‘Obscene’ camper vans offend Brisbane wowser
I never thought I’d need a category for vehicle censorship when I started this blog, but than I never thought anyone could be offended by a camper van. Unfortunately, I was wrong. Brisbane wowser and soon-to-be protector of the moral majority, Lucy Clark, is positively outraged that she was bombarded with suggestive artwork painted on...
Drug leaflet leaves parents choking on their own outrage
Parents and newspapers are going bonkers over an educational drug pamphlet (pictured here) put out by the Sydney West Area Health Service (SWAHS). A pamphlet they say encourages drug use because it advises readers of some precautions to take should they choose to experiment with drugs. ‘It’s wrong. It shouldn’t be encouraging the kids to...
Internode and IINet slam mandatory filtering plan, will cripple broadband
It wasn’t too long back that Stephen Conroy was bragging about ISPs becoming flexible to his arguments for introducing mandatory ISP filtering. They had SEEN the LIGHT! We all knew that was a pile of horse shit. Now two of Australia’s largest ISPs, IINet and Internode, have publicly slammed the plan. John Lindsay, Carrier Relations...
X18+ cull on the horizon?
Refused Classification has an interesting snippet from Senate Estimates held May 27. In regards to the ‘emergency’ ban on pornography in certain areas of the Northern Territory, Labor Senator Trish Crossin asked whether expanding the ban to include all of the NT and the ACT had been discussed. Classification Board Director, Donald McDonald, and Assistant...
There is no censorship worth noting in Australia: Clive Hamilton
‘There is no censorship worth noting in Australia.‘ The words of former Australia Institute Executive Director, Clive Hamilton, at last nights Art Censorship debate in Sydney (video here). Clive must be losing his memory. Did he forget that recent case where those nasty chaps at David Jones tried to silence The Australia Institute’s criticism of...
Can a dead Lenny Bruce offend Sydney?
Lenny Bruce’s first Sydney performance in September 1962 didn’t go down well. Arrested after he got up on stage and declared ‘What a fucking wonderful audience,’ his future gigs at the hotel he was performing were canceled and shows organised for UNSW by soon-to-be editor of Oz Magazine, Richard Neville, were blocked by the Vice-Chancellor....
Peaceful Pill gets all clear in NZ, but not without a fight
Right To Life New Zealand (RTLNZ) and the Society for the Promotion of Community Standards are spitting chips after the Revised International Edition of Dr Philip Nitschke’s Peaceful Pill Handbook was approved by the countries OFLC providing it only be sold sealed to those over the age of eighteen. The original edition of the book...
Smoking on screen: Banned, R-rated?
Simon Chapman, a Professor in Public Health at the University of Sydney who specialises in tobacco control, warns that many of his colleagues in the health profession are seeking to have smoking in films either banned or classified R18+. He writes in Crikey: ‘The Australian Medical Association now suggests that state and federal government funding...
Art Censorship Public Forum, Sydney June 12
Sydneysiders take note. A public forum called Art Censorship: the Bigger Picture will be held on 12th June at the Museum of Contemporary Art. In the interests of stimulating some informed and thoughtful public debate, a group of highly respected speakers will take a measured look at the topic in light of the furore surrounding...
Henson’s artwork classified PG, Hetty hits the roof
It’s been a long day (work), so let’s make it quick: The controversial Bill Henson photograph that featured on an invitation to his exhibition has been rated PG by the Classification Board. David Marr writes that while a minority of the classification board thought the impact of the picture was moderate, none of the classifiers...
Beer Dwarf gets a visit from the Fun Police
This little man (or man of below average height) is causing big outrage. Alcohol ‘education’ groups and Government bureaucrats are up in arms over a dwarf pouring free alcohol into the mouths of bar patrons. They say it’s an offensive example of our binge drinking culture, but readers of News.com.au want the fun police to...
