>>The time when the stupid - as were the Roman Catholic church - should be allowed to lock Galileo under house arrest for proclaiming science and truth should be past.

Actually Galileo was supported by the powerful Jesuits and Pope until Galileo wrote a book portraying the Pope as "Simplicio", meaning simpleton. For some strange reason the Pope objected to that, but still didn't allow some of the worse vengeful clergy to have their way with Galileo who he had considered a friend.

The Pope wasn't the only person Galileo annoyed by his manner; while he accepted that the earth rotates around the sun as had been laid out by Copernicus almost a century earlier (and was accepted by the Jesuits and others who patronized the Vatican observatory) Galileo also insisted that tides are caused by sloshing of water as the earth rotates and mounted a campaign of ridicule against Jesuit astronomers who said tides are caused by the moon. Galileo also clashed antagonistically with Kepler on the subject of comets; Kepler was right.

The story of Galileo probably is an object lesson that people can be right and wrong or smart and foolish at the same time. No matter how certain you feel, you won't always be right which is why the best scientists don't attack detractors, instead remaining humble and ever ready to accept criticism and correction.