Is It Wrong For A Person To Be Sacked For Holding A Certain Personal Opinion?

[anotheoldgit]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3485915/Christian-magistrate-sacked-claiming-adopted-children-better-man-woman-parents-gay-couple.html

[Svejk]

Ah, he had the wrong opinions, andy?

[pixie374]

You can believe what you like, but if you're daft enough to tell everybody (think Ratners), you can't be too surprised when it affects your work.

[viv41]

PC gone mad indeed Pied ...

[anotheoldgit]

/// We seem to have swerved from a question about opinions - to the rights and wrongs of ethnicity adoption - it's enough to give you a nose bleed! ///

No they are still opinions but on different issues, one could say that placing a child with a same sex couple could cause problems as regarding bullying from other children, and with the black child being placed with a white family or a white child being placed with a black family could also create many other type problems for the said child.

After all, surely the child's welfare is to been seen as pre-eminent in all cases.

[Islay]

Bit in the same vein there is no evidence to state that placing a child in the care of a homosexual couple will harm the child.

Also it is against the law to discriminate on grounds of sexuality - the judge has broken the law!

[anotheoldgit]

Islay

/// Also it is against the law to discriminate on grounds of sexuality - the judge has broken the law! ///

Calm down, he has not broken any laws, only the present day law of daring to hold a particular opinion.

Give me any evidence that he has purposely prevented any child from being placed in the care of a same sex couple?

[Islay]

OK I will reword it.
If he were to place a child with a hetro couple because of his beliefs he will have broken the law.

[andy-hughes]

Islay - //If he were to place a child with a hetro couple because of his beliefs he will have broken the law. //

If I may refine that slightly -

If he were to place a child with a heterosexual couple as opposed to a homosexual couple who are more suitable (and yes they do exist in spite of the judge's narrow mind!) because of his own personal views on the issues of homosexuality, that would be against his remit.

In order to avoid him having the chance to impinge his personal views on innocent people, the judge has been removed from his duties.

[anotheoldgit]

Islay

/// OK I will reword it.
If he were to place a child with a hetro couple because of his beliefs he will have broken the law. ///

That is just stating the obvious, if he were to do many things he could be breaking the law, but he hasn't so he has not broke the law.

[jackthehat]

He had been warned once before and then stupidly aired these same views during an interview with the BBC.

When your personal opinion overlaps into your professional duties there is a problem. Luckily these one was solved by dismissing him, He was due to retire shortly after that, in any case.

[Islay]

I have found sometimes it is necessary to state the obvious!!

So I will try again.

The judge who is in a position where he has to make decisions in line with current laws should not be seen publicly to have an opinion that opposes the said law of the land. To then broadcast that anti view is wrong.

[pixie374]

It's bigoted, piedpiper, because it's a generalisation made without considering the individuals involved.

[andy-hughes]

Piedpiper - //I find it strange, disturbing even, that those who believe it is preferable for a child to be brought up by a mum and only are narrow minded and bigoted. //

It's not the thought that a mum and dad are preferable that makes the view bigoted - it's the notion that in all cases, a mum and a dad will be the preferable option over a gay couple, simply because they fulfil a cultural stereotype, not because they are the best couple for the job - and they may well not be.

If the judge was able to be objective, and clearly that is a pre-requisite of his position, then there is no issue - but by airing his views, he has clearly shown that objectivity is not part of his mind set - so he had to go.

[andy-hughes]

pixie and I have cross-posted (Hi pix! xx) but we appear to approach this situation from the same starting point.

[pixie374]

Hi :-) xx

[jim360]

Which nature did he have in mind when he made that statement about "as ... nature intended"? Presumably not the single-parent families common in certain birds and insects, or the three-parent families that sometimes crop up in birds and animals, or the harems seen in some fish, baboons or deer, or...