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From: AMuzi <am@yellowjersey.org>
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.tech
Subject: Re: Future of online fora
Date: Thu, 3 Apr 2025 12:07:00 -0500
Organization: Yellow Jersey, Ltd.
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On 4/3/2025 10:42 AM, Frank Krygowski wrote:
> On 4/3/2025 11:29 AM, Frank Krygowski wrote:
>> On 4/3/2025 11:03 AM, AMuzi wrote:
>>> On 4/3/2025 9:54 AM, John B. wrote:
>>>> On Thu, 3 Apr 2025 09:12:46 -0500, AMuzi 
>>>> <am@yellowjersey.org> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> The forum LFGSS (London Fixed Gear and Single Speed) is
>>>>> among the early casualties of The Planners in the UK nanny
>>>>> state.  Under the well invoked principle, "Everyone ought
>>>>> to, because I say so", newly enacted internet regulation
>>>>> makes online providers fully responsible for online 
>>>>> content
>>>>> including purported crimes of "revenge [whether 
>>>>> personal or
>>>>> by class], extreme pornography, sex trafficking, 
>>>>> harassment,
>>>>> coercive or controlling behavior and stalking."
>>>>>
>>>>> Since interpretation of those can be highly subjective* 
>>>>> and
>>>>> in light of the huge volume of content, every word of 
>>>>> which
>>>>> is a possible offense, providers such as Microcosm, who
>>>>> wrote the popular group forum software, have deleted all
>>>>> activity and more have followed.
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>>
>>>>> *c.f. plentiful examples of the last three right here on
>>>>> RBT. Or not. That's the nature of subjective evaluation.
>>>>
>>>> A week or so ago I read a notice that both Tom Sawyer 
>>>> and Alice in
>>>> Wonderland had been blacklisted by some group or another.
>>>>
>>>> Alice for the term "evil witch" or something similar.
>>>>
>>>> As for Tom I can only assume that any reference of the 
>>>> Civil war will
>>>> soon be unmentionable in polite society.
>>>
>>> Yes, there's that.  And a greater loss, which is the 
>>> nearly complete obliteration of Huckleberry Finn, a far 
>>> superior volume to the forced and anemic Tom Sawyer.  
>>> It's among the most powerful anti racism works ever 
>>> published, but it's been banned in schools for decades.
>>
>> Hmm. I just reread it a month or so ago. I thought the 
>> portrayal of Jim was too cartoonish. I also thought the 
>> ending was weak.
>>
>> Yes, just a subjective evaluation.
> 
> Further consideration (and apologies for responding to my 
> own post):
> 
> Maybe I just engaged in a bit of "presentism" - that is, 
> judging past actions by standards of the present, which is 
> often unjust.
> 
> I don't doubt that Mark Twain's writing and his portrayal of 
> Jim was groundbreaking in his day. The fact that a black 
> slave (Jim) was shown as emotional, industrious, courageous 
> and reasonably intelligent was probably shocking and eye 
> opening to Twain's audience at the time. That's true even if 
> the portrayal had a long way to go by present standards.
> 
> I reread _Huckleberry Finn_ as sort of prep work for the 
> current novel _James_ which is, reportedly, the same story 
> told from the slave's perspective. It's coming up soon on my 
> list of books to read.
> 

Back to the issue, would you consider it appropriate for 
grammar school age children or not?

-- 
Andrew Muzi
am@yellowjersey.org
Open every day since 1 April, 1971