> -----Original Message-----
> From: owner-lbo-talk at lists.panix.com
> [mailto:owner-lbo-talk at lists.panix.com]On Behalf Of Reese
> Sent: Monday, February 12, 2001 12:35 AM
> To: lbo-talk at lists.panix.com
> Subject: RE: Tasteless site
>
>
> At 11:00 PM 2/11/01 -0600, Christopher Susi wrote:
>
> >> If the reader buys into such exhortations and then goes on to commit
> >> acts which any mature adult knows, or should know, are illegal, that
> >> reader should be prosecuted for his actions.
> >
> >And what happens when it's not a mature adult who isn't aware
> it is illegal.
>
> The courts have been dealing with such as this for years. Millennia even.
And they likely will continue to do soe for several more with each individual case looked at differently depending on the political, social, and moral climate of the time. I offer no solid rule as to when the line has been crossed beyond protected free speach, only my opinion.
>
> This still fails to convince that the authors of "Applied
> Chemistry" should
> be hauled into court because their work was used for purposes that were
> illegal or just plain wrong - legitimate uses for their work still exist.
>
> It's a big world Chris. You and I can engage in political commentary that
> is critical of the powers that be and the status quo, but in
> order to safe-
> guard that right, we must accept that others have free speech
> too. Even if
> we do not like what they have to say. It's a consistency thing. There is
> an old saying - Caveat Emptor. It applies to readers and listeners too.
>
Agreed and do not take me as arguing against the freedom of speech. But that freedom comes with responsibility, and I do place limits when something is spoken that infringes on the greater rights (life, liberty, & pursuit of happiness) of others. Just as I believe the right to own, and use a gun is a right we should enjoy, but it comes with a responsibility. The only problem is - the direct causational link between shooting and killing someone is more clear than the link between speaking about killing and somebody being killed. In the former, it is easy to say "you commited murder", but in the latter the point is open to heated debate.
In my personal opinion - and yours may vary - BonsaiKitten pushed that limit only because it was designed so deceptively realistic that even rational people couldn't discern if it was a parody or not.