Book banning
Shelf life in libraries shouldn’t be perfect
Words are dangerous.
That’s been the justification for
censorship, and particularly for
banning books.
We’re not talking words of the
sticks-and-stones variety, but
poetry, novels, and philosophy.
One of the more recent ex
amples has been the banning of two
books about alternative lifestyles
— “Heather Has Two Mommies”
and “Daddy’s New Roommate”
from elementary schools.
Across the country, people have
fought tooth and nail to keep these
books out of school libraries.
After all, out of sight must
automatically equal out of mind.
And out of mind means their kids
can postpone finding out about
differences in sexuality, race, or
religion.
Sometimes the banned books
really seem to be a stretch, like
Hans Christian Andersen’s “The
Little Mermaid.”
Other than having a sanitized
and sugary Disney movie made
from it, what’s the problem?
Clearly, it’s satanic and porno
graphic, at least according to those
who would ban it. I always knew
those mermaid costumes were a
little too revealing.
With political correctness
wafting through the air, it’s no
wonder book banning is at an all
time high. Our sensitivity to
everyone and everything is superfi
cially amazing, despite the fact
little has actually changed. Since
we must protect this rarefied
atmosphere, freedom of speech gets
caught in the crossfire.
Nowhere is banning more
prevalent than in elementary, junior
high, and high schools. “Con
cerned” parents may not want their
children to read anything that
presents a new, unwanted point of
view.
Libraries have to and do listen to
public input. Since they receive
Krista Schwarting
state funding! they have little
choice. Fortunately, bookstores
have the freedom to put on their
shelves just about whatever they
want so long as it sells. But what
about people who may not have the
money to buy those books pulled
off the shelves of their local
library? What are their options?
Admittedly, libraries must have
some limitations. They are limited
by space and funding as well as
public taste.
Madonna’s “Sex” may not be
your cup of tea, but others would
argue the pictures have an artistic
value. If we ban a book containing
nudity, doesn’t it follow we should
also remove nudes from the walls
of art galleries?
Free speech has never been so
fragile as in an age where our
television sets may soon have a
mandatory V-chip and our Internet
rights may soon be curtailed. Even
freedom of religion comes into the
book-banning crossfire when some
want to stop the Bible and the
Talmud from staying on the library
shelves. Hey, at least they’re being
egalitarian about it.
People having minds of their
own is an explosive concept to
censorship advocates. We may
choose to read the Bible or visit a
Robert Mapplethorpe exhibit. We
may even think it’s OK for children
to read Laura Ingalls Wilder’s
“Little House on the Prairie” series,
criticized for its portrayal of Native
Americans. And if we do any of
these things, censorship supporters
could call us bad parents or
proponents of pornography.
I’ve been called worse things.
How about you?
As for your childhood favorites,
how about Alice in Wonderland?
After all, it promotes drug use. Or
even that dictionary you never even
opened? It contains so-called
obscene words.
The most insidious targets are
books that heralded an age of
change in society. J.D. Salinger’s
“TTie Catcher in the Rye” intro
duced us to Holden Caulfield, a
Generation-X kid way ahead of his
time. James Joyce questioned the
value of religion. John Steinbeck
made the common man as interest
ing a topic as the lives of the rich
and famous.
Their social criticism is exactly
why they’re considered dangerous.
Books which raise thoughts and
heighten sensitivities more than
any politically correct terminology
are being banned for the ideas they
contain. Only “nice” books praising
our oh-so-democratic society are
allowed here, please.
Limiting ourselves to this kind
of book would be like living in a
world of perpetually nice people.
Artificial, unnatural, and not very
interesting.
If we lived in such a place, a
library of happy, neutral and
completely useless books could
exist. But in our own imperfect
world, we need social critics. We
may identify with their viewpoints,
and at the very least we should
celebrate the diversity of opinions.
Tomorrow kicks off Banned
Books Week. Take a long look at
your bookshelves and see what
might not be there if book banning
continues to run rampant.
