Amazon Censorship Expands

[elcreative]

I thought Germany and France were democracies... their banning of holocaust deniers includes banning of their books...

[eppythacher]

Maybe a list of democracies that bans books? Not sure if the below countries are democratic at the time of banning. From http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...by_governments

American Psycho Bret Easton Ellis Fiction Novel Sale and Purchase banned in the Australian State of Queensland. Sale restricted to persons at least 18 years old in the other Australian states.[10]

A Spoon on Earth Hyeon Gi-yeong Novel Banned for distribution within the South Korean military as one of 23 books banned there beginning on Aug 1, 2008.[15]

Borstal Boy Brendan Behan Autobiographical Novel Banned in Ireland in 1958. The Irish Censorship of Publications Board was not obliged to reveal its reason but it is believed that it was rejected for its critique of Irish republicanism and the Catholic Church, and its depiction of adolescent sexuality. It was banned in Australia and New Zealand shortly after. It was allowed to be published in New Zealand in 1963.[17]

Brave New World Aldous Huxley Novel Banned in Ireland in 1932, due to alleged references of sexual promiscuity.[18] Burger's Daughter Nadine Gordimer Novel Banned in South Africa in July, 1979 for going against the government's racial policies; the ban was reversed in October of the same year.[13]

Candide Voltaire Novel Seized by US Customs in 1930 for obscenity.[19]

The Country Girls Edna O'Brien Novel Banned by Ireland's censorship board in 1960 for its explicit sexual content.[20][21]

The Death of Lorca Ian Gibson Biography, True crime Banned briefly in Spain.[24]

Droll Stories Honoré de Balzac Banned for obscene material of a sexual nature in Canada in 1914 and Ireland in 1953, the ban was lifted in Ireland in 1967.[28][29]

Fanny Hill or Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure John Cleland Novel Banned in the U.S.A. in 1821 for obscenity, then again in 1963. This was the last book ever banned in the U.S.A.[9] See also Memoirs v. Massachusetts.
(wow, I really don’t know my book banning history, not sure if my argument is still valid in terms of democracies thinking it’s a good idea to ban books. They seem to ban them then reverse their decisions?)

The Grapes of Wrath John Steinbeck Novel Was temporarily banned in many places in the US. In the region of California in which it was partially set, it was banned because it made the residents of this region look bad.[34]

How to make disposable silencers Unknown How to An example of a class of books banned in Australia that "promote, incite or instruct in matters of crime or violence".[37][38]

Howl Allen Ginsberg Poem Copies of the first edition seized by San Francisco Customs for obscenity in March 1957; after trial, obscenity charges were dismissed.[39]

Jæger – i krig med eliten Thomas Rathsack Autobiography Danish Military tried to ban the book Sept. 2009 for National Security reasons; Court rejected ban as book was already leaked in press and on internet.[47]

Lady Chatterley's Lover D. H. Lawrence Novel Temporarily banned in the United States and the United Kingdom for violation of obscenity laws; both bans were lifted in 1959 and 1960, respectively.[29] Temporarily banned in Australia.[49]

Lolita Vladimir Nabokov Novel French officials banned it for being "obscene," as did the United Kingdom, Argentina, New Zealand (uncensored 1964) and South Africa.[53]

The Lonely Girl Edna O'Brien Novel Banned in Ireland in 1962 after Archbishop John Charles McQuaid complained personally to Justice Minister Charles Haughey that it "was particularly bad".[21]

Naked Lunch William S. Burroughs Novel Banned by Boston courts in 1962 for obscenity, but that decision was reversed in 1966 by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court.[58]

Operation Dark Heart Army Reserve Lt. Col. Anthony Shaffer Memoir On September 2010 the U.S. Department of Defense overrode the Army's January approval for publication. The DoD then purchased and destroyed all 9,500 first edition copies citing concerns that it contained classified information which could damage the integrity of U.S. National Security. The publisher, St. Martin's Press,[63] in conjunction with the DoD created a censored second edition; which contains blackened out words, lines, paragraphs, and even portions of the index.[64]

The Peaceful Pill Handbook Philip Nitschke and Fiona Stewart Instructional manual on euthanasia Initially banned in New Zealand by Office of Film & Literature Classification since it was deemed to be objectionable.[65] In May 2008 it was allowed for sale if sealed and an indication of the censorship classification was displayed. The book was initially restricted in Australia:[66] after review the 2007 edition was banned outright.[38][67][68]

Spycatcher Peter Wright Autobiography Banned in the U.K 1985-1988 for revealing secrets. Wright was a former MI5 intelligence officer and his book was banned before it was even published in 1987.[75][76]

Suicide mode d'emploi Claude Guillon Essay This book, reviewing recipes for committing suicide, was the cause of a scandal in France in the 1980s, resulting in the enactment of a law prohibiting provocation to commit suicide and propaganda or advertisement of products, objects or methods for committing suicide.[77] Subsequent reprints were thus illegal. The book was cited by name in the debates of the French National Assembly when examining the bill.[78]

Tropic of Cancer Henry Miller Novel (fictionalized memoir) Banned in the U.S.A in the 1930s until the early 1960s, seized by US Customs for sexually explicit content and vulgarity. The rest of Miller's work was also banned by the United States.[81] Also banned in South Africa until the late 1980s.[citation needed]

Ulysses James Joyce Novel Banned in U.K during the 1930s and in Australia during the 1930s and 1940s.[citation needed] Challenged and temporarily banned in the U.S.A for its sexual content. In 1933 the ban was overturned in United States v. One Book Called Ulysses.[83] Uncle Tom's Cabin Harriet Beecher Stowe Novel Banned in the Southern United States during the Civil War due to its anti-slavery content. In 1852, Uncle Tom's Cabin was banned in Russia under the reign of Nicholas I due to the idea of equality it presented, and for its "undermining religious ideals."[13]

Uten en tråd Jens Bjørneboe Novel Published in 1966, