Hardly believe this kind of thing is still going on here (Shatter erotica novel...)

I think the damn novel is 24 years old too !!!! :eek:

orestes wrote: »

Bullsh!t. Anybody who tries to ban or censor a book is a fukkwit, end of story.

You are on a site where posts are banned and censored constantly. Are the people doing that fukkwits?

If a book promotes Child rape setting out how to go about it, how to stalk children on the internet, groom them etc etc is this not a good time to step in and censor or ban for the public good?

I would say yes.

hatrickpatrick wrote: »

...might be banned for being too obscene.

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/fifty-shades-of-alan-shatter-steamy-novel-by-justice-minister-referred-to-censor-29284409.html



There's a Censorship of Publications Board?! God help us all. I thought I was living in a free country and a democracy, not a medieval dictatorship :mad:

Wonder how long it'll take that that bollocks to be abolished?

Eh we have a blasphemy law in this country today. how 21st century is that.

Probably should start censoring the bible while we're at it, some depraved stuff in there too. This might as well be in 50 Shades of Grey:

Ezekiel 23:11-21 - "Her sister Oholibah saw this, yet in her lust and prostitution she was more depraved than her sister. She too lusted after the Assyrians—governors and commanders, warriors in full dress, mounted horsemen, all handsome young men. I saw that she too defiled herself; both of them went the same way. But she carried her prostitution still further. She saw men portrayed on a wall, figures of Chaldeans a portrayed in red, with belts around their waists and flowing turbans on their heads; all of them looked like Babylonian chariot officers, natives of Chaldea. b As soon as she saw them, she lusted after them and sent messengers to them in Chaldea. Then the Babylonians came to her, to the bed of love, and in their lust they defiled her. After she had been defiled by them, she turned away from them in disgust. When she carried on her prostitution openly and exposed her nakedness, I turned away from her in disgust, just as I had turned away from her sister. Yet she became more and more promiscuous as she recalled the days of her youth, when she was a prostitute in Egypt. There she lusted after her lovers, whose genitals were like those of donkeys and whose emission was like that of horses. So you longed for the lewdness of your youth, when in Egypt your bosom was caressed and your young breasts fondled."

Believe me I am against virtually all forms of censorship. But, I think in some cases you have to be careful. Lolita as you rightfully point out is one of the gems of English literature as I'm sure Mr Shatters book is.

I mean would you feel happy if every night RTE started broadcasting 2 hours of racist material for instance. (I know its not a book but we have a Broadcasting authority).

losthorizon wrote: »

Believe me I am against virtually all forms of censorship. But, I think in some cases you have to be careful. Lolita as you rightfully point out is one of the gems of English literature as I'm sure Mr Shatters book is.

I mean would you feel happy if every night RTE started broadcasting 2 hours of racist material for instance. (I know its not a book but we have a Broadcasting authority).

That's not the same thing.

RTE is the national broadcaster, representing the nation - therefore has to have broadcasting standards.

A dirty book written by someone isn't trying to represent anyone, therefore shouldn't have the same level of standards applied.

Don't want to read the dirty book? Great! You don't have to.

This kind of book should be mandatory reading for all us Irish men. If it weren't for porn, I never would have guessed I'm allowed to put my diddly-what in her uppity-dodo.

Cody Pomeray wrote: »

What has the digital age got to do with the question of whether or not we employ a censorship board?

Censorship boards are there to apply a certain 'standard' or 'moral code' to works. Back when they were first established, this would have prevented the masses from consuming the material - therefore avoiding a 'loss of morals' or whatever else they were afraid of. It acted as a barrier and a moral guide. Illegal material would have to be smuggled in.

Now in the digital age, we can consume literally any media we want at any time from anywhere. Censorship no longer acts as a barrier to stop people viewing the material.

Cody Pomeray wrote: »

The internet can reduce the efficacy of the work of a censorship board, but it is still an important regulator of material which does not leave a digital fingerprint. .

Why? what purpose is it now serving in an age where we can consume any media we want over the internet?

Cody Pomeray wrote: »

But it won't be clear cut in some cases, and labelled "Hey look over here! this is child erotica!". Who decides if it is suitably obscene? A censor.

Partially, perhaps; also to save victims from a potential market.

How are you saving the masses from corruption when they can just go online to get the exact same media? What difference does it make to the consumer that one is digital, one is physical?

Child porn aside, what victims are we talking about in a market based on fiction?

If anyone is interested this is the list of banned publications as of Dec 2010

http://www.justice.ie/en/JELR/Register%20of%20Prohibited%20Publications%202010.pdf/Files/Register%20of%20Prohibited%20Publications%202010.pdf

No books are listed (Part I) as being banned purely for being considered 'indecent or obscene'.

Part II however which is books banned because 'Books prohibited on the grounds that they were indecent or obscene and/or that they advocate the procurement of abortion or miscarriage or the use of any method, treatment or appliance for the purpose of such procurement' has 8 books including Abortion: Right or Wrong? published in 1942.

Part III is the 'Alphabetical List of Prohibited Periodical Publications as on 31st December, 2010' and includes Font Page Detective (1939), Health and Efficiency (1933) and Mayfair (1968).

A copy of Health and Efficiency published in 1933 is banned in Ireland...have a think about that.

Nobody see the Brooke Shields movie pretty baby regularly shown on sky movies