Kenneth Zammit Tabona
What does freedom of expression cost?
Norman Lowell must be having an absolutely super time. His appearance on Bondìplus a month ago initially appeared to have been a fiasco for Imperium Europa. He overdid it big time. His proposal for preserving the white race was to launch embryos into outer space the moment the world was imploding under the weight of its own folly but when Lou Bondì asked him what would happen to them our great hero brushed him off and said that he could not be bothered with details.
This is the man who opines that the rank and file of Maltese are dolts who are incapable, congenitally and educationally, of rational thought. Incredibly these same dolts are his greatest admirers. This, and more, ironically, was deemed to be very funny by the majority of viewers who expressed themselves in the media and the social websites. This is why anyone and everyone watched the programme live or afterwards on di-ve and have not stopped talking about it since, if for the wrong reasons. As I said before I must have had a sense of humour bypass. I found nothing remotely funny about any utterance Mr Lowell made; in fact I found his train of thought acutely disturbing and his beliefs particularly repellent.
In the wake of PBS being fined €1,164 (precisely Lm500 in real money) by the Broadcasting Authority for allowing the programme of May 3 to take its course and be "manifestly offensive" in the process, commentors (vide Andrew Borg Cardona's blog of June 4) seem to be missing the wood for the trees. Many are those who are screaming blue murder as they are seeing this fine as a threat to free speech which, may I assure you, it is not. At least not as far as Mr Lowell is concerned as the one carrying the can is none other but the presenter Mr Bondì who is uncomfortably placed in the middle of all this legal jiggerypokery while PBS, in its turn, is suing the BA about a Bondìplus programme that took place a week later for precisely the same amount, €1,164; Lm500 in real money!
While all this pettifogging goes on, Mr Lowell has not been prosecuted and is tranquilly churning out artistic masterpieces costing the earth to finance his nightmares about 2012. The upshot of it all was an overfull edition of Xarabank on June 4 presided not only by Peppi Azzopardi but with Mr Bondì as co-star. Again, the programme gave even more airtime and more importance to Mr Lowell; for if you believe that there is no such thing as "bad" publicity, Mr Lowell's profile must have risen to dizzy heights; this time as the object of disgust and aversion. I fear that by writing this article I may be doing the same.
Many people have been writing about freedom of speech. There are those who maintain that Mr Lowell had every right to say what he said and although I agree, I am afraid that the situation is not as simplistic as that. It just does not stop there. Yes, I, Kenneth Zammit Tabona, or as he is known, KZT (not to be confused with Kazakhstani Tenge), am free to write what I believe is right in as far as the editor in his turn thinks it is wise for his newspaper to do so, however, and here lies the crunch, both he and I must accept full legal responsibility for it. Being free to express myself does not free us from bearing the legal responsibility for what I have written.
The radical difference lies in the fact that Bondìplus on May 3 was "live" and therefore could not be edited. Although there was a certain amount of preparation and research prior to the programme, it would have been impossible to pre-empt many of Mr Lowell's more perniciously outrageous statements. If that were the case then one would then presume premeditation. In my opinion, this lets off both PBS and Where's Everybody? The responsibility for advocating infanticide and abortion in addition to denying the holocaust and inciting racial hatred lies fairly and squarely on Mr Lowell's shoulders.
Therefore, while defending Mr Lowell's right to express himself freely I am afraid that freedom of speech comes at a price and if by this same freedom Mr Lowell has manifestly offended the sentiments of the public then, if and when he is sued, he has only himself to blame. "If" and "when" being the operative words.
What I find peculiar is that the two institutions that jealously safeguard our morality according the Constitution, namely, the courts and the Church, have, as far as I know, not uttered a word about the matter. The Archbishop and the Attorney General have taken a back seat while PBS and the BA fight it out. Both revered entities seem to be oblivious of public opinion. Had the courts and the Church had their ears to the ground and evaluated the very illogical and irrational pronouncements being made in the aftermath of the most successfully followed and talked-about edition of Bondìplus to date, then by now both should have issued official pronouncements with regard to every aspect of Mr Lowells' performance that go against the Constitution and Christian morality. By not doing so, they are leaving the way open to moral speculation and it is hardly surprising that where distinguishing right from wrong is concerned, most people are unable to see the wood for the trees.
