Brickbat: Say It Loud

Twitter

Workers at Ohio's Youngstown State University removed posters promoting Straight Pride Week after the student government declared the message on the posters went beyond free speech. A statement from the student government said the posters "were not authorized, contained vulgar language, and, unfortunately, miss the point of minority activism."

Comments

[DJF]

""""""and, unfortunately, miss the point of minority activism"""

No, they got the point, its in the middle of the poster

"""""annoy the shit out of everyone about your sexual orientation"""""

[UnCivilServant]

No, that's a side effect. The point of "Minority activism" is to intimidate the majority into giving away special privileges to people based upon irrelevent criteria.

[Win Bear]

annoy the shit out of everyone about your sexual orientation

Actually, you're absolutely right: that is the point of a lot of "pride celebrations", to annoy people and make them think. You don't get people to think by being nice to them.

Having said that, taking down the posters was stupid.

[The Last American Hero]

There were more than a few people I knew in college who were less accepting of homosexuals because of pride week and that ridiculous parade. The movement would have been better served by just throwing a ridiculously awesome party every year.

[Win Bear]

That is what the parade is in most places and to most people: a ridiculously awesome party, people dancing and having a good time.

The people who are annoyed by it are those who believe gay people should be invisible and keep their filthy habits out of public view. And the parade is for them too, in its own way.

[Homple]

"You don't get people to think by being nice to them."

People who go out of their way to annoy me get me to think they're assholes, I'll give you that.

[Fist of Etiquette]

I'm curious if they actually believe the posters "missed the point" or if they decided they couldn't let the parody of a favored class stand and the grasped at whatever they could to justify the censorship.

[Cyto]

Uh.... dude! It says the word "shit" right on the poster. "Shit", right there in modestly sized type in the middle of the copy. On a college campus! College kids might see the word "shit"!

This is totally serious!! They had to act quickly! It is easy to be a Monday morning quarterback, but they had to act!

[Fist of Etiquette]

I guess my question is if they are so deluded, so up their own social justice asses, that they don't even realize what they're doing, or if they know it and are simply being cravenly.

[WTF]

"... the student government declared the message on the posters went beyond free speech"

Somebody doesn't understand "free speech".

[DJF]

Your free to say anything the student government agrees with.

[Greg F]

Though SGA respects the free speech of all YSU students, these postings were not authorized ...

Free speech has to be authorized don't ya know.

[straffinrun]

It is better to keep your mouth closed and let people think you are a statist tool than to open it and remove all doubt.

[db]

the student government declared the message on the posters went beyond free speech.

These are dangerous times in which we are living.

[Dark Lord of the Cis]

No db, the dangerous times will start in about 20 years when these navel gazers start getting elected into political office.

[Scarecrow Repair]

They sure aren't qualified for anything but academia and politics.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

When freedom of speech is exercised and it doesn't meet their vision they really don't like it, huh.

Remind me the definition of a reactionary or Fascist is again?

[UnCivilServant]

re-actionary... isn't that someone who repeats the same action over and over again (often expecting different results)?

/snark

[Free Society]

No but at least you didn't call it "the definition of insanity".

[Old Man With Candy]

"We have to be careful with the whole free speech issue. But then if you actually read through it, it seemed like it went way further than a free speech issue. There were swear words and took it a little further than the average free speech should go," Student Government President Michael Slavens said.

But only a "little further," so it's OK.

Love the name.

[Libertarian]

This will look awesome on his resume someday when he submits it to the Chelsea Clinton campaign.

[Rebel Scum]

There were swear words

Words are not words. Speech is not speech.

[jjjjj]

But the speech was still within one standard deviation of average free speech.

[DJF]

Maybe Youngstown State Student Government should worry about the fact that only 8.7 % of its students graduate in 4 years

[Libertarian]

True. Why would almost ten percent of students want to leave such a cozy cocoon that fast?

[Adans smith]

Really?Are you cereal? So,YS just exits to take in money and pay the staff?

[Marshall Gill]

YS just exits to take in money and pay the staff?

From the results produced I would have to say, Yes.

[A Horse Called Trigger]

Well, Michael Slavens seems to be padding his resume with some authoritarian shit.
So they've got that going for them.

[straffinrun]

"We have to be careful with the whole free speech issue. But then if you actually read through it, it seemed like it went way further than a free speech issue"

I wish I were able to abandon principle and start by banning this idiot from engaging in free speech.

[Rufus J. Firefly]

Just give him a shiny pony toy in exchange.

[Rebel Scum]

the student government declared the message on the posters went beyond free speech.

Speech goes beyond speech.

[JWW]

The onion is fucking prescient again!

http://www.theonion.com/articl.....dea,38496/

[Rufus J. Firefly]

While that was awesome, not sure this was technically prescient. Plenty of people - including the extremists here - have asserted as much.

[straffinrun]

History first repeats itself as tragedy, then as an onion article.

[Notorious G.K.C.]

""When you are talking about minority activism, it is very easy that if you are in the majority to say 'well, this sort of activism is not necessary. This sort of zeal in your activism is over the top.' For minorities who experience discrimination, that is not the case," Student Government Vice President Jacob Schriner-Biggs said."

Ah, yes, the "but they're *wrong*!" exception to the First Amendment.

[Cyto]

I think they were operating under the closely related: "but they are making fun of something important!" exception. It isn't free speech if someone's feelings might get hurt.

[sarcasmic]

Sticks and stones can break my bones, but words are what really hurt me!

[Slammer]

I'm all for posters for promoting Pride Weeks, but GOOBLYGOBBLEDEYDERPAHERPITYDOO

[sarcasmic]

Tolerant people do not tolerate intolerance. That sign was obviously intolerant, so it is the duty of tolerant people everywhere to ban such intolerant speech in the name of tolerance.

[pogi]

From time to time my children all exhibit some of this sort of lock-step mentality, but they grew up with their mother (in NJ) whose head was so stuffed with post-hippie/early SJW bullshit that it starved rational thought to death. I'm feeding my middle child my copies of Reason in hopes of salvaging him for future generations.

With luck, I'll be dead before this generation of fucktards gets their hands on any significant levers of power.

[PapayaSF]

Too late!

[Bean Counter]

"message on the posters went beyond free speech."
I do not think that phrase means what they think it means.

[Ted S.]

FUCK OFF, SLAVENS!

[HazelMeade]

How dare people miss the point of minority activism. That should be illegal.

[BigT]

Could the rainbow be a trademarked symbol? They should have used half pink/blue.

sarc