Censorship Rules!
A few housekeeping points today, in no particular order:
There appears to be a new trend whereby nude photographic blogs are being reported to Google for adult content, with the result that a content warning is slapped on their sites. Our friends Jimmy D and D. Brian Nelson are the latest to fall foul of zealous cyber-prudes who are on a mission to clean up Blogger. Not nice, but a symptom of the new wave of morality sweeping the bloggie world. If you host your blog on the Blogger servers, beware. This could happen to you sooner than you think.
Talking of nasty people, there are increasing numbers of bloggie trolls around at the moment. Some unidentified folks out there think they have a right to be offensive and personally attack an artist’s work. Whilst we’re in favour of freedom of speech, and Lord knows everyone is entitled to their own opinion and to express constructive criticism (which should be helpful rather than rude), I’m getting so bloody tired of nasty anonymous commentors that I’m declaring a New Totalitarian State over this blog.
Call it censorship, call it restricting your freedom of speech, call it Refusal of Service, call it living in the UK too long, I don’t care. Just as you have a right to form your own opinions, it’s our blog and we have a right not to read emails or publish comments which are aggressive and mean. I can’t stand impoliteness, especially from unidentified people who are too cowardly to identify their own work. Life’s too short (mine is anyway.) We don’t need this spiteful crap, and Lord knows there’s been too much of it around recently.
Bloggie trolls, begone!
Mr Tiddles the Troll spent rather far too much time browsing nekkid chix online
Lastly, it’s roughly ten days until my kids go back to school. I have three completely new school uniforms to adjust, name-tag and get ready, which means I have 102 items to sew and glue. Cue large amounts of liquid refreshment and loud rock music (I can’t sew without them) and (alas) no internet at all until it’s done. I’m going under and I’m not coming out until the fat lady sings. Or something along those lines. Oh the joys of motherhood :-)
Gone for tea. Back soon.
There appears to be a new trend whereby nude photographic blogs are being reported to Google for adult content, with the result that a content warning is slapped on their sites. Our friends Jimmy D and D. Brian Nelson are the latest to fall foul of zealous cyber-prudes who are on a mission to clean up Blogger. Not nice, but a symptom of the new wave of morality sweeping the bloggie world. If you host your blog on the Blogger servers, beware. This could happen to you sooner than you think.
Talking of nasty people, there are increasing numbers of bloggie trolls around at the moment. Some unidentified folks out there think they have a right to be offensive and personally attack an artist’s work. Whilst we’re in favour of freedom of speech, and Lord knows everyone is entitled to their own opinion and to express constructive criticism (which should be helpful rather than rude), I’m getting so bloody tired of nasty anonymous commentors that I’m declaring a New Totalitarian State over this blog.
Call it censorship, call it restricting your freedom of speech, call it Refusal of Service, call it living in the UK too long, I don’t care. Just as you have a right to form your own opinions, it’s our blog and we have a right not to read emails or publish comments which are aggressive and mean. I can’t stand impoliteness, especially from unidentified people who are too cowardly to identify their own work. Life’s too short (mine is anyway.) We don’t need this spiteful crap, and Lord knows there’s been too much of it around recently.
Bloggie trolls, begone!
Mr Tiddles the Troll spent rather far too much time browsing nekkid chix online
Lastly, it’s roughly ten days until my kids go back to school. I have three completely new school uniforms to adjust, name-tag and get ready, which means I have 102 items to sew and glue. Cue large amounts of liquid refreshment and loud rock music (I can’t sew without them) and (alas) no internet at all until it’s done. I’m going under and I’m not coming out until the fat lady sings. Or something along those lines. Oh the joys of motherhood :-)
Gone for tea. Back soon.
posted by Lin at 2:14 PM
7 Comments:
Freedom of Speech..
Is the power, the right, to stand up, and be heard. .To have your opinion heard, not neccessarily agreed with, or condoned but to be heard, and given the opportunity to do so.
I can think of no better example of this then One of Rockwell's Four Freedom's illustrations
http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/powers_of_persuasion/four_freedoms/images_html/save_freedom_speech.html
This.. is a wonderful illustration, showing the common blue collar "hard working" man standing up, stating his view, (possibly in a town hall meeting), and being listened too, by a white collar businessman, and an older town elder: his voice, listened to by all.
Theres an even more subtle message in this illustration: In order to have his voice heard, he is standing up. He has the conviction, and belief in his own view to the point that he is willing to stand up, identify himself with this point of view.
Granted, in this day and age, when someone, with a blog can reach thousands, we do have a concern about protecting ourselves from those that may wish us ill, and not play by the rules. To that end, We often develop a persona, that exists as part of our person, and is readily identifiable within the communities we frequent.
Person, or persona.. either or both, sould be allowed to state their views freely. However, anonymous, bogus, or voices that do not have the respect, or a known identity within the community should be shown the door.
As far as blogging.. I've never used Blogger for mine, but have instead opted for Wordpress installed on my site. The disadvantage is that I have to deal with a large number of blog spammers..
Or, as Yogi Berra said, "It ain't over 'til it's over." Good luck with all of the school preparations. Hopefully you'll have some time to yourself before too long.
And yes, it is unfortunate about the close-minded internet bluenoses and the anonymous morons of whom you wrote. If people don't have the decency to be civil, then they don't deserve to be heard.
Damit!! I want to be censored!!
Mabey I should try the old Glass Eye in the Butthole photo trick...that should do it.
bt
“ We live in oppressive times. We have, as a nation, become our own thought police; but instead of calling the process by which we limit our expression of dissent and wonder ''censorship,'' we call it ''concern for commercial viability.''
David Mamet
American Playwright
“ Art is never chaste. It ought to be forbidden to ignorant innocents, never allowed into contact with those not sufficiently prepared. Yes, art is dangerous. Where it is chaste, it is not art.”
Pablo Picasso
1881-1973, Spanish Artist
Freedom is something I place a high value on, and it's painful to watch it slipping away over here in the colonies. I sit here on the Detroit River, part of what was the largest unprotected border in the world. Lately there is a proliferation of border police, and then I see these thought police on the internet, and it angers me. The problem with freedom is that there is responsibility attached to it. It seems as if an awful lot of people equate freedom with doing and saying whatever they want with no concern for the consequences. If one keeps up that behavior they will eventually lose that freedom, whether it be on a blog or in a democratic government. My sense is that as the world becomes more and more complex and life becomes more difficult to manage, people will be all too happy to give away their freedom, just so they can feel safe.
Sorry...I'm rambling. It's a sensitive issue with me.
as the world becomes more and more complex and life becomes more difficult to manage, people will be all too happy to give away their freedom, just so they can feel safe
Very true Joe. That's exactly what has happened in the U.K. with all the surveillance. Trouble is, no-one really feels any safer, even with all those cameras around...
"Censorship often boils down to some male judges getting to read a lot of dirty books--with one hand."
Hmmmm, at first I thought this was the definition of an English professor, except for "male judges."
If the next photo I see of you, Lin, shows hair growing on your hands, I will know you have been overly preoccupied with censoring blog comments. OK, I know this is my fantasy. You aren't talking about dirty comments (darn!), you're talking about mean-spirited remarks.
On that plane, I agree with you completely. The true smut in this world is violence and meanness, the latter defined as "the state of being inferior in quality, character, or value; spiteful or malicious." Mean remarks are what the delete key is for!
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