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Joe Xuereb
Jun 18th 2010, 12:34
Mr. Lowell, as an atheist (ie I feel no comulsion to welcome strangers just because it's a tradition - atheism and gulllibility don't mix, as if you didn't know!), I know where you're coming from and, believe it or not, I sympathise. Thence, we go our separate ways. Do yourself and your cause a favour, stop being personal (thus losing yourself credibility). It so detracts from your mission. Go about your business, but quietly. If you think that's impossible, be vociferous, but with dignity. You'll win supporters that count. You're a character so you'll get invites to private gatherings. I would be very, very selective which ones I'd accept. You are sagacious. Use your sagacity. Frequent only like-minded sagacites. Good luck Mr. Lowell.
You come across as a hard-line right-winger. Or you're seen as such. You wouldn't line homosexuals against a wall and shoot them would you Noel? We need to know.
Joe Xuereb
Jun 18th 2010, 00:13
I was invited to the Queen's garden party (invitation card can be inspected on request - if I can find it). She, of course, is head of CofE. And at the time I was a closet atheist. So I was let in. The sandwiches, and ice-cream, and juices were marvellous. I enjoyed watching the fauna on the ponds (twas a fine day) and her hat was absolutely gorgeous.
I guess that's the cost of living in London - ain't all bad!
Joe Xuereb
Jun 18th 2010, 00:00
@ E. Muscat. Here's a triple thick goo of the best of Turkish.
You're well indoctrinated with the ten commandments. So much so that you believe even atheists should have them. Now I doubt that all religions apart from yours have a similar setup. So you would say your religion is good, and unique. The others, rubbish. Very dog-eat-eat I'm afraid.
E., nature is very selfish and has no morals (she is NOT Mother Earth. Nature is her own freakish creation, all tentacles and tendrils gasping for air towards the light. But then the human brain evolved and with it consciousness. And Confucius told us - thousands of years before christ - do unto others you you would...blah, blahnkety, blah. We remained dogs but we became thinking dogs. However, we still get our share of Alpha males. Our duty is to steer clear of the dogs, with a little help of them commandments. Or whatever.
@ Victor Rodenas. We say, 'spanner in the works' - trust me.
Andrew Farrugia
Jun 17th 2010, 12:03
I seriously cannot imagine why Mr Zammit Tabone indulges in any repartee of sorts with "a variante impazzita" who thinks he can impregnate the universe with ...whatsits.
Norman Lowell
Jun 17th 2010, 01:37
"And incidentally one cannot leave the archbishop or the attorney general out of it because they are constitutionally responsible for the maintenance of the law and christian morality in this country.
By ignoring declarations like Mr Lowell's they are shirking thier responsibilities."
Kenneth, keep chewing that foot.
What an utter fool you are.
I truly pity you.
Norman Lowell
Jun 16th 2010, 17:29
"The proof of the pudding is in the eating"
Beneath comment.
Please stop, Kenneth - otherwise everyone will realize you are KITCH!
Artist, did you say?
George Debono
Jun 16th 2010, 12:01
Norman
RE "Van Gogh hardly sold a painting during his lifetime"
Oh geez! First Norman first compares himself to J.C. and Socrates and now, wait for it… Van Gogh !
But - You got TWO ears - No?
Forget it…
:-))))))
G
Charles Sammut
Jun 16th 2010, 10:56
When people start resorting to words like "scum, rubbish, dolts" they have run out of valid arguments.
However, invoking the Archbishop and the Attorney General to interfere must take the biscuit. What right does the Archbishop have to intefere? Did you notice that the Inquisition was banned by Napoleon over 2 centuries ago? And he paid dearly for it because that was why the Church incited the people against the French who were all for liberté, égalité, fraternité,. But that is another story.
