimes by anyone, anywhere... but if a government declares any act to be 'illegal', then committing that act is a crime within the jurisdiction of that government. That doesn't make them right, but it does make said action a crime. That's the problem with declaring something to be illegal. When something is declared illegal... crime is created, as people will still commit the act despite the laws against it. Every time. If you do not understand that, then I contend that you do not understand what makes something a 'crime'. Put simply... if it is against the law, it is a crime. The rightness or wrongness of the law is irrelevant. When a law is broken, a crime is committed... whether one agrees with that law or not.
Blasphemy is against the law in some places, which makes committing blasphemy a 'crime' in those places. That 'crime' has no victims beyond god and the sensibilities of those that worship him, but it is a crime nonetheless. Thankfully, such laws against blasphemy are dying out, because they remove freedom of thought and expression from those that do not believe in and/or worship this god character. Being insulted or disagreed with does not make one a victim.
