Quote:
Originally Posted by Nate the great
It's a shame that you are mixing up the book and the act. The 2 are not the same.
I think they should be allowed to sell this book.
I also think they should be allowed to sell Mein Kampf, but that doesn't mean I think the Holocaust was a good idea.
I also think they should be allowed to sell the political tracts of the Weathermen Underground, but that doesn't mean I think we should go blow up the government.
I also think everyone should be allowed to buy and sell guns, but that doesn't mean I think you should go kill someone.
There's a huge difference between the tool and the act. This book,by itself, does no harm. It's the act that does the harm, and it's already illegal.
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Let us not forget though that no government agency forced them to remove the book, they as a business listened to the consumer, so no rights were violated, it would be just like sending it to a publisher and having it rejected, it was a business decision, and a right one in my opinion, they won't lose much if any money over it, even with the increased publicity. I actually believe that not selling it is more protecting the author than anything, because I bet there are people that would read it, be disgusted, and lynch him.
Yes it's the act that does the harm, but I also believe that if you have a pre-disposition to this type of behavior, this type of NON-FICTION work could send someone over the edge. Could fiction do it too? Yeah, I think so, but this book was marketed as a how-to guide, not a fictional setting, so I do think that there is a HUGE difference in deciding if the author has any blame in any instance in courts if someone says "the book told me".
And if some self published book gets pulled by the corporation that was selling it due to public out-cry, I won't shed a tear. I think this is an extreme case, and not really a slippery slope....comparing this (which targets kids specifically) and the anarchists cookbook (which tells you how to build a bomb, not where to place it for maximum damage), and harry potter are all apples and oranges and bananas.
Just because you have the ability to write it, doesn't mean that anyone HAS to carry it.