David Irving is a rotter, and a racist, but his current trial in Vienna is a travesty of justice.
Austrian law forbids holocaust denial and Irving faces up to ten-years. Today he pleaded guilty to the charges, claiming that it was pointless to contest the charge as he was clearly in violation of the laws, which date back to the late 1940’s.
The real irony of this case is a statement from the prosecuting State Attorneys office that claimed Irving’s 1989 statements were “a dangerous violation of freedom of speech”. How hypocritical can one be? How can exercising ones innate right of free speech be anything other than a – albeit perverted – celebration of this right, not a violation of it? This highlights the hypocritical position the Austrian authorities now find themselves in.
In this difficult and sensitive time, when conflict between Western liberalism and Islamic sensitivities is raging, we have a European democracy curbing freedom of speech and thought, in the protection of Jewish sensibilities. Could we appear anymore duplicitous? Muslim conspiracy theorists will point to this double standard as proof that the West is a Zionist construct out to destroy Islam. Free Speech that insults the prophet is acceptable, but don’t you dare question the holocaust, or you’ll find yourself at the mercy of the law.
I personally have no doubt that millions of Jews were gassed under the Nazi regime, but any orthodoxy that fears challenge (in many cases it is the extent of the murder, that is questioned) is begging to be toppled.
I loathe Irving, who attended an event in 1994 that also had Klu Klux Klan leader, David Duke, in attendance; but if we are to advocate the right to free speech and the freedom of thought, we must be consistent. We must understand our rights extend equally to those whose beliefs we find odious.
The Austrian authorities are practicing totalitarianism, under the veil of fighting anti-Semitism: nothing better than thought-police.
****UPDATED****
Irving received a 3-year sentence. From the BBC: –
Karen Pollock, chief executive of the UK’s Holocaust Educational Trust welcomed the verdict. “Holocaust denial is anti-Semitism dressed up as intellectual debate. It should be regarded as such and treated as such,” Ms Pollock told the BBC News website.
But the author and academic Deborah Lipstadt, who Irving unsuccessfully sued for libel in the UK in 2000 over claims that he was a Holocaust denier, said she was dismayed.
“I am not happy when censorship wins, and I don’t believe in winning battles via censorship… The way of fighting Holocaust deniers is with history and with truth,” she told the BBC News website.
How true Deborah….how true.
tygerland archive 
I agree with everything you said.
Irving is an idiot masquerading as a historian, but the “authorities” have made fools of themselves…
Let us wait and see how the European Union reacts to this attitude by Austria. Austria is a member of the EU. If nothing happens, then we would have to spread the whole thing to the 24 remaining countries of the Union.
Its a sad day when we need to lock up people like these.
I agree completely that it is a farce of a situation.
Surely society is able to isolate such idiotic people who make holocaust denials. It is clear for everyone to see, and if we are really saying that we cannot argue these people down, what are we saying about society as a whole?
I agree with you tyger and good observations regarding your comments about the applied double standards towards Muslims once again. Yet more divisive policy!
Holocaust denial in itself should not be a crime. It’s illogical, it’s silly, it’s hurtful and yes, it’s based on race hatred but it’s still not a crime.
Denial is all you say, earthpal. But you may permit me to say that given the circumstances a thorough research is imperative to be carried out just to stop intrigues and doubts everywhere.
I personally think that numbers do not appear to match the Jewish population then. I have been trying to find stats for the epoch unsuccessfully.