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Perverse Verse Averse:
As individuals, families or social groupings we all have our likes and dislikes and want to be in control of who we associate or are associated with.
As an independent individual, I have a strong aversion to profanity, vulgarity, and violence of any kind (including politically induced wars).
I am not alone in my desire to be surrounded by an environment of propriety, politeness and peace.
The following quotes by various personalities highlight their views on vulgarity.
Death and vulgarity are the only two facts in the nineteenth century that one cannot explain away. Oscar Wilde
Will minus intellect constitutes vulgarity Arthur Schopenhauer
Vulgarity is, in reality, nothing but a modern, chic, pert descendant of the goddess Dullness. Edith Sitwell
I guess I'm concerned that vulgarity has now officially entered the mainstream of our culture, and I think people have to respectfully stand up and say, 'No thanks.' Eric Metaxas
This point seems counter-intuitive, given the amount of conspicuous vulgarity, vice, and immorality in America. Indeed some Islamic fundamentalists argue that their regimes are morally superior to the United States because they seek to foster virtue among the citizens. Dinesh D'Souza
America does not want vulgarity and sexual exploitation to be our values and we do not want the world to think those are our standards. We want to be a better nation and a better people, with better standards. Charles W. Pickering
War's a profanity because, let's face it, you've got two opposing sides trying to settle their differences by killing as many of each other as they can. Norman Schwarzkopf
The higher a man stands, the more the word vulgar becomes unintelligible to him.
John Ruskin
From a macro view to a relatively micro view, the world of Neopoetry, I would like to respectfully suggest that with the wide variety of viewpoints and expressive styles, it might be better to have two branches of Neopoetry:
Neopoetry R(isqué) for participants who believe a poem is a four letter word
Neopoetry G(eneral) for participants who believe a poem is for a better world.
For the participants in Neopoetry R, wish all of you ____ ____ (good luck)
For the participants in Neopoetry G (my category), I wish you the following:
May thoughts flow as smooth as running water
May your content be as spotless as snow
May your output be profuse hereafter
May your poetic abilities grow
(c) Neopoet.com. No copyright is claimed by Neopoet to original member content.
Comments
OriginalRhyku
Fri, 2018-06-15 07:49
Comments from themoonman
Hi,
Everyone has an opinion. If you are
offended by words you know you are
going to hear or read, you should be
offended.
You are talking about censoring poets,
I don't think that will fly here.
??
What are ratings if not censorship?
There are sites that censor a poet's
works, that has never been part of the
Neopoet experience.
Regardless
of whether the "censoring" is accomplished
purposely, it is still "limiting" a poet's work.
Not sure why you don't understand.
author commentOriginalRhyku
Fri, 2018-06-15 07:50
Responses to themoonman
Moonman
No censorship just two streams with clear ratings like the movies. Those that want to can participate in either or both streams of poetry.
Sorry to disagree
Censorship means you are prevented from seeing the content. Ratings are just indicators to those who want to view content that they will be viewing either general content or risque content. All viewers make up their minds on whether they want to proceed or not. That is not censorship.
themoonman
again I respectfully disagree, if there is a separate stream for poems that carries content that may not be universally appropriate, poets will be free to post any of their poems, blogs etc to that stream. It is only for the general stream that poets and editors will have to decide if the poems are appropriate. Since I started this idea, I will be willing to devote some time to review poems and I will tag any poems for inappropriate content with explanatory reasons and then your AC can take the final call of either agreeing with me and posting the poem under Neopoet R(isque) or disagreeing with me and posting the poem under Neopoet G(eneral).
author commentOriginalRhyku
Fri, 2018-06-15 07:52
Comments from brittle light
if something offends
just throw it in the pile
of everything else you don't like
and move on
who would be the smut judge
to screen and rate
what is risque, what is not
befor anyone can read/see for themself
one man's opinion
may be considered
manifestly biased by another man
thereby making that opinion useless
this is the manner in which
ratings do become censorship
more subtle than banning outright
but just as insidious
who is going to make that determination?
that is my point
everyone has biases, conscious or unconscious
what standards would be used that are virtually universally accepted
I doubt there are any
again, who is going to make these determinations?
look at all the problems with facebook and youtube and twitter about their policies of what is appropriate for their users to see/read; using shadowing, placement, flagging and other techniques
prior to outward bans
once again, ratings are more insidious than you think
stop pretending you don't understand how ratings can be a form of censorship
ratings put a chill on everyone before they even write a single word
respectfully,
Al
author commentOriginalRhyku
Fri, 2018-06-15 07:53
Responses to brittle light
Al
respectfully disagree. As mentioned to Moonman, censorship is preventing the viewing of material. Ratings is just cautioning viewers that what they are about to view is either appropriate for all viewers or inappropriate for the sensitive and non-adults.
author commentOriginalRhyku
Fri, 2018-06-15 08:18
MarkL
I am usually in agreement with your perceptive reviews but I would respectfully like to disagree with you.
It is not a matter for growing up but for grown ups, who realize that now that they are in control and have confidence in communication, that it is no longer necessary to express themselves like alienated teenagers or angry longshoremen.
I leave you with a very pertinent quote from former US District Judge Pickering: "America does not want vulgarity and sexual exploitation to be our values and we do not want the world to think those are our standards. We want to be a better nation and a better people, with better standards." Charles W. Pickering
author commentthemoonman
Fri, 2018-06-15 08:30
??
Why the edit, did I miss something?
themoonman
Fri, 2018-06-15 08:35
And here;
let me leave you with a couple
of quotes by Rushdie
What is freedom of expression? Without the freedom to offend, it ceases to exist.
A poet's work is to name the unnameable, to point at frauds, to take sides, start arguments, shape the world, and stop it going to sleep.
OriginalRhyku
Fri, 2018-06-15 09:36
themoonman, MarkL and Brittle Light
Thanks to all of you for your patient explanation - I will cease to push for two branches of Neopoetry.
But if you will permit me a parting rebuttal of Salman Rushdie, a smart man who was really dumb. Rushdie comfortably ensconced in his upper class Cambridge / Oxford environs demeaned and denigrated the religion held as a mooring point to sanity in the ocean of despair and madness of millions of poor, uneducated and downtrodden Muslims in Third World nations. It was an exercise of his erudition and his exclusive ivory tower existence. To millions of others, it attacked the one positive feature of their miserable subsistence. Many were offended, some objected vociferously and a few decided to resort to violence. Was it really necessary to offend so many when he was aware of the consequences of his actions hailing from that region himself. Rushdie was in a mad rush to self-disintegrate. One dumb smart individual.
author commentthemoonman
Fri, 2018-06-15 19:35
Hello,
We do have a section called the
"idea gallery", you can submit this
idea there and see how many hits
it gets, maybe there are many that
feel the way you do.
Richard
OriginalRhyku
Sat, 2018-06-16 00:24
Moonman
Thanks - I have submitted an entry in the Idea Gallery
author comment