Extremism & Censorship

ex·trem·ism [ ik str m ìzzəm ]

1. holding of extreme opinions: the holding of extreme political or religious views or the taking of extreme actions on the basis of those views

Synonyms: radicalism, fanaticism, immoderation, zealotry, activism, intemperance

cen·sor·ship [ sénssər shìp ]

1. suppression of published or broadcast material: the suppression of all or part of a play, movie, letter, or publication considered offensive or a threat to security
2. suppression of something objectionable: the suppression or attempted suppression of something regarded as objectionable
3. ancient Roman office: the office, authority, or term of an ancient Roman censor

Synonyms: restriction, suppression, control, cutting, editing, bowdlerization, expurgation

I am about to offend an obscene amount of dynamic groups and people in this post. You know the title of the post, you know the definitions. This is not for the faint of heart. I recommend you stop here if you don’t prefer to get your panties in a twist, and if you don’t wear panties, your hackles up. This will be your first and final warning.

 ”Fanaticism consists of redoubling your effort when you have forgotten your aim.“

— George Santayana

I am highly opinionated, I can have an opinion about everything and everyone. The difference between myself and an extremist? I am flexible. I leave room within myself for change. I could have a debate with you going in that I am 100% right and I am going to verbally and intelligently take you down, but I listen. This gives people who do want to debate with me the chance to sway my views. This also can make me an excellent debater because if need be, I can counteract everything you tell me versus only the majority of what you have to say.

My major fault? I am passionate about what I choose to debate or converse about so everything becomes personal. I don’t have children, but if I think it’s better to teach them dental habits at the age of 18 months when they obviously are sprouting teeth, you are going to hear about it. If I think your 5-year-old needs to brush his teeth every night and morning instead of occasionally, you’re going to hear about it. If I think it’s uncouth to leave your baby with a heart condition, let alone any healthy baby, napping while you take 15 minutes to get your kid from the bus stop down the street, I am definitely going to say something. Just for the fact that I don’t have a child, doesn’t mean I wouldn’t know how to raise one or that I lack maternal instincts, or the very least, make my ideas or opinions null and void. Stand on your soap box saying how you’re the mother. I’ll just be calling up to you to act like one. See? Passionate. Passionate about parenting when I’m not one. That’s me.

A certain amount of activism can drive me nuts. It can be cultural, religious, political, etc. I don’t like injustices. I don’t like racial slurs used to make others feel shitty about who they are. The color of your skin is not who you are, it’s a small part of a whole. A part that you had no control over coming into this world.

Being extremely feminist or anti-feminist has been irritating me lately. Since after the political debauchery campaigning of this election year, all I have been hearing about is feminism. I have total belief that anything a man can do, women can do better just as well. In this country, the only thing a woman hasn’t gained is presidency. We can work, we can own land, we can make bigger salaries than men, we can go to school, be rich, have as many babies as we want, wear what we want, talk how we want. What the hell are we fighting for? Do we just want it all handed to us now? I don’t think that’s exactly what Susan B. Anthony had in mind. There is HR (human resources) in every corporation in America so we can control sexual harassment. Rapists, shockingly enough, do end up behind bars — but only if we speak up. You want to know what feminism truly should be? Strength. We are all human beings and we cannot wipe out every injustice. In our culture, you have to stand for what you believe in and maintain. You can’t just expect a couple famous court verdicts and laws passed and think that from now on we are going to have a completely equal opportunity culture.

We have Freedom of Religion, are you to think there are not religious injustices that go on every day? We have Freedom of Speech, do you believe every person in this country doesn’t have to censor what they say or the information they teach? Do I need to bring up how most of those school textbooks are full of falsehoods? That’s been known for years and years, has anyone done anything to change it? No. We have the, bear with me… Right to Bear Arms, is every single one of us packing? No. Has it been proven in areas that have laws like these fewer crimes take place? Yes. Why? Because we use it as protection. A criminal that’s looking to get away with murder, is not looking to have the weapon so easily traced back to him. Guns for crimes are obtained illegally. Are there exceptions to every and all rules? Yes. Do extremists have a tendency to believe so? No. Everything is hard and fast. They’re right, you’re wrong. End of story.

“If this nation is to be wise as well as strong, if we are to achieve our destiny, then we need more new ideas for more wise men reading more good books in more public libraries. These libraries should be open to all—except the censor. We must know all the facts and hear all the alternatives and listen to all the criticisms. Let us welcome controversial books and controversial authors. For the Bill of Rights is the guardian of our security as well as our liberty.”

 —John Fitzgerald Kennedy

I don’t believe in having to censor yourself. Mainly when it comes to writing, I’m not going around little kids cursing up a fucking storm or anything. I don’t like the idea of banning/burning books. I don’t think anyone should have to silence their ideas or thoughts. Just as I can have an idea or opinion on extremist, they should be able to voice their own opinions or ideas. If there is music you don’t like to listen to because it’s derogatory, then don’t choose that radio station or seek out that kind of music. If there is a book that you don’t want to read in the library, don’t check out the book.

Censorship leads to ignorance. How are we to teach the generations behind us about our history when books like To Kill a Mockingbird or The Diary of Anne Frank get banned? I think even The Grapes of Wrath was banned once, or twice. Not having controversial books based on our past readily available can bring that kind of rhetoric back into our society. Does history not repeat itself. You can sit there and believe that teaching them about it will get through, but you need actual stories for kids to learn from. Books that shock the senses. Where do you think fables and stories came from?

There are books out there about white supremacy and the KKK or Satanism and black voodoo magic(k), books that promote those ideals and even though I find them to be disgusting human beings; if I don’t want to be censored, then they shouldn’t be either. People are going to believe in what they want to believe in. Not giving them a chance to know what is out there in that cold and cruel world will cause more harm than good.

There was actually a neighboring county of where I live that banned 50 Shades of Grey out of their public library system. Yes, E.L. James is a fantastic writer if you are into flaky chicklit and subpar sexcapades, but seriously? I bet I can find some books on the KKK in their library system. I do happen to live in the south.

The Bloggess Jenny Lawson’s book Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: (A Mostly True Memoir) was banned somewhere. I am reading it now and I fucking love it. She does curse a lot, but her stories – I shit you not – have me laughing out loud, not just smiling a little then stopping.

Related articles

• Censorship in US implied in Social Media (toinformistoinfluence.com)
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• How To Annoy Me 4 (combatbabe.com)
• Once again, the Lord has made my enemies ridiculous (freethoughtblogs.com)
• Q&A: Naomi Wolf Talks Vagina, Careless Critiques, and Self-Censorship in the Feminist Community; Appears at Miami Book Fair Saturday (saltyeggs.com)
• Why We Need Feminism (thoughtcatalog.com)
• Feminism and Anti-Feminism … (verbosestoic.wordpress.com)
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• Beware of Self-Fascism (psychologytoday.com)