Cartoons

Guest · Posted: Thu Feb 02, 2006 8:47 pm Post subject: Cartoons

We should publish these cartoons that are causing the such a fuss.

We'd be the first in Britain to do so...

If you haven't been following this story:

http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/europe/02/02/cartoons.wrap/

gabs · Black Bloc

Would certainly get publicity.

There hasn't been an assasination of a newspaper editor for ages and with the radish having 15odd editors the ensuing bloodbath will definitely put it on the map

doc_ido · Sandal-wearing bean eater

We might have to publish some cartoons that went against Christianity Judaism Hinduism Sikhism and a few others just to make sure we had a decent balance of offence though. Wink

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ukboxerdude · Indymedia Hound

gorky · Black Bloc

If Straw thinks it's a bad idea we should certainly print the cartoons.

(Knee jerk, not logical reaction)

nick_b · Street Demonstrator

after extensive curious searching, i found the cartoons on the internet. the protesters have a point - the images are deliberately antagonistic, provocative and insulting, with very little apparent poilitcal, social or cultural message behind them. on the other hand, we have a right to criticise one another - as voltaire said, "i disagree with every word that man says, but i'll defend to the death his right to say it" (that's not an entriely accurate quote, but its the gist of it).
whole issue seems to me though to have been blown out of all proportion.
and, just to clarify, i'm not particularly keen on being assassinated for printing the pictures in the radish.

steven · Black Bloc

As I'm using a University computer and don't want the people in the surrounding area to think I'm that way inclined, I haven't checked this, but: I'd read somewhere that the first place in Britain to publish the cartoons was...the website of the British National Party. So I don't think it would be the best thing we've ever done to join them.

Steven

scruffy · Black Bloc

Hey people

I just wanted to highlight a point here.

Jen Green has written a very good opinion about censorship in the 'Articles' thread which says that censorship is the imposition of one view over another - the ability of authority to limit outbursts by others.

A lot of objection has been raised about the Guild limiting free speech and not allowing 'ordinary' students (and I hate that phrase - FIND me an ordinary student!) their right to say what they want. While I am not in favour of printing these cartoons, I have to raise the issue that cuts to the very heart of the Radish project.

Why is stopping this view being published acceptable censorship when some people believe that censorship itself is the enemy? I hope that the editors refuse to print this because it sure as hell is offensive. The reason for this is that Islam specifically forbids depectitions of God or the Prophet and this is both racist and unapologetic caricature. My suspicion is that the editors WILL refuse to print it, and where does that leave the idea of a free press?

Option 1) Print the cartoons and stand for free speech and the very principles that brought the Radish into being but be acused of horrific racism and Islamophobia.

Option 2) Don't print it and stand on the side of dignity and the freedom of people with faith from unfounded attacks and prejudice but be condemned for turning the Radish into the enemy.

Who wants to make the call and then defend how the Radish can withstand this debate which undercuts all that we stand for?

Just a thought.
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Guest · Posted: Mon Feb 06, 2006 12:17 am Post subject:

You make a good point scruffy. However, i think we can have our cake and eat it. We CAN print anything but would we necessarily want to print this? This isn't about censorship really. I haven't heard anybody desperate for us to print this and i don't see what good would come of it if we did. It's a non-starter for me.

steven · Black Bloc

Exactly - there is a difference between being able to print anything, and actually printing anything, and I don't think there's any need for us to be offensive for no purpose. Unless the cartoons make an actual intellectual point about Islam (haven't seen them, so I can't say) I can't really see any need to publish them just to prove we can.

Steven

Barry · Armchair Activist

Ive seen the cartoons, I dont think they say anything of any interest, theyre not even particularly funny. Printing them would just be for shock value's sake i feel. This is surely not the point of the Radish.

Guest · Posted: Wed Feb 08, 2006 3:54 pm Post subject:

Print the cartoons definitely. We should not bow to superstition and violence. In return, Muslims should be free to critiscise the cartoons.

The solution to offence caused by free speech is always more free speech.

doc_ido · Sandal-wearing bean eater

hannoir · Black Bloc

No one should have printed these in the first place.

Theres free speech, which I support wholeheartedly, and downright stupidity.

With the current world climate, I think printing them was downright stupidity.
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scruffy · Black Bloc

I didn't know that the free press they fight for in North Korea is actually a protest against expensive newspapers Very Happy

.

I really have to take issue with the claim that a free press is achieved by having a committee decide what does into it. I would never want these cartoons printed, but wanted to highlight the flaws in the argument.

A free press is unachievable. Agendas are part of everybody's political psyche. Were a lot of coke lovers to flood a Radish meeting and demand to print a pro-coke article, would this be the consensus and would the Radish reflect this in its articles?

The 'consensus' is often the position reached in the common lowest position. What happens when the common lowest position is different. The Radish is not an established forum for airing of views, but appears to be dressed up as it. If an article were submitted highlighting the inconsistency in the Radish's political rationalisation, would that be printed? This is a vital question which I think the Grand High Committee of the Radish can't answer.

I would hope that the 'we' that I previously spoke of was the core of readers committed to activism and not sensationalism. I would like to think that this included people external to the Radish (lets not pretend 'we' have the only claim to political thought). Where are 'our' general meetings to discuss 'our' issues and wrest control from the GHCR from pro-moon cup to anti-moon cup?

Just a thought about the world...
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"the hardest thing to do in politics is nothing"
President of the Guild of Students