A former Mississippi political candidate is facing criminal charges after a bedazzled statue of Baphomet, a figure associated with the Satanic Temple, was discovered decapitated at the Iowa State Capitol.
Michael Cassidy, 35, a former U.S. Navy pilot, told Fox News that he saw the controversy surrounding the display, which was heavily criticized by Republican politicians like Ron DeSantis, and drove to the Iowa Capitol to see it for himself. He said it hit a “nerve” and went on to destroy it.
…
According to an archived version of his campaign website, Cassidy pushed for a 10-year prison sentence for anyone who destroys a statue in his own state.
For reference, the seven tenants listed next to the destroyed display:
I One should strive to act with compassion and empathy toward all creatures in accordance with reason.
II The struggle for justice is an ongoing and necessary pursuit that should prevail over laws and institutions.
III One’s body is inviolable, subject to one’s own will alone.
IV The freedoms of others should be respected, including the freedom to offend. To willfully and unjustly encroach upon the freedoms of another is to forgo one’s own.
V Beliefs should conform to one’s best scientific understanding of the world. One should take care never to distort scientific facts to fit one’s beliefs.
VI People are fallible. If one makes a mistake, one should do one’s best to rectify it and resolve any harm that might have been caused.
VII Every tenet is a guiding principle designed to inspire nobility in action and thought. The spirit of compassion, wisdom, and justice should always prevail over the written or spoken word.
It makes a lot of sense to me why Christians would be against this.
Hail Satan!
Tenets to live by if you ask me. I wished we all did.
TIL I’m a Satanist.
As am I, apparently.
Wow that really hits a nerve!
What a jackass. Meanwhile supports statues of people who lived by the credo of “I feel so strongly that people should own other people as property that I’m willing to kill for that right, look here’s my gun!”
“tenets”
Huh, didn’t even know. Thanks
I’m not changing it.
Yeah, it’s difficult to take issue with any of those.
Personally, I don’t need (or want) the baggage associated with organized religion in order to believe and follow those tenets, so I’m not a member. But I’m a big fan.
Christians have an utter landslide of reasons to believe the most outlandish of complete nonsense, but I’ve always been a fan of science, facts, and reality.
So I thank you. <3
He has since been released, and raised $40,000 in legal fees following praise from Republican politicians and far-right pundits across the country.
This is the real travesity.
Just another story reminding me how rich I could be grifting money off these assholes if I didn’t have any morals.
Counter-balance it by taking the money earned and putting it toward programs to help combat racism, bigotry, and other indifferences.
If one of us beheaded a jesus statue could we generate a similar response?
this is a hate crime and it’s not being charged as such because our government favors violent christian fundamentalist terrorists
I’m scared he might run for president and actually win.
According to an archived version of his campaign website, Cassidy pushed for a 10-year prison sentence for anyone who destroys a statue in his own state.
I’m sure he expects exactly the same punishment for himself.
This is true Leopards Ate My Face territory.
Not quite lol Leopards Ate My Face is more Turkeys Voting for Christmas, where someone aligns with someone else in spite of the person they’re aligning with clearly not having their interests at heart. Like the vast majority of Trump supporters, or LGBTQ hexbear users supporting Putin.
This is just plain hypocrisy, like “the only moral abortion is my abortion”.
Turkeys Voting For Thanksgiving*
(Christmas isn’t the turkey holiday, FYI. In fact, it’s been a goose, historically.)
In other parts of the world “turkeys voting for Christmas” is a common saying.
Cursory search shows it’s exclusively a UK idiom, to be accurate. So, “other part” singular being a small island where turkeys are not, nor have ever been, indigenous. That tracks.
That’s right, the UK has peacocks in its trees instead of turkeys.
Henry VIII imported them, smartass.
As someone who’s never eaten a goose in his life (though I would happily try it, those rude honking bastards), I’ve had turkey on Christmas Eve at relatives. Though it’s often ham.