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Hotter Skelter
O.J. trial conjures odd images of Manson
The nervous eye twitches and
double takes; entertain my reality
for a moment. Forget your views,
the publicity, and allow me a stitch
in time to explain how the real
crime of the century holds the keys
to our current crime of the century.
Two words folks: Helter Skelter.
Innocence and guilt. Show me
someone who thinks they’re
innocent and I’ll show you the truly
guilty. You don’t know the answer
but I do; my guess, my hypothesis,
my chance to play Russian Roulette
with one Magic Bullet theory in the
chamber. If a soliloquy is given in
the forest, will anyone still not hear
it? My generation’s too damn
young, our yellow hearts are scared
off by racist words pouring out of
the head of a stupid cop; too young
to remember the creepy-crawl. The
answers are so obvious.
Arise. «. *
Helter Skelter: Charles
Manson’s plan to ignite the black/
white conflict, inspired by the ^
Beatles’ “Revolution #9.” Poor ^
O.J., how could he have known?
How could he have realized that he
would play the catspawn in this
sinister game? Nicole “Sharon
Tate” Simpson — the notion
probably never entered her head
that die was the token, victim in the
butchery reprise; that she would be
walking through the Valley of the
Dolls.
It’s all too perfect. The promi
nent sports hero guaranteed to have
the cash necessary to prolong the
trial, make a mockery of the
already ridiculous system; fuel the
fires of ethnicity, pride, hatred,
violence. A man so beloved that his
presence would immediately spark
the conflict and draw the lines.
The beautiful honey-blonde
actress who would produce earth
quakes in comparison to uncom
fortable Jungle Fever shudders.
Aaron McKain
uOn your mark, get set,
hate.”
Ron Goldman, slain love interest of
Simpson, replaces Jay Sebring,
massacred former fiance of Tate.
Second verse, same as the first.
Finally, Mr. Man son, aka Jesus
Christ, would get a chance to put
his plan into action; enact revenge
on the glamorous establishment
that snubbed him.
No sense makes sense. His
madness was simple: commit a -
series of brutalities against the
young, white, and gorgeous; frame
the black community, thus sending
white society into mass paranoia,
driving them to invade the inner
cities and begin a genocidal
conflict.
The surviving blacks would
appeal to the white establishment,
forcing them to acknowledge the
horrors they had unleashed. The
division occurs. Conservatives
against the left, rich vs. poor, and
when the system had worn itself
down, the black populace would
rise up and cad it all. Charlie
would make his Biblical return
from the desert and volunteer his
leadership to the black conquerors.
Lucky for Mr. Man son, we’re
already half there.
A bloody glove, the message
“Death to Pigs” smeared all over
the walls of the Labianca residence.
Both clues left to make it painfully
obvious who the killer was. Maybe
too obvious? Col. Mustard in the
conservatory with the wrench and a
' potential race riot. 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... all
good children (go to heaven).
Look at us. Love us. Rag dolls
chewing each other apart. Oblivi
ous, obvious pawns in another
game. We certainly haven’t
allowed ourselves to wander this
far into the meat grinder by
accident.
We sat around the campfire
waiting for someone to throw a
match on the smoldering embers of
Rodney King. Here’s our chance.
On your mark, get set, hate. Drool,
sweat, and start a war over a
footprint. Who’s really guilty
anymore? It’s all the same, it’s all
the same, it’s all the same ....
Charlie became the martyr for
the counterculture; O.J. is becom
ing the messiah of the ghetto. A
multimillion dollar, international
celebrity who’s suddenly
everybody’s Joe Lunchbox,
fighting the good fight against The
Man for the common and colored
folk.
Watch us slaughter each other
like sheep over the inane, arbitrary
outcome resulting from a mixture
of money, race, feme, filibuster,
media, and corruption. In short, the
American Judicial System.
Watch the cities go up in flames
in the name of Justice. “Tomorrow
we’re homeless, tonight it’s a
blast.”
Man’s son.
I don’t know about you all, but I
hear Charlie laughing.
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