The Attorney General did not even lift a finger to investigate the alleged illegalities of the MEP election expense declarations. But that is OK because they are part of the PNPL pseudo-democratic tandem. Where was KZT then?
But the ultimate hypocrisy is KZT and ABC defending Alex Vella Gera for writing "Li Tkisser Sewwi" when the latter appeared on Xarabank denouncing Lowell and screaming for his arraignment. It really has gone full circle now.
Komplu hekk, anzi itfghuh il-habs u skomunikawh u meta jhalli din id-dinja, idfnuh fil-mizbla.
Kenneth Zammit Tabona
Jun 16th 2010, 11:09
at last the penny has dropped. The counter argument to abortion, racism and infanticide is the overspending in the MEP campaigns!
Can anyone in their right mind compare overspending to infanticide?
Come on Mr Sammut; pull the other one!
And incidentally one cannot leave the archbishop or the attorney general out of it because they are constitutionally responsible for the maintenance of the law and christian morality in this country.
By ignoring declarations like Mr Lowell's they are shirking thier responsibilities.
Alex Vella Gera
Jun 17th 2010, 16:02
"But the ultimate hypocrisy is KZT and ABC defending Alex Vella Gera for writing "Li Tkisser Sewwi" when the latter appeared on Xarabank denouncing Lowell and screaming for his arraignment. It really has gone full circle now."
Get your facts right. That was not me on Xarabank.
Norman Lowell
Jun 16th 2010, 10:38
“The irony is that while the Archbishop and Attorney General turn a blind eye to what Mr Lowell has said despite the fact that they are the religious and legal guardians of national morality..,” - KZT
It would be better to leave those two out of it!
They never uttered a squeak when the MEP Electoral Law was allegedly broken by most candidates, including those presently in Brussels.
And I don’ remember you Kenneth, protesting either.
And now, back to Art:
“get me the name of 50 people who have a Lowell hanging in their living rooms in pride of place and I may feel a teeensyweensy twinge of jealousy!” - KZT
Van Gogh hardly sold a painting during his lifetime - let alone 50 “hanging in living rooms”!
Amazing how KZT treats Art as a commodity.
An artist, did you say?
Kenneth Zammit Tabona
Jun 16th 2010, 11:05
The proof of the pudding is in the eating
George Debono
Jun 16th 2010, 10:00
My dear Norman, you are talking your usual rubbish.
You see, your utterances are temporarily confusing (for about 10 seconds, mind you) because what you say is always so oblique and illogical that it initially sounds persuasive when it is hollow. .
You see, as the saying goes, THERE ARE MANY WAYS TO SKIN A CAT - OK?
By the same token, there are many, many ways "to offend the sentiments of the public".
You offend the public in your special obnoxious way with your distasteful views and others may do good by "offending" in different ways.
As to "Individualists with a mind of their own" - Such people can exert both a good influence as, say, Ghandi or George Orwell or they can be infinitely evil as Hitler or Stalin.
Once more, I strongly recommend that you read Professor Paul Joseph B. Blogel's book, "Die Rolle der psychopathologische Fantasie in der Warnehmung der Geschichte" (Heidelberger Druckerei, 1951.) ---if you understand German, that is…
Sorry, Norman, Try again.
G
Adriano Spiteri
Jun 16th 2010, 08:38
Mr. ABC, can't you stick to your columns of spite?
What I find worthless and pathetic are your views, your yea-man attitude and your crass temerity.
I wouldn't go down your path to say you're not entitled to express your opinion but I must say that your comment is indeed totalitarian whereas Mr. Lowell's is not.
Sean Grima
Jun 16th 2010, 10:11
your own views are indeeed the hallmark of intelorance and totalitarianism.
