Friday, May 18, 2007

Godsenity


The Media Regulator of Hong Kong (translation: government censor), has rebuked thousands of requests to classify the Bible as an indecent publication. Hong Kong's Television and Licensing Authority (TELA) said it would not submit the Bible to the Obscene Articles Tribunal for classification which would require it to be sold in a wrapper with a statutory warning notice and only available for those over 18.

The incident follows an uproar over a sex column in a student magazine that was classified as "indecent" by authorities for asking if readers had ever fantasized about incest or bestiality. Supporters of the publication and other reasonable folk countered by citing passages with sexual and violent content from the Bible, including rape and incest, which they claim went beyond that of the sex column.

They're not wrong.

The zealots would go completely apeshit if the same claims were made here, because it's a real double standard and a blasphemously fine line. Beat the living crap out of a guy on film and you risk censure. Do the same and call that snuff film Passion Of The Christ and it's above criticism. If they tried to tag the Bible like that in the US, wow, that would be incredible...and fun to see what happens.

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