“Though I Agree With What You Say, Quote Bloody Voltaire Again & It’ll Be A Fight To The Death!”
Warning: This Blog Contains Explicit Images And Offensive Ideas As Well As Sexist Jokes That Would Make The Carry-On Crew Wince With Embarrassment, so if you’re easily offended, piss off!
“Timid journalism has produced material so ludicrous as to be beyond satire. In the UK, The Telegraph ran a photograph of someone reading an edition of Charlie Hebdo with the cover blurred because it contained an image of Muhammad.”
“Not without fear or favour: how the world’s media lost their nerve after Paris” Julie Szego.
Ok, I know that this will offend some of you, but here’s a photo of my penis. (I wouldn’t normally do this, but I’m trying to make a point and, after all the talk about Larry Pickering, it was the first thing I thought of.)
Oh no, apparently the jpeg file is too big to load, but let’s just ignore that and pretend, it’s there, ok.
Well, it’s mainly there for the purposes of argument, not for the purposes of being aesthetically pleasing or in the hope of attracting fan mail. (No, I’m not going to say that it has its own post code; that’s the sort of pathetic joke that I’d never make!)
Let’s say for some reason this post and/or the hypotheical photo of my penis becomes newsworthy. Um, I can’t think of any reason why it would, so I’m stumped at this point to come up with a good reason, so let’s just roll with it.
In reporting the story, are media outlets demonstrating timid journalism if they don’t publish the photo. Or if they pixelate it. Or are they just demonstrating good sense.
Ok, I’ve just realised why my penis may become newsworthy. I’m using as an allegory for the cartoons of Muhammed in Charles Hedbo, but I’d like to point out to any violent fundamentalist Muslim reading this, that this should not be taken as a sign of disrespect, as, like many men, I worship my appendage in ways that are hard for non-believers to understand.
However, let’s put my penis to one side…
All right, I now see how hard it was for Benny Hill to stop once he got started.
Well, anyway, the point I was trying to make was:
Surely freedom of speech also includes the freedom to be silent. Surely, in spite of this journalist’s opinion, Not without fear or favour: how the world’s media lost their nerve after Paris, the media do have a right to not publish something they think may offend. Surely, just because you support someone’s right to say or draw something, you’re not compelled to repeat it, publish it or share on Facebook.
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revolutionarycitizen -
John Fraser -
lawrencewinder -
stephentardrew -
John Fraser -
Phi -
Rossleigh -
rangermike1 -
rangermike1 -
stephentardrew -
lizzieconnor -
musicinhills -
Kaye Lee -
Rossleigh -
Joe Banks -
gangey1959
Return to home pageI believe people were expressing their frustration at the irony of the international press condemning an attack on their freedom by willfully self-censoring themselves. Because, in the real world, the press isn’t free, not even close, especially in the West.
And people watched with raised eyebrows as world leaders jostled for front row positions in the photo-op in Paris, the same world leaders that represent countries that one could hardly declare as freedom loving.
Angela Merkel represents a country with a whole host of freedom restrictions, and let’s not get into Jordan, Israel, Palestine and France!
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Is the west so delicate that they can't be exposed to this :
https://www.google.com.au/search?tbm=isch&tbs=simg:CAQSZRpjCxCo1NgEGgIIBAwLELCMpwgaPAo6CAISFPIW9xb4Id4NnRfpFsQNjybWDZ8XGiDwkl-K8pQhX6mMPrcIMpiRXyy0gLloj3LyLORSN4EgNAwLEI6u_1ggaCgoICAESBEmSnpcM,isz:l&sa=X&ei=x363VMflB6TAmAXTnoLICA&ved=0CBwQ2A4oAg&biw=1920&bih=955
Seems strange that christians are preaching to forgive ….. and there it is on the front cover of Charlie Hebdo.
"All is forgiven" …. is what the text says.
Surely a nice sentiment …. one that the media could publish.
One that shows we are better than the terrorists.
I assume the “Illo” of “Blot-on-The-Landscape,” Bolt was true and that its expression would be a first for “The Hun” where it in fact expressed a noble sentiment about the said pretend journalist.
John is that all ya got?
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@StephenTardrew
Yeah …. forgive me.
yeah, I see your point – BUT – since silence isn’t speech, how does the practice of exercising silence equate with the exercise of free speech?
Well, Phi, part of free speech is that one isn’t COMPELLED to speak. Sort of like when people are compelled to utter loyalty oaths. Once one is vilified for not speaking then the speech is no longer free…
Oh Dear Rossleigh, How disgusting,first I saw the picture of Bolte and the next one of Honest John. Can you please clean up your Blog and be rid of these disgusting wretches, it is porno with an extreme desensitization taste. Seeing a penis is preferable to seeing these Clowns. Next you will go completely overboard and have a picture of the Rabbit here.
Further to my above comment, it is not so bad. A certain Woman in the LNP, seems to have Abbott by the short and curly’s. Pedra, you are the man.Sorry I can’t spell.
Off subject however ethically I can’t resist.
http://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/video/2015/jan/14/manus-island-hunger-strike-rare-secret-recording-video
Thanks for that link Stephen. On that Guardian webpage I also like the film of Pope Francis giving his reaction to the attack on Charlie Hebdo.
If the Moslems and Christians join together in there (faith)
what a thought
nay a nightmare
Wouldn’t it be nice if the Catholics and Protestants could join together in their faith.
I look forward to the day when Christians and Atheists can join together and worship the same god.
The media also has the ‘Freedom to Think’ before writing or speaking:
Is it necessary?
Is it true?
Is it kind?
Will it hurt anyone?
Will it improve on the silence?
@ Rangermike. I agree. We need more penises on here.
@ Stephentardrew. Thank you. I have never understood why the refugees have to be detained or imprisoned. Why can they not be just housed and fed and educated. We are spending the money anyway, so why not treat them like the human beings they are, and let them live their lives again in a war free environment. As a community they might even become productive again, and be able to achieve more than mere existence.
Wouldn’t it be wonderful if ALL the Christians and ALL the Jews and ALL the Muslims and All the Atheists and ALL of everyone else discovered PEACE together. At the same time.
The only ones who would lose out would be the weapons makers, but by then we wouldn’t need them anyway.
If “freedom” translated to “respect” we would all be better off, as a start