Quote:
Originally Posted by anamardoll
Whether it is or not isn't the point. The announcement was in favor of the purge (comparing erotica to Orwell with the implication that obviously the one is less valuable than the other and won't be missed) and there are no announced plans (that I know of) to dump Paypal for an alternative. (Of which there are legion.)
|
Check their newsletter they sent this morning... they are doing the best they can to fight it. They are also looking for help in their fight, so read up and take part if you wish to make your voice known in anti-censorship land.
Personally I find it pretty worrisome, even though I am not in the target group, nor am I a reader of the targeted group.
From their email:
Quote:
THE PROBLEM:
PayPal is asking us to censor legal fiction. Regardless of how one views topics of rape, bestiality and incest, these topics are pervasive in mainstream fiction. We believe this crackdown is really targeting erotica writers. This is unfair and it marks a slippery slope. We don't want credit card companies or financial institutions telling our authors what they can write and what readers can read. Fiction is fantasy. It's not real. It's legal.
|
One of my characters, well several, rebel against their culture's gods. How long before I am target for that? Where is the line? Censorship is a hard line to walk, and while some may or may not be needed, who gets to make the call?
Personally, I think Smashwords should be able to make the call on what they do and do not sell in this case. Just like Walmart made the call about music, which might be stronger then some would like, its still their store, their business and their call.
If the payment services are behind this, then no store can make that call either way.
/rant.