SINGAPORE – A blogger who goes by the online moniker of “Sexy Fragrance Princess” has been arrested for posting an image that wounded the religious feelings of others.
The picture in question was a photo of her eating spaghetti bolognaise at an Italian bistro. It was reported to the police by an offended male who subscribes to Pastafarianism.
Pastafarianism is a religion that believes in the existence of a deity called the Flying Spaghetti Monster.
Said the male who reported the picture, Mr Riley Gus Frick, “The picture in question was extremely offensive to us Pastafarians because we worship the Flying Spaghetti Monster as our God.
“While adherents of some religions might have no problems with eating the flesh of their deity or drinking his blood, we Pastafarians are not one of them. Pictures portraying our God being eaten is as offensive to us as depictions of Prophet Muhammad are to Muslims.
“We too have a right not to have our religious feelings offended.”
Sexy Fragrance Princess’s lawyer is nonetheless confident that his client is innocent. “The spaghetti my client was eating was not flying, nor was it monstrous. As such, it cannot be construed to be the God of Pastafarians, which is not plain spaghetti but the Flying Spaghetti Monster.”
However, a legal academic from the National University of Sinopolis (NUS) disagreed. “It doesn’t matter if the depiction of the Flying Spaghetti Monster was inaccurate in certain respects. All that matters is whether the Pastafarians were offended or not. Clearly, the resemblance was enough to cause them great offence, and in Singapore, the right not to be offended trumps the freedom of speech. Thus, it is unlikely that the blogger will be given the benefit of the doubt.”