I hate it when turkey is ham. Stay in your lane, meat products!
Surely he’s ideologically consistent
/s if anyone really needs that
Seems like a Perfect setup for a judge to sentence him with. It won’t happen, but it should.
Cassidy was arrested and faces vandalism charges, which could carry a one-year prison sentence and a $2,560 fine. He has since been released
Why is he not being charged under Iowa’s hate crime laws?
I would like to see this, although I wonder if the correct answer is that religion is not a protected group. If religion is a protected group, this is a hate crime.
Come now, we both know Christians would just then cry that non-belief isn’t a religion.
In fact, I’m pretty sure I remember hearing that come up in the past… They’re using motivated reasoning. They want a specific outcome, not a set of principles applied.
Sucks for them. They apparently haven’t heard of Title VII of the Civil rights act.
"Religious beliefs include theistic beliefs (i.e. those that include a belief in God) as well as non-theistic “moral or ethical beliefs as to what is right and wrong which are sincerely held with the strength of traditional religious views.”
“Religious observances or practices include, for example, attending worship services, praying, wearing religious garb or symbols, displaying religious objects, adhering to certain dietary rules, proselytizing or other forms of religious expression, or refraining from certain activities.”
Those quotes are from the US customs and border protection website here. Straight from the horses mouth.
It does suck for them, but that’s never stopped them from trying and they even get unconstitutional laws on the books.
The mere fact something is illegal does not stop someone.
Oh for sure, it is scary how they can do mental gymnastics like that. All it really takes is a corrupt judge that follows the Bible more than they follow our laws and constitution to be able to sidestep that, too. Thankfully, most judges do make their decisions based on our laws and constitution.
I understand though what we need to realize is that this isn’t simply “non-belief”. Satanic temple members have strongly held beliefs as part of the core tenants of satanism. It’s a non-superstitious religion. It’s just as valid a religion as christianity or islam.
I agree with you, I’m just pointing out that the Christians are not using logic or reasoning despite using words that might convince you otherwise.
I can’t argue with that.
I don’t know the right answer. Religious persecution is a real thing and has caused the deaths of countless people across the years that humans have existed. BUT Christians aren’t being persecuted in America (at the moment at least) and have an undo influence on the levers of power. I feel like a good thing to do would be to give the IRS teeth and and have individual Churches or Church organizations that violate the terms of their non profit status actually lose it and have to pay taxes on the huge amount of wealth they own (mostly land but I am sure other shit).
Yes, all churches need to pay taxes.
Nuh uh! Churches do charity work so they need to be tax free. — any christian we’ve argued with over this on the internet.
See, the thing about charity work is, it’s tax deductible!
Because Iowa is still under a Christian stranglehold behind the scenes.
Iowa used to be purple, it’s since turned into a red shithole. You got a few bright spots in Des Moines and Iowa city, but the rest of the state is rednecks and meth heads.
Yep. Otherwise who’s to say a random cross somewhere doesn’t ‘strike a nerve’ precedent of him getting away w it just leads to chaos.
“I saw the cross and it struck a nerve. When I think of those men in those dresses molesting children… I saw red, white, and blue… and I knew I needed to stand up for those children’s freedom from this den of paedophiles”
This is the news story I’m waiting for. If only the people larping as protectors of children knew the call was coming from inside their own house of worship.
There’s at least some who know and don’t really care. They’re just there to feel accepted and popular.
Because those laws only exist to protect christians?
Now imagine for a moment what would happen if someone were to decapitate a statue of Mary or Jesus.
Fox News would talk about it for the next week.
But to you who are listening I say: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you.
Or, was that behead your enemies?
In their minds, this is loving your enemy. Because Christians are right and everyone else is wrong. So forcing your beliefs on people is a good thing because you’re saving their souls.
This is why slavery was a good thing for Africans.
[/s because 2023]
https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2023/07/ron-desantis-florida-slavery-curriculum
edited in the article in case people didn’t know that this is an actual thing GOPs believe
The sarcasm tag was too little too late, DeSantis has made your comment part of the Florida curriculum
I’ll edit my commnet with a link.
Lol I was just joking, it’s ok. I meant your specific comment was added to curriculum, not that they already whitewashed slavery
Love your enemies, sure. But when they put a goat statue in a government building, that’s a bridge too far! As a good Christian, you’ve got a right to defend yourself in life-threatening goat statue situations.
Who knows what it’s up to once you’re not looking at it?!
Are you implying baphomet statues are actually weeping angels?
Well, maybe not the time energy stealing kind but, we can’t be sure they don’t move just because they didn’t when we were looking at them
It’s far more than just a goat statue, have you seen it? It’s dope. I’ve always liked the children at his feet looking up to him lol I’m sure that triggers Christians so hard.
Awww the only words he can read are: enemies, hate, curse, mistreat. Bless his lil heart.
They say they love Jesus but they only talk Old Testament stuff. The Christian far right would have lynched Jesus the second they would have heard of some woke commie bum becoming popular.
That’s some commie shit
I’m actually surprised that the satanic temple isn’t pushing for him to be charged with some kind of hate crime. Pretty sure if so decapitated a statue of Jesus it wouldn’t just be destruction of property?
I would love this to happen. For two weeks straight, conservative radio shows, Fox News specials, all talking about the “War on Christianity”.
Don’t you just love political candidates that don’t believe in the first amendment, probably not a fan of the 19th or 13th either.
And technically he fought for the freedom he is now trying to suppress.
I love how these right wing “Christians” have such a selective definition of “freedom”. Thankfully the Satanic Temple keeps shining a spotlight on their hypocrisy.
What about the 21st?
But you don’t understand, he’s all about respecting the establishment of religion but this wasn’t a religion.
But you don’t understand, he’s all about respecting the establishment of religion but this wasn’t a religion.
I can’t tell if this comment is missing a /s or not.
Well Bob, I can’t say I ever miss the /s.
Well Bob, I can’t say I ever miss the /s.
Well, considering that you got the name wrong, your comment doesn’t instill a whole lot of confidence of accuracy.
It is a mangled Office Space quote.
Ah, ok. Loved that movie, but didn’t recognize the quote.
I was going to originally go with “And don’t call me Shirley”, but I thought that might be too esoteric to be recognized in the context of the comment.
I like the word esoteric.
It makes the soles of my feet tingle.
I’m completely unsurprised that this was a political stunt. If Trump taught these assholes anything, it’s that the free press (and in turn, the crowd funding/find raising) they get from their virtue signaling demonstrations like this one will help them weather any punishments they may face–if they really face any at all
Yep, he failed to build a political career the old fashioned way so he found a controversy right wingers were freaking out about and inserted himself into the equation. Now he gets to grift and probably build a right wing media career of some type. It’s sad that it works, but it does work on republicans. Tell them what they want to hear and they’ll love you forever.
He traveled across state lines to commit a hate crime, he should be getting some serious charges not some slap on the wrist BS
What a dickhead.
I don’t know why I didn’t think of this before. Make sure future statues are in pentagrams, and put a little side blurb that “maiming, disfiguring, or destroying this statue will complete the act of sacrifice to the deity”. Basically, anyone who defaces the display is, in effect, performing the “ritual of display destruction” - which pleases TST.
Edit: Make it a three- or four-panel cartoon. Reading is a tough concept for some people.
Yo, any card carrying Satanists here that can run this idea up the flagpole?
A card carrying satanist is just someone who paid $30 for a card (me!).
When I reached out to the “local” group they were pretty tight lipped and I never followed up. I was just asking about volunteering opportunities and they seemed almost offended I was emailing them.
I should try to reach out again.
“Charges” are a slap on the wrist.
Harvard graduate 🤣
Probably legacy.