Kenneth Zammit Tabona
Jun 16th 2010, 10:23
Please qualify and substantiate your sweeping statements. Are you implying that Norman Lowell is right? Are you implying that racism is ok? Do you really belive that the white race is superior? Do you agree that embryos that are found to be imperfect should be aborted? Do you go along with the idea that babies born with a defect should be allowed to die?
This is precisely what Dr Borg Cardona and I cannot and will not ever condone. There is no spite to it; the corruption of young impressionablle minds to evil ideologies like this is to be given Zero tolerance.
You can invoke freedom of expression as much as you like however if you break the law then you must be prepared to pay the price.
The irony is that while the Archbishop and Attorney General turn a blind eye to what Mr Lowell has said despite the fact that they are the religious and legal guardians of national morality, Alex Vella Gera was charged on something comparatively insignificant. But then of course the story in question dealt with SEX!!! Xarukasa!
Mr Lowell is now comparing himself to Jesus Christ and Socrates!!!! Unbeliveable!
Sabrina Borda
Jun 16th 2010, 08:23
A body can be enslaved by others, while a mind (like N Lowell's and no less Mr . E Muscat) can only be enslaved by itself.
Andrew Borg-Cardona
Jun 16th 2010, 07:36
Will wonders never cease: convicted racist Lowell compares himself to Jesus and Socrates, quite apart from giving us the benefit of his opinion on art. Having seen Lowell's own "art", it is fair to say that he is unqualified to render an opinion in this sphere. His delusional comparisons are equally worthless, as are his opinions.
Isn't about time for him to crawl back under his stone, this time permanently? We've now had enough proof that Lowell's views are ludicrous and that giving them credibility, even minimally, is no longer an option.
Norman Lowell
Jun 15th 2010, 19:38
"and if by this same freedom Mr Lowell has manifestly offended the sentiments of the public then, if and when he is sued..."
Jesus Christ "offended the sentiments of the public..."
Socrates "offended the sentiments of the public..."
Every progress has been achieved by Individualists with a mind of their own:
"offended the sentiments of the public..."
I expected better of you, Kenneth - an artist, did you say?
Sean Grima
Jun 16th 2010, 10:10
trying to compare yourself to Jesus Christ, and Socrates? "Progress" involves moving towards a better world...not to one based on statements that not all human being have the same dignity, irrespective of skin colour.
Andrew Borg-Cardona
Jun 15th 2010, 17:05
When will we just accept a simple tenet of faith? Racist scum is racist scum, even when invited to a Garden Party or to perform like the organist's monkey.
Franco Farrugia
Jun 15th 2010, 16:45
What is also particularly striking is that while the Broadcasting Authority (B.O.) fined Bondi some one thousand euros over airing NL, the same Authority also fined the same amound, more or less, to Maltese MEP EDWARD SCICLUNA over his Smash Programme GHALIK FL-EWROPA. Hence, do we conclude that this omniscient and powerful Authority sees both persons as equally dangerous to the common good? The mind boggles.
Kenneth Zammit Tabona
Jun 15th 2010, 16:27
Thankyou Andrew; The e-times corrected the word and it is now commenters as it was originally.Mr Muscat, E of that name, if and when Mr Lowell becomes an MEP then yes, President Abela will HAVE to invite him to all official functions. I very much doubt whether HM The Queen has anything to do with her guest-lists which is why it must be a thorough bore being a Queen anyways apart from being stared at by cats who go to London to see her!
Mr Cauchi!!! Gelosia del mestiere? get me the name of 50 people who have a Lowell hanging in their living rooms in pride of place and I may feel a teeensyweensy twinge of jealousyI wish you commenters apart from ABC and Frans Sammut would take the trouble of reading what i write properly before shooting your mouths off. Mr Camilleri, our spiritual leaders MUST speak out! It is their constitutional duty. I refer to comments re today's newsitem ' Police investigate Hitler Admirer' Mr Lowell himself has some very interesting comments to make.Woe to us all if this sort of thing ever becomes uncontrollable; the price of your folly and indifference will be incalculable.
E.Muscat
Jun 15th 2010, 13:39
Even the BBC gave Nick Griffin of the BNP space on its 'question time' programme and now he is even invited by the queen to the annual garden party,him being an MEP with his wife and two daughters.Why do you want the prononcements of the church and the attorney general on the matter as if Lou Bondi committed some crime!
We give space to all kinds of 'funny' people on TV,in newspapers,and even in public meetings: its called democracy in action.
Frans Sammut
Jun 15th 2010, 12:50
May I once again register my great admiration for the way Kenneth presents his arguments. These carry sane, healthy and above all straightforward, articles that keep away from equivocation and tell the truth as he (and so many others, including this commenter) sees it with out the slightest hint of some hidden agenda. The free press needs more Columnists like Kenneth but, unfortunately, they seem to be few and far between. Pity.
carmel camilleri
Jun 15th 2010, 12:46
Freedom of expression, does not give the right, to offend other "s person moral values.the problem with us in Malta and Gozo is,that ,if a person is left handed, he can drive on the side of the road to his liking.Think what chaos we will have on our road.Another, thing please li
leave our Beloved Spiritual Leaders out of this issue. Its enough that everytime they speak of Church Teaching, to enlighteen us, they are lambasted by the so called progressives of Malta.We who follows our Spirilual Leaders,knows their opinion about freedom of press.The Good Sheperd knows his flock, And his flock knows exactly what their Good Sheperd has to say.
victor rodenas
Jun 15th 2010, 12:34
Also, since we`re at it.........taghmel il-bsaten fir-roti,...........is not `spokes in the wheel`...as 95% of people write..........spokes in the wheel,makes the wheel stronger .More spokes the better..........One should write, `clogs in the wheel`.....
Joseph Cauchi
Jun 15th 2010, 11:48
“While all this pettifogging goes on, Mr Lowell has not been prosecuted and is tranquilly churning out artistic masterpieces costing the earth to finance his nightmares about 2012.”
Isn’t it said, that beauty is in the eye of the beholder?
Or do I suspect that there could be some sort of “gelosia del mestiere”?
Of course not!
JC.
victor rodenas
Jun 15th 2010, 11:37
Why did`nt a proffesional person like Bondi record the programm,.....no hindsight .N. Lowell has already been shown the yellow card,if he is taken to court (which I doubt)he might get a prison sentence............Our Lords` prayer goes like this.............`lead us not into temptetion`......
Andrew Borg-Cardona
Jun 15th 2010, 11:05
If I might be allowed a small note of correction (not of Kenneth but of a general impression that permeates the blogosphere) members of the commentariat are COMMENTERS not COMMENTATORS. I know KZT is aware of this and that he would not have slipped, so his proof-readers may have done what proof-readers sometimes do.
William P Flynn
Jun 15th 2010, 12:34
I know word usage differs with geography, but I think both of you gentlemen can be referred to as commentators as you write reports analysing events in the news. Certainly this is what KZT is doing today in this piece.
I appreciate the constitutional context in which KZT mentions the archbishop and morality, but I don't think we need any religious input to deal with the Mr Lowells of this world. In fact Christianity was very useful to the Nazi and the Fascist regimes.
Without a religious compass, I found Mr Lowell's performance on the Bondi program revolting, offensive and ridiculous. I think Mr Bondi was professional, disciplined, and he rendered an important service of discovery to the community. He should be given a journalistic award of recognition rather than a fine.
KZT, one cannot call for superfluous religious moral condemnation against Mr Lowell’s performance without accepting anti-gay and anti-divorce condemnations on another day. Morality works best without a religious packaging.
E.Muscat
Jun 15th 2010, 18:31
@Flynn:morality is not man made.Where do you get your morality?
You even want to steal that from religion in general:were are your 10 commandments?Do you have any basis for your supposed morality.
Is it natural law only, where dog eats dog,or is it something else.
Get your supposed scientific brain working and smell the coffee!