There has been rising criticism of YouTube censoring content on its site and today is another example. People posted the video of a mob taunting a man nearly beaten to death at a Fourth of July event. The video has triggered a debate over hate crime investigations as well as the simple lack of humanity found in today’s society. In other words, there is a substantive debate surrounding the videotape. However, YouTube says that it has been taken down for disgusting content. It rekindles the objection that YouTube has become a private censor — rather than a forum that warns of such content but allows people to make their own choices. [UPDATE: The video appears to be going up and coming down on YouTube but appears to be currently available here with a warning. I have not problem as I stated below with the addition of such a warning and wall]
There is no question that there is a lot of disturbing videotapes out there. Another example is ISIS. The Islamic extremists clearly use their horrendous acts to recruit. However, these videotapes also show the vast majority of people — including the vast majority of Muslims — the depth of depravity of this group and the reality of religious extremism in the world. Shielding people from such images (rather than allowing them to decide) is a controversial role.
Critics have said that the most important images on YouTube are often disturbing but that they are the very images that trigger meaningful public debate. Otherwise, YouTube seems catered to videos of cats playing piano. The removal of this videotape is problematic in my view. Yes, there is blood and a terribly injured man. However, most people linking to this video (as on this blog) are engaged in a discussion about our values and more concretely the evidence needed to start a hate crime investigation. Why not but up a wall and allow people to decide for themselves? What do you think should be the standard?
@Pogo
Well, SCOTUS changes definitions, so why can’t we! Give ’em hell!
https://squeekyfrommgr.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/rebelflag.jpg
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
Pogo, what are you talking about?
White males cannot be victims, by definition.
Nick Spinelli:
Troll
/trōl/
noun
One who posts a deliberately provocative message to a
newsgroup or message board with the intention of causing maximum disruption and argument.
Nothing more, nothing less.
I sure wouldn´t want a video showing me getting beaten up on the internet for everyone to watch. What about the victim´s dignity?
dutchjim, a Manson impersonator, is just trolling for his lame blog.
Maybe Isaac would have learn from Greece? What we learn is Greece has become overwhelmed by “disability” payments and exorbitant govt. pensions. There is a Greek Island where 5% of the people are totally “blind” yet many of them still drive. I could make a fortune over there busting frauds on the dole. Combine most everyone on the teat[Germany’s teat that is] 90% of the people who do actually work and produce say “Screw it” and don’t pay taxes. His much worshipped Europe is going down the toilet. Although, I think we could learn from Greece and start a tax revolt.
@Dutchjim
The wrong video posted. That happens sometimes when they do playlist. Here, I hope, is the proper video, where you get to listen to some black yutes tell you “why”:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSvZ7jANq1k
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
He got 4.5 years for killing someone? Really??
Squeeky, I’m not a fan of fox un-news. However, this is criminal. If it is true, then yes, feral (or not) black, white, Mexican people have to be corralled.
“It’s getting increasingly difficult to find balanced comments.”
dutchjim: I agree; only Officially Approved views are acceptable.
The RightWing Menace is an infection of the worst sort.
Anyone not toeing the Progressive line should be deleted, but also publicly harassed and shamed into quitting their jobs and/or committing suicide.
I suggest self-immolation after a humiliating apology (refused, naturally).
You are correct dutchjim.
@Dutchjim
Mebbe you should watch this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iSvZ7jANq1k&index=5&list=PLZFSBAtAmGqUNhUildU73yhpyQ72eeCBz
The real “crazy” is the refusal of the main stream media to report certain kinds of crime, and as Colin Flaherty say, the inability of some white people to understand that some feral black people love violence. It is their preferred lifestyle.
Squeeky Fromm
Girl Reporter
jonathanturley, your blog comments section has been taken over by trolls and right wing crazies.
It’s getting increasingly difficult to find balanced comments.
Jim22
Your interpretation of my position(s) illustrates the problems with America better than I could have. It is not unAmerican to observe how SOME things (not all) are being done better in other countries. It is certainly not American to ignore partial or whole solutions to problems.
