Penis, Penis, Penis: Censorship's Absurdity

Penis, penis, penis. Breast, breast, breast. Vagina, vagina, vagina. Buttock, buttock, buttock. We all got 'em.

New rule: Censorship can only get more absurd the more you practice it.

First, China continues to harass artist Ai Weiwei, investigating him for pornography for being in a picture with nude women. Then, the Guardian reports, protestors strip and take pictures of themselves with his pictures over their privates.

Then @aliklay -- director of a movie about the artist -- reports on Twitter that when she posted the Guardian's photo, Facebook killed her account.

Then, in mockery, I posted Picasso's Nude and Still Life to my Facebook page. I tweeted that.

The bit.ly link to the Picasso work brought a warning. One can only assume it was because nudity followed.

How absurd can this get? We all have dicks, pussies, boobs, and asses. The words don't hurt. The pictures don't hurt. What hurts is the censors, nannies, and chickenshits who would "protect" us from God's creation. Jeesh.

 

 

 

Follow Jeff Jarvis on Twitter: www.twitter.com/jeffjarvis

Comments

[DJNinjah]

07:18 PM on 11/28/2011

Two comments. One, this reminds me of a Louis CK quote. "I hate the n-word. Not n******, but the actual phrase "the n-word." When someone says that they aren't actually avoiding saying the word, they are just forcing you to think it rather than have the balls to say it themselves."

Supposing the things we view influence us, what would you rather a public be exposed to. Graphic sex, which promotes love, fulfillment, pregnancies, disease, emotion attachment, etc. or graphic violence, which promotes, pain, suffering, death, hatred, fear, etc.

[if7ate9]

04:01 PM on 11/26/2011

There's only two reasons for censorship. First is for people who can't control themselves and second is for people who want to control others.

[SuperBenFranklin]

07:52 AM on 11/26/2011

Does the author have children? Would he like them to receive pornography in the mail? Would he like their teacher to use curse words while they are taught? If not, hurray he truly dies not like censorsism, if so , then he has his lines like the rest of us.

[RUInsane]

11:28 AM on 11/26/2011

Seriously? This is your argument? How do you possibly draw a straight line between the article and porn for kids in the mail?!?!?

The world is a beautiful place. Censors tell us to avert our eyes from this beauty.

[SuperBenFranklin]

08:18 AM on 11/27/2011

Because, everyone has a line they draw.

The world is also an ugly place.

[SCJohnson]

05:09 PM on 11/25/2011

Well the Republicans certainly had an incredible fixation on Bill Clinton's pXXXs. During Dubya's whole administration, they blamed averything that went wrong upon it.

[pixeloid]

04:49 AM on 11/25/2011

Censorship is alway stupid, always wrong, and always counterproductive.

[Mitchman57]

03:30 PM on 11/28/2011

Always is a big, fat word. I'm thinking a naked picture of your mother should rightfully not be placed on the billboard outside of her church as a matter of law. Or... do I have the right to exercise free speech in this manner no matter who feels offended?

[pixeloid]

08:42 PM on 11/29/2011

It would only only matter whether the picture was consensual or not. What if my mother happened to be a model? On a personal note, I'd probably feel the same way Britney Spears' kids feel.
Besides, before we post a picture of my mother, we'll have to take down the picture of yours, first.

[Thaddeus Jude]

12:08 AM on 11/24/2011

Isn't it a bit ironic that on this post, moderators are screening comments?

[Thaddeus Jude]

12:08 AM on 11/24/2011

You are my hero.

[Michael Kittredge]

11:52 PM on 11/23/2011

Censorship is extremely obnoxious, especially that perpetrated against movies by ratings boards with the NC-17 rating, near equivalent to blacklisting it. One of the problems with it is, the ratings are entirely subjective. For instance, violence and killing and blood can be featured in a G-rated disney movie. But a womans breast shown for a fraction of a second elevates a movie to PG-13. A penis or vagina is automatic cause for it to be rated R. Or certain words being said a certain about of times. Ridiculous.

[Bradlinsky]

11:55 AM on 11/23/2011

The worst part of censorship is ... @&#$%

[tj3usa]

06:53 AM on 11/23/2011

When Salvador Dali was asked why he lived in Spain under the censorious Dictator Franco he said " I approve of every from of censorship".

It is why I live in the USA.....! No butts, no penis no problems! No?

Perfecto~!

[Raymond Lulling]

05:17 AM on 11/23/2011

Why did Facebook kill the profile. Two guesses, some kind of complaint, probably from the Chinese who -threatened to Censor Facebook from their internet, if the profile was not blocked or removed. Second guess, the Chinese hacked Facebook. I would dare to say it wouldn't be the first time, and wont be the last.

[Raymond Lulling]

05:16 AM on 11/23/2011

There are three kinds of Censors. The first is Religious, given that many would censor a woman right out of exstance if she was not needed for children. Exposure of flesh is such an old conservative no no. The second are those who really are afraid of flesh, they might be old people who never learned to relax, they might be young people who repress themselves. Then there is the third type. I am the type three. I dont mind a little exposure and the occasional tit being exposed. But it does get annoying when every woman on TV has massive cleavage. Its even more annoying having Viagra, and condom commercials on every other. To me these things are as annoying as having a GOP sponsored radio add played 150 times in 4 hrs!

The country I live in hasn't become socially accepting of public nudity yet. So I will thank folks to at least use a little thoughtfulness before sticking their hardware in my face.
-That said, art has had nudity in it for centuries. Sexual imagry is a very strong motivator and always has been. It seems strange that an artist would be harrased unless he deliberatly provoked. However China and North Korea are not like the rest of the rest of the world, having an opinion, can get you killed.

[Draekia]

11:20 PM on 11/24/2011

You see, used the others as not so unreasonable to have. Problem with. As for condoms, considering they're a major public health benefit and normalization should increase use and decrease the taboo (ask any teenager buying a pack for the irst time) I think we should expect hem as often as feminine hygiene ads. That is, annoyingly repetitive, but normal andso ubiquitous people get over their squeamishness (mostly).

[Sheldon archer]

11:55 PM on 11/22/2011

And yet the American sheeple still claim that they have freedom of speech.

[Abnormal Wrench]

09:43 PM on 11/22/2011

Ironically, I would like to tell you what I think about that, but it would get censured.

Fail.

[minerva117]

04:25 PM on 11/22/2011

I've always despised censorship........I find it truly stunning the number of words that the "censors" think we can't handle......I used to listen to the song "What it's Like" by Everlast a few years ago.....recently I couldn't find the song on my computer so I went to YouTube and looked it up.......half the song is bleeped out, not just the "curse" words but words like drugs and balls........smh