Censorship on the youth and General Public

[OmegaPsi]

So I was reading an article of a anti-censorship website as I read censorship in schools and looked around I thought this might make an intresting discussion with my fellow forum-ers.

Here we go:
#1: Censorship of Language (youth in schools) (In Public)
#2: Censorship of Images (Pornagraphy, Movies, Videogames...)(youth in schools and in the general public)
#3: Censorship of Opposite Views and Opinions (Creation,Evolution, Religion)[in schools]
#4: Censorship of Books

There may be more but I can't think of any right now.

My views on the censorship of language of the youth in schools are I am perfectly ok with banning vulgarity when it's made to an official,administrator, or student of the school , disrespect should not be tolerated. Though if it is in books, videos, or some other media it should not be restricted. Many times when words like that are used it represents at what values that culture had back then. Besides cultural taboos and what is accepted change throughout the years and all material should be viewed from a detached perspective from your ideals and time period.

On images that should be completely irregulated. If you feel that your child should not look at pornography, instill that in him, because I guarentee you that if s/he wants to look at it, they will and there is nothing you can do to stop it and you shouldn't in my opinion. Why? Hmm...even though your child is a child, he still is a person and his/her's rights should not be restricted whatsover.

In the public there should be no restriction on art or public speeches. If a person feels like painting a picture of two lesbians having sex in a forest then he should have the full right of painting that picture and putting that in his front yard for all to see. Hell, put it on a billboard if he wants to. On public speakings a person should have the right to talk about whatever he feels like plain and simple. Even if the person were to insult me directly on a speech I would encourage him to say and not repress it.

On the views of opposite opinions in schools such as Evolution I have two different opinions on the two different subjects this concerns. In science only Evolution and other scientific theories should be taught because they all present themselves as theories, while religions claims itself as fact. While in history,global studies, Social Sciences as some may know it, those views and opinions of diffrent religions should be taught side by side with each other.

Books for me are straight out - no restrictions on those either.

Discuss

[Heres the website I was talking about: To view links or images in this forum your post count must be 2 or greater. You currently have 0 posts.

-OmegaPsi

[Homini Lupus]

I think some kind of art should be restricted to closed spaces: you know where you are going, so it's your choice; but some extreme arts in the street I think is exaggerated (It's a city, not an art expo).
But here I'm thinking to an example we had in Italy: some artist made some ultra-realistic children mannequins and hanged them to the trees of a public park (in Milan, but i'm not sure). A man came and cut the ropes since he considered them offensive, and so did many of those who lived there (that's how the newspapers posed it. I think here we can take it for true since it's an example). I think that man was right: he had to live that space, to him it wasn't just a showcase. I know he violated the law.

I admit it's very difficult to find the defining line here; but that's politics is for: for the city and the best common use of it.

PS The link doesn't properly work. That's because the "]" is being part of the hypertext.

[dandylion]

I was actually just thinking about censorship the other day, but I was more concerned about censorship in the music industry, specifically in rap music.

First of all, I really dislike most rap music (I say most because I have heard some rap songs and artists that weren't offensive or irritating). Rap music is supposed to be just fast rhyming with a beat, isn't it? But all I hear these days whenever I have the misfortune to hear rap music are songs with mostly crude themes like sex, drugs, violence, anger, killing, anarchy, degradation of women, money, etc. Now, I'm not saying that rap music automatically makes the listeners "bad" people and go out and shoot others and whatnot, but it is a bad influence on young, impressionable people--they grow up thinking it's going to do things like call women their bitches/sluts/hoes, to disrespect authority figures (for senseless, irrational reasons), and so on, and when they're finally adults, their beliefs are more inflexible.

I have a cousin that I am thoroughly disgusted with, completely embarrassed and even ashamed to have any affiliation with (don't worry, this little story is relevant). One of this being that when he was young (in his junior high days, I think), he stupidly went off and joined a gang. His parents were always really frightened whenever he came home with bruises and injuries because they thought he was getting beat up (turns out he was just involved in those "initations" where they beat up the new members). Today, I think he's in his late twenties or early thirties, but he's still involved in a gang. Late last year he was released from jail. I had an appointment that I needed my sister to take me to, and she made a stop to pick this cousin up. I was pretty shocked; the reason he was sent to jail was because he landed his father in the hospital with a head injury (cracked skull; he's okay now, though), and my sister's offering to take him to the DMV so he can get his photo ID taken for a friggin' passport?! Anyway, I just went along with it.
While we were on the freeway, my sister talked to him and asked questions. I learned that the gang he was in when he was younger was considered a "knuckle-head" gang" because they're only in it for silly reasons (I never got specific reasons because he's stupid and doesn't even know himself... he kept saying, "I dunno!"); he's now in an adult gang that actually does more dangerous things beyond tagging brick walls. My sister inquired why he beat his father. He replied that he did it because his gang told him to (supposedly he had no choice; if he didn't do it, his gang would hurt/kill him to keep up their ferocious reputation because they can't afford to have "weak" people in their gang). Did they say to attack his father? "No," he admitted. He could've done it to anyone, an old lady across the street even, but he chose to whack his father with a chair because he made him angry in a little argument, and he was right there so it was like... convenient... or something.
Fast forward to a few hours later. My sister needed to go to the post office to do something before we headed home. My cousin literally whined and begged for her to buy him a CD (this after making her buy cigarettes... she's too nice, she couldn't say no), so we went into the music store and whaddaya know... he purchased a couple rap CDs! What's more, he insisted on listening it in the car at full blast, so for the rest of the way to my sister's house I had to listen to a guy going on about how he was going to get laid with girls moaning in the background in agreement, how police men should get shot, or how we should give people "what they deserve" in violent methods, yaddayaddaya...

I couldn't help but think, "No wonder he turned out this way." I don't think it's too much of a stretch from the truth to assume that most gang members listen to this kind of music, too. Maybe they grew up listening to this nonsense which just further instilled negative ideas into their heads along with other factors.

Foul language shouldn't be censored in music, but there should be at least some oversight in certain negative themes and ideas.
I would elaborate some more, but I'm going to sleep now.