In my opinion it is not American to ignore how much better some other countries deal with drugs, incarceration, guns, health care, health care insurance, etc. There are the intelligent Americans who are always looking for a better way and then there are those who seem to recede into the, “Well if you like it so much why don’t you move there?” There are also the fools who tout, “If it ain’t broke, why fix it?” while the rest of the world improves and America falls behind. It reminds me of an English car I saw in Gibraltar in 1967. Great Britain was in a severe recession having rested on its laurels for too long and their automobile industry was in rapid decline. The beat up old Vauxhall or whatever, was covered in Union Jacks and the words, ‘It may be rubbish, but it’s British rubbish.’ That was just after Great Britain’s last high point.
One can complain and point the finger while others look for solutions-lots of that going on. To me there’s what it means to be American and then something greater, what it means to be and intelligent American unfettered with ignorant excuses of ‘You don’t understand the difference between those countries that are doing this and that better than us.’
Yes, I do. I understand. Fortunately enough Americans also understand. Let’s see if we can get rid of private enterprise in the fleecing of Americans in the health care insurance department. Let’s see if we can reduce the slaughter by guns by reducing the number of dangerous people having access to guns. Let’s see if we can reinvigorate our industrial sector by partnering labor, management, and government. These are proven successes elsewhere, why not here? One thing is for sure though; if the US ever does make it to effecting some or all of these changes and they prove beneficial to the average American, there will still be those refusing to go along and the rest waving flags at what an innovative country this is.
“America’s sickness is the polarization between left and right. ”
Isaac should be more careful.
Criticism of the extreme left is double plus ungoodthink.
Your posts are being monitored.
Did anyone call the ambalamps?
isaac, My issue with your last post is you assume that the majority of Americans want to be like the other “enlightened” countries you write about. I would suggest that we don’t. This is the core of our disagreement. You bringing up other socialized countries as part of your argument doesn’t sway me to your side. Growing up a true blooded American, the idea of socialism used to scare/confuse me. Even at a young age I never understood why people would vote for more govt. power. Now, I do believe conservatism/libertarianism is losing to the liberal agenda since much like a terrorist group, it is very patient and chips away slowly over long periods.I call it the socialist cog. Scotuscare is a prime example of the cog moving yet again. Any Republican saying they will repeal Scotuscare is just flat out lying. the cog only moves one way.
Like Nikita Khrushchev said, “We cannot expect Americans to jump from capitalism to Communism, but we can assist their elected leaders in giving Americans doses of socialism until they suddenly awake to find out they have Communism.”
To me, you are just part of this effort.
The only hope is for the population finally has enough and blows up the cog and installs a new one, which in time will also fall. It’s the fight between mans desire to control another vs. mans will to be free.
If he hadn’t been pushing his white male privilege in everyone’s face he’d have been left alone.
And by “pushing his white male privilege” I mean he was white and alive within arm’s length of a black/gay/ female person.
Clearly, this beating was because of the legacy of slavery and poverty and racism and his inner hatery hate that the blacks around him could feel even though he was wearing glasses to hide his white devil eyes.
More midnight basketball and reparations and summer school lunches would be a good start, but ultimately the death of all white males everywhere is needed.
Only then will the beatings stop.
Mostly because they’d all be quite dead.
America’s sickness is the polarization between left and right. If a person has one liberal thought then he or she is a #@#*&^%$#@ #$%ing etc., well, read Spinelli’s posts for the labels. If a person has one conservative thought then the same only from the opposite direction, although the bulk of those posting come from the right. The cure for this sickness is to take each moment/issue/event one by one and leave the left and right out of it.
It seems to me that regarding the beating by the thugs and the jeering by the crowd, which included at least one white guy on video, pretty much all those who post regularly on this blog are in agreement. Yet Obama comes into it. Spinelli’s characterizations of ‘liberal progressives’ come into it, etc. I would think that Turley’s objective in this blog is to analyze each event for the sake of the event with a twist on the ‘letter of the law’, meaning which letter. Example gay marriage and dignity or the 14th. It doesn’t mean a pinch of cool sh*t what the SCOTUS uses to field their decision. It was the right thing to do and it will take some doing to iron out the starch. Yet somehow it all morphs into ‘grab your guns and head for the hills’. Most other countries, especially the ones with which I am familiar, are stronger than that. The very ranters and ravers on this blog that cry the sky is falling at every twist and turn are the weakest links in the societal evolution of this country. This country sorely needs two more political parties so the extreme left and right have homes. I like my middle ground. It seems to be the vanguard of progressive evolution.
Call me a &$*@#(@ progressive evolutionist.