According to the Walkerton Herald-Times, the parent of a grade 12 student has filed a complaint with the Bluewater District School Board calling for removal of Timothy Findley’s novel, The Wars, from the curriculum. According to the article, Carolyn Waddell, a professional counselor, alleges that there are parts of Findley’s novel which are “depraved”. She…
Tag: Censorship
The FCC
If you click on the little audio thingy, you can listen to a story about the Federal Communications Commission or FCC (pronounced “fuck”).
Missing the Mark by banning Money For Nothing
It seems that every week plays host to its very own censorship controversy. Last week, it was an American publisher proposing to replace Huckleberry Finn’s 219 instances of the word “nigger” with the word “slave”. This week it’s the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council nixing the word “faggot” in the Dire Straights 1985 single, “Money For Nothing”.
It’s been a Banner Week for Censorship
For the practice of censorship, this has been a banner week (so to speak), confirming yet again that after hundreds of years of book burning, muzzling, and downright ham-fistedness, banning remains the preferred method for institutional authorities to regulate behaviour they oppose.
10 Images that would get your Apple App Banned
With Apple’s refusal to approve apps which display even a smidgen of nudity, I got to thinking about what kinds of images would get your app excluded from the sanitized and Disneyfied world of Apple.
Ulysses Unseen or How Apple got into the Censorship Business
Remember Apple’s “1984” commercial — the one where the woman smashes the giant video screen while thousands of blank-eyed automatons look on, and then a voice tells us that “On January 24th Apple Computer will introduce Macintosh. And you’ll see why 1984 won’t be like ”1984.””
Queering Pride Toronto
One of the worst things that can happen to a marginalized group is to go mainstream. When the revolutionaries become the ruling party, you know you’re fucked.
Should racist book be banned?
The Guardian reports that a Congolese man, Bienvenu Mbutu Mondondo, now living in Belgium, has applied to the Belgium courts to have Hergé’s Tintin in the Congo banned. He alleges that it is racist. Hergé created the cartoon in 1930 when the Congo was a Belgian colony.
Vancouver McDonald’s Olympics 2010
On Friday February 12th, 2010, the Vancouver Winter Olympics officially began. While half the sentient universe was watching the opening ceremonies on TV, I was reading a book.
Stop Graffiti Vandalism Now – Or Not
Rob Ford’s graffiti Nazis are fanning out like pesky little rodents through all the streets of Toronto. I just saw my first “Stop Graffiti Vandalism Now” sign. We have our very own war on terror, but scaled down for the suburbs.
Church Angry at Boob Job Mary Model
From Reuters we have the story of outrage at Chilean fashion designer Ricardo Oyarzun who is planning a show that dresses models in garb which borrows from the iconography of the Virgin Mary.
The Nipple Exposed
In our household, the division of labour is allocated so that, among other things, I do the laundry. This has given me considerable exposure to fashion trends in women’s undergarments — moreso in the last three or four years as my daughter has become conscious of such things and has demanded that our fashion shopping habits keep her in pace with her friends.
Shortbus “Removed” from Bloomington Library
Brothers and Sisters, the Lord has called me to embark upon a quest. It is a quest to uncover the workings of the evangelical fundamentalist Christian mind. I expect it will be a short journey. Brevity notwithstanding, I expect my quest to be fraught with perils.
Cage Match – Cosimo Cavallaro vs. Catholic League
Thanks to pressure from the Catholic League, Manhattan’s Lab Gallery has removed the 90 Kg chocolate sculpture titled “My Sweet Lord” by artist Cosimo Cavallaro.
The FCC and Obscenity
We can all rest easier now that the Federal Communications Commission of the United States of America is authorized to enforce new legislation designed to return the living room of America back to the family! However did we manage without them?