Censorship and Desenitization

[BullRat]

The curious Kittie has returned to the Politics board with yet another question... this ine pertaining to censorship in America and sensitizing television/movies/ect just for us.

What are your views on censorship? Should it even be there in teh first place? Is it right to SHELTER us (Americans) the way we do? I, personally, this censorship and senitiziation is utter bullshit... But, heh, that's just the way my neurotic mind sees things...

I'm not really going to ask many more questions. I'm just curoius to see everyone else's points of view and opinions. ^_^ Have fun!

[Lyddiechu]

I think censorship is a load of crap, to put it eloquently. Warning labels are ok which say dont show this to your 5 year old son because it includes pornography, but editing commercials, films, etc just for the american sensibility is just paying ridiculous homage to america's puritan roots. Grow up already, jeez.. I want to see those hilarious ikea commercials on network tv. Besides how is it that ocuntries like norway and sweden get to see all this "naughty" material and they have way fewer problems with sex crimes in their countries? hm?

[FreidanX]

At 7/27/03 11:00 PM, Lyddiechu wrote: I think censorship is a load of crap, to put it eloquently. Warning labels are ok which say dont show this to your 5 year old son because it includes pornography, but editing commercials, films, etc just for the american sensibility is just paying ridiculous homage to america's puritan roots. Grow up already, jeez.. I want to see those hilarious ikea commercials on network tv. Besides how is it that ocuntries like norway and sweden get to see all this "naughty" material and they have way fewer problems with sex crimes in their countries? hm?

Ditto. (I'm too lazy to express it in my own words. So sue me ;) )

Probably one of the WORST cases of censorship I have heard of is where some public schools are not allowed to have reading materials that depict extensively the existence of dinosaurs. Proponents of the move claim that having children read extensively about dinosaurs might create future bias in their views on the Evolution vs. Creationism debate.

When I hear about stuff like that, I find myself strongly compelled to do the following:

Drink... Then drink some more.

[Linguo]

blurred boobies are maybe the worst thing that has ever happened to me.

[Commander-K25]

At 7/27/03 11:18 PM, Linguo wrote: blurred boobies are maybe the worst thing that has ever happened to me.

Maybe you should drink less?

Censoring the news is the best way of making wars squeaky-clean and desesensitizing people to death in general.
Nothing suffocates you more than the passing of everyday human events.
Isolation is the oxygen mask, make your children breathe in to survive. -Marilyn Manson.

[poxpower]

that's the kind of debate that can go on forever because it is all about personnal opinion. There is no ligocal way to determine if we should have some censorship and how much we should have.

So, blah.

[JMHX]

At 7/28/03 03:56 AM, poxpower wrote: that's the kind of debate that can go on forever because it is all about personnal opinion. There is no ligocal way to determine if we should have some censorship and how much we should have.

So, blah.

When you're not allowed to speak your mind in a school, censorship has gone too far. They are supposed to be buildings of education and forum, but this is being stamped out at an alarming rate.

[Slizor]

I'm sure all of you opposed to censorship would be opposed to the consolidation of the mass media....

[Lyddiechu]

At 7/28/03 10:31 AM, Slizor wrote: I'm sure all of you opposed to censorship would be opposed to the consolidation of the mass media....

You got it, slizor.. Once long ago I wanted to go work as a journalist because I thought I could change the world by making people see what really happened. Then I got in touch with real life and said fuck it, I am going to go work as a policymaker in the government instead because it is the only way other than being extremely rich and buying my way into politics that I can ever make a difference. I am so disgusted with the mass media most of the time. But then again I really really don't want to get my news from "independent" papers and magazines at either end of the spectrum, so I try and pick the most neutral sources I can find.. the BBC, the Economist, and NY Times. Ok ok many people would call those bastions of the far left, but come on people, what else are you gonna read??

[FreidanX]

At 7/28/03 04:28 PM, Lyddiechu wrote:

You got it, slizor.. Once long ago I wanted to go work as a journalist because I thought I could change the world by making people see what really happened. Then I got in touch with real life and said fuck it, I am going to go work as a policymaker in the government instead because it is the only way other than being extremely rich and buying my way into politics that I can ever make a difference. I am so disgusted with the mass media most of the time. But then again I really really don't want to get my news from "independent" papers and magazines at either end of the spectrum, so I try and pick the most neutral sources I can find.. the BBC, the Economist, and NY Times. Ok ok many people would call those bastions of the far left, but come on people, what else are you gonna read??

I used to dwell alot on that question... but then I came to the realization that the only successful, mass produced news sources around these days are by necessity 90%+ lies. Why? Because the "truth" simply does not sell. I'll usually read whatever I see lying around... right-wing, left-wing, or whatever... but I take it ALL with a grain of salt.

In my opinion, having ideological bias in your choices of news media is nothing but choosing certain half-truths from a sea of half-truths....

Thoughts?

[karasz]

At 7/27/03 11:00 PM, Lyddiechu wrote: I think censorship is a load of crap, to put it eloquently. Warning labels are ok which say dont show this to your 5 year old son because it includes pornography, but editing commercials, films, etc just for the american sensibility is just paying ridiculous homage to america's puritan roots. Grow up already, jeez..

i couldnt agree more... DOWN WITH THE FCC... biggest violators of the first amendment ever

:I want to see those hilarious ikea commercials on network tv.

... i need to hear more of these ikea commercials

Besides how is it that ocuntries like norway and sweden get to see all this "naughty" material and they have way fewer problems with sex crimes in their countries? hm?

is that right... (note to self move to norway)

[poxpower]

At 7/28/03 06:14 AM, JudgeMeHarshX wrote:
When you're not allowed to speak your mind in a school, censorship has gone too far. They are supposed to be buildings of education and forum, but this is being stamped out at an alarming rate.

Are you...sure :)
What if the school knows better than the student? What if they knew that what the best thing for them was to keep quit and learn certain things?
hmmmmmmm.......

[luckoftheirish]

you know guys its not all about making a statement here, look at the facts if we didnt have censorship here itd be utter chaos, if millions of conspiracy theorists knew stuff about the government itd be revolution after revolution, censorship is there for reason , to keep order, call me a republican if you must but its true

[misterx2000]

Warning labels should be encouraged and their use enforced, but outright editing and censorship is wrong.

The warnings are there so that not everone will be desensitised by violence and hence feel less guilty when commiting similar acts.

[TheShrike]

At 7/27/03 10:44 PM, kittie_cross wrote: Is it right to SHELTER us (Americans) the way we do?

No. As a matter of fact, seeing things like the shuttle columbia disentigrate and the WTC falling help remind us we're not invincible because our neighboring countries are under our thumb.

[JJAGoodfella]

Ahhh...Censorship, one of the many evils which still corrupts modern society. I think everybody knows by now that when you see rallies and groups and even some politicians trying to censor artists, television, or any form of media it speaks for itself, "Freedom Of Speech is a lie".

You cant have freedom when you cant have order, and apparently soccer moms and politicians alike do nothing but stir up pointless controversy, spend thousands of dollars on rallies, protests and such when that money should be spent on more important things like (insert needy organization here).

Recently a petition has been released for the banning of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, speaking not only as a gamer myself, but as a person with common sense, these very people go against that which fight for. You have your videogames ratings and its very clear that GTA: VC is not for children, but it is the parents who have failed take note of these ratings. Have of those very parents are now fighting to ban the mass selling product because <sarcasm>now their children have become mass murderers because of a game that their own parents ignorantly purchased for them.</sarcasm>

Soccer moms fight a losing battle.

Now, when it comes to the media, local newspapers, magazines, Newscasts, there is always an issue to be seen. I recently saw a magazine on a newstand about the United States' actions in Iraq, all I saw were photos of smiling children, happy citizens, soldiers doing good deeds and the such. But where were the photos of the innocent people killed during the raids? Where were the photos of the Iraqis burning the american flag and verbally bashing Bush for his actions? Why didnt I read any articles about the vengeance sought out by radical groups against U.S. troops? Because they dont want to alert the public of happenings and that should be a CRIME.

Luckily some News channels DO broadcast these events, and we know. But there are several who think Americans should be kept in the dark about these things.

I wouldnt be suprised if 5 years from now the United States of America denied that 9/11 ever happened.

Keep it real, but dont keep it covered.

-JJAGoodfella