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Are we talking of free speech vs hate speech in general or about books being banned? I read the link to the NYT article and was starting to respond then decided that my response was more in line with a discussion of free speech...If we are speaking about banning books I reiterate my feeling that books should not be banned; if we are discussing free speech then I think we belong in a different forum.....
Canada, Britain, France, Germany, the Netherlands, South Africa, Australia and India all have laws or have signed international conventions banning hate speech. Israel and France forbid the sale of Nazi items like swastikas and flags. It is a crime to deny the Holocaust in Canada, Germany and France.
I don't like, these same laws are misused. Germany has a strict law against displaying the swastika. OK that's sounds good right? Wrong - any historical document with the swastika gets banned, and magazine displaying a swastika (anti-nazi, doesn't matter) gets banned, any computer simulation, any historical accurate program, and war reenactment, any movie... - gets banned. Hindu groups in Germany, who have used the swastika as a religious symbol for centuries, are now banned from displaying this.
No thanks. Deny the holocaust. Any nut wants to do that fine, but don't put them in prison for "thought-crime". I don't need a nanny-government (i.e.- the social democracies of Europe) telling me what's not healthy and "right" to read, or watch, or think. And the day it becomes that is the day I move away from this country, or the day I take arms up against it.
I don't like, these same laws are misused. Germany has a strict law against displaying the swastika. OK that's sounds good right? Wrong - any historical document with the swastika gets banned, and magazine displaying a swastika (anti-nazi, doesn't matter) gets banned, any computer simulation, any historical accurate program, and war reenactment, any movie... - gets banned. Hindu groups in Germany, who have used the swastika as a religious symbol for centuries, are now banned from displaying this.
No thanks. Deny the holocaust. Any nut wants to do that fine, but don't put them in prison for "thought-crime". I don't need a nanny-government (i.e.- the social democracies of Europe) telling me what's not healthy and "right" to read, or watch, or think. And the day it becomes that is the day I move away from this country, or the day I take arms up against it.
Agreed.
The way to combat a moron who denies the holocaust or wants to spread racist literature is to challenge him/her and disprove his claims with facts.
The only form of censorship I support would be to forbid the display of pornography or gratuitus violence in a public place or to school aged children.
Please stay on the topic of banning books, if you want to discuss politics in general, I suggest visiting our Politics and other controversies forum.
Thank you.
__________________
The price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it. ~Henry David Thoreau
Do you think any books should be banned? If so, why? If not, why?
No, I don't think any books should be banned. It's not up to a church, priest, government official, teacher, or my neighbor to tell me what I can and cannot read. It's not up to anyone but myself and the father of my children to tell them what they can read.
What about the violence that is created due to commentators in the news, due to Nazi material or other hate groups, what about the violence in movies that have caused our nation to become more violent? What about protecting our children until they are old enough to read these things?
It's your job to protect your children from materials you don't feel are appropriate for them. It's the job of any other parent to protect their children as well. By banning books you usurp that authority in the name of ..... protecting children?
Banning books doesn't eliminate hate, hate speech, hate groups or anything else that you think your children should not be exposed to.
Of course in your home you can ban anything you want and should be free to do so. We have tried to determine what is age appropriate but still challenging and informative. Our kids are teens, I can't think of much that we would want to ban instead of discuss. OK, we do have filters on the computer, mostly to keep out the porn so I guess we have a ban on porn.
If you want to protect your children you begin by educating them. Teach them how to think analytically and critically. Teach them how to weed out the truth from the lies. Teach them right from wrong. Teach them to respect and yet question authority. Be aware of what they are doing, what they are reading and listening to. Do not presuppose the right to tell me what I can or cannot allow my children to read, or myself.
Books should never be banned under any circumstances. The fundamental freedom underlying all others is freedom of thought. If you ban books, you begin to take that away.
The question which immediately comes to my mind when I hear of a book being banned is this: What knowledge is in there that someone doesn't want me to know?
What about the violence that is created due to commentators in the news, due to Nazi material or other hate groups, what about the violence in movies that have caused our nation to become more violent? What about protecting our children until they are old enough to read these things?
Violence created due to commentators? That is just so wrong. I haven't seen any commentators creating violence! If someone is violent it is their own choice and they can't blame what someone else says! People have always been violent. Ever read the bible? Very violent. There are more people on the earth now....more people=more violence.
And to answer the OP.....NO!!!!
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