A Political Candidate Beheaded a Satanic Temple Statue. Now He Faces Charges.

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According to an archived version of his campaign website, Cassidy pushed for a 10-year prison sentence for anyone who destroys a statue in his own state.

NounsAndWords,

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.

Unaware7013,

I absolutely love how the TST actually stands for the shit christians have pretended to care about for centuries.

chemicalprophet,

Hail Satan!

agent_flounder,
@agent_flounder@lemmy.world avatar

Tenets to live by if you ask me. I wished we all did.

Jivebunny,
@Jivebunny@lemmy.world avatar

TIL I’m a Satanist.

agent_flounder,
@agent_flounder@lemmy.world avatar

As am I, apparently.

Facebones,

Welcome! As in all things, be mindful of those with ill intentions, but most of us are perfectly swell people. :)

Jivebunny,
@Jivebunny@lemmy.world avatar

A little late but we all are svelte ppl yeah baby yeah. Edit: Svelte swedish, just to clarify. Means starved. Yeah. Now you know. Starved for knowledge yeah

calypsopub,

“tenets”

NounsAndWords,

Huh, didn’t even know. Thanks

I’m not changing it.

Imgonnatrythis,

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!”

prole,

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.

Hairyblue,
Hairyblue avatar

Seems like this would be a hate crime. Very un-American behavior from this Republican goon.

IWantToFuckSpez,

No true American. Don’t a significant amount of Americans think and behave like him ergo making it American behavior.

Hairyblue,
Hairyblue avatar

America is a melting pot of people and cultures and religions from all over the world. Republicans don't like this. They want a Christian Nation.

Zink,

I think they meant it in reference to the stated ideals. Kind of like how so many of the ardent Christians in this country act in a very “un-Christian” way. Obviously we know the way real Christians act is all over the map, but they can be judged against the ideal of Jesus or his teachings.

American vs un-American isn’t as well defined, but I think it was meant as favoring truth, justice, equality, inclusivity/melting pot, etc. Again NOT an accurate representation of the real population.

Unaware7013,

A significant amount of Americans support a would be dictator who would gladly make himself dictator for life, but that doesn't make it American behavior.

dohpaz42,
@dohpaz42@lemmy.world avatar

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.

Broken_Monitor,

If one of us beheaded a jesus statue could we generate a similar response?

Asafum,

No and we’d just have all the national media talking about how the left are just a bunch of godless communists that hate American. We have enough of that already :(

billiam0202,

Just another story reminding me how rich I could be grifting money off these assholes if I didn’t have any morals.

dohpaz42,
@dohpaz42@lemmy.world avatar

Counter-balance it by taking the money earned and putting it toward programs to help combat racism, bigotry, and other indifferences.

Bonesince1997,

Harvard graduate 🤣

BruceTwarzen,

Just shows how meaningless that is.

GBU_28,

I mean it’s statistically a huge increase in lifetime earning potential, among a few other things, but that’s not to say this dude is in some magic statistical valley of “lucky enough to get in, dumb enough to blow the massive headstart it supplies”

prole,

Probably legacy.

nutsack,

hilarious. the power demonic symbols have is bestowed entirely by christian idiots who think that shit is real.

medicsofanarchy, (edited )
@medicsofanarchy@lemmy.world avatar

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.

prole,

Yo, any card carrying Satanists here that can run this idea up the flagpole?

Chocrates,

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.

phoenixz,

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.

Well well well, let’s see if he sticks to his guns or of he’s going to be your typical Republican hipicrite little bitch…

Ghostalmedia,
@Ghostalmedia@lemmy.world avatar

This is the first time in history Iowa’s Satanic Temple chapter has been allowed to put up a display at Iowa’s state capitol alongside holiday displays from other religious groups.

halferect,

He traveled across state lines to commit a hate crime, he should be getting some serious charges not some slap on the wrist BS

mypasswordistaco,
@mypasswordistaco@iusearchlinux.fyi avatar

His headshot looks like Jeff playing the dean.

yyyesss,

Take off the bald cap.

Facebones,

I AM BALD!!

FooBarrington,

Lights, camera, DEAN!

lingh0e,

He looks like he couldn’t handle male pattern baldness so he went completely shaven, but he needs the beard or else he’ll look like the freshly shorn scrotum Dr Evil was talking about.

charonn0,
@charonn0@startrek.website avatar

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?

Caradoc879,

Because Iowa is still under a Christian stranglehold behind the scenes.

madcaesar,

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.

ThatFembyWho,

but the rest of the state is rednecks and meth heads.

feels true about every state these days…

grue,

That’s 'cause it is. There is no such thing as “red states” and “blue states;” there are only states that are a slightly higher percentage rural or slightly higher percentage urban.

Frigid,

Haven’t looked it up, but I’d be shocked if there is a single state where rural outnumbered urban.

grue,

I didn’t mean to suggest “outnumbered;” I meant to say that the urban/rural percentages are slightly different between states and that that’s what makes the difference in ideology.

More concretely, it isn’t that Southerners are worse than anybody else; it’s that rural folks everywhere are equally terrible. Urban southerners are just as cosmopolitan as northern ones and rural folks from (for example) Oregon are just as backwards and racist as rural folks from Georgia. The only thing that makes Oregon a “blue state” and Georgia a “red state” is that metropolitan Portland etc. make up a slightly higher percentage of Oregon’s total population than metropolitan Atlanta etc. make up of Georgia’s.

zalgotext,

Off the top of my head, I bet Montana fits the bill. Maybe one or both of the Dakotas too

dipshit,

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.

MotoAsh,

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.

Fenrisulfir,

But it isn’t a non-belief. I wholeheartedly believe they’re wrong.

MotoAsh,

Hopefully no one will have to tell that to a judge. Religous extremists are a poison.

dipshit,

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.

MotoAsh,

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.

dipshit,

I can’t argue with that.

TopRamenBinLaden,

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.

MotoAsh,

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.

TopRamenBinLaden,

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.

Chocrates,

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).

dipshit,

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!

EmpathicVagrant,

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.

deadtom,

“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.

EmpathicVagrant,

There’s at least some who know and don’t really care. They’re just there to feel accepted and popular.

CheeseNoodle,

Because those laws only exist to protect christians?

andrew_bidlaw,

What a dickhead.

reverendsteveii,

this is a hate crime and it’s not being charged as such because our government favors violent christian fundamentalist terrorists

Democrazy,

I’m scared he might run for president and actually win.

TWeaK,

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.

calypsopub,

This is true Leopards Ate My Face territory.

TWeaK,

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”.

littlebluespark,
@littlebluespark@lemmy.world avatar

Turkeys Voting For Thanksgiving*

(Christmas isn’t the turkey holiday, FYI. In fact, it’s been a goose, historically.)

TWeaK,

In other parts of the world “turkeys voting for Christmas” is a common saying.

littlebluespark,
@littlebluespark@lemmy.world avatar

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.

TWeaK,

That’s right, the UK has peacocks in its trees instead of turkeys.

littlebluespark,
@littlebluespark@lemmy.world avatar

Henry VIII imported them, smartass.

prole,

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.

littlebluespark,
@littlebluespark@lemmy.world avatar

I hate it when turkey is ham. Stay in your lane, meat products!

Imgonnatrythis,

Seems like a Perfect setup for a judge to sentence him with. It won’t happen, but it should.

metalsonic00,

Surely he’s ideologically consistent

/s if anyone really needs that

Furedadmins,

“Charges” are a slap on the wrist.

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