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[Jackrabbit]

The title would be 'murdering gays isn't murder if they hit on you' but I ran out of room.

Australia, as a nation, has a lot of ground to cover on the social front. I love my country in a slightly embarrassing, patriotic sort of way but sometimes I feel like in some ways we've never moved past the 1950s. There's a lot that needs to be bettered, but let's focus on this today:

When I first saw this, I immediately wanted to make a thread about it, but I thankfully saw that a committee in Queensland (for those not in the know, that's a state in Australia) had recommended to the government that they close a legal loophole that meant murderers of homosexual men and women could argue in court that their actions were partially justified due to being hit on by the person they murdered. As recently as 2008, two people were jailed for manslaughter, not murder, due to the person they murdered being both a man and having hit on them. I was pretty happy to hear that the Queensland government was taking steps to move past yet another horrifying aspect of Australian history, and considering they're one of our most conservative states I was doubly pleased.

Then this happened. That was Queensland's Attorney General claiming that he doesn't think it's in Queensland's best interests to change the law because it's a defence open to both men and women and getting away with murder is okay if it's a form of gender equality. In the words of Shadow Attorney General Bleijie (who has the honour of having a cool title and a cool name and squandered it all by being an asshole) it would "impact on the ability of female abuse victims in domestic relationships to rely on the defence", which kind of speaks ill of his knowledge of our legal system considering there is a separate partial defence that covers exactly that.

Queensland's government is trying to play this off as an attempt at just playing politics and that this law isn't as big a deal as people make it out to be. Here's an obligatory Change.org link because, you know, internet petitions, but I'm asking people from Australia, or even the rest of the world if you're in a position to, to do something about this. This is a horrifying legal loophole that puts the lives of every single LGBT person in a state of 4.5 million people - a state in which, if you are not straight, you have a 71% chance of being harassed and just shy of a 1 in 5 chance of being attacked - at risk and denies those already dead the justice that they deserve. So, if you live in Queensland, there's never been a better time to take action. If you live in Australia, there's never been a better time to take action. If you live overseas, there's never been a better time to, I don't know, send an angry letter or something. Just, don't let this one by.

Please.

[penguinofhonor]

Australia really is just upside-down America, isn't it?

[Jackrabbit]

According to wikipedia the USA has a considerably better track record with this.

[freeformschooler]

Australia really is just upside-down America, isn't it?

You know how in some Castlevania games, the castle is eventually flipped upside down, bringing different color schemes, renaming the areas and making all the creatures and bosses way harder and scarier? I think it's like that.

[ggamer]

What's this? Gay people getting murdered somewhere outside of the south?

Man, how the majority of this forum will have to scramble to readjust their stereotypes of people in Australia, specifically Queensland. I'm glad another geographic region is going to get judged because a few people high up in the power chain decide to be assholes.

Welcome to the club, Queensland. I'll brew some sweet tea and make sure to bake you biscuits. The good, buttery kind, too.

Australia really is just upside-down America, isn't it?

You know how in some Castlevania games, the castle is eventually flipped upside down, bringing different color schemes, renaming the areas and making all the creatures and bosses way harder and scarier? I think it's like that.

Harder, scarier, and suddenly poisonous. (jk)

[MetalSlimeHunt]

Ggamer, seriously, drop the persecution complex already.

[Jackrabbit]

Queensland already had this reputation, at least inside Australia. It's a great state, it just happens to be very large and encompass a lot of the sorts of people who get this shit rolling. How they get into power, I don't even want to think about.

[ggamer]

Eh.

On topic, that sounds pretty messed up. While I don't support homosexuality by any stretch of the imagination, murder is still murder, and should be prosecuted as such.

[kaijyuu]

Not much to say other than, yeah pretty disgusting.

While I don't support homosexuality by any stretch of the imagination

*puts ggamer on the "do not hit on" list*

[ggamer]

Not much to say other than, yeah pretty disgusting.

While I don't support homosexuality by any stretch of the imagination

*puts ggamer on the "do not hit on" list*

I also still have a sense of humor even though i dissaprove of homosexuality, because son of a bitch I almost fell out my chair laughing when I saw that.

[Svarte Troner]

...I don't support homosexuality by any stretch of the imagination,

See, this doesn't make sense to me. And you "support" heterosexuality? Which gender someone prefers sexually doesn't come off to me as something you "support" or not.

[Criptfeind]

This seems like a exceptionally bad place for you to talk about that sorta thing you know?

Anyway. I live in America, so I'm not sure what I can do. But. Moral support? Also I thought Jackrabbit lived in New Zealand. Did they finally get annexed without me noticing?

[Jackrabbit]

I am an ex-pat, yes, and fled New Zealand during the great Merino Wars of '98. And I guess, sign the petition. It's not much, but I'm not too sure what else you can do. Spread the word, though. The more people know, the better.

[Zrk2]

I think what ggamer is getting at is that he thinks homosexuality is immoral.

[ggamer]

oh god please let's not start that shitstorm today.

I like sleep. I don't want to stay up till' 5 in the morning debating the finer points of my religion.

So please. no.

Jackrabbit, i'm not very familiar with the Merino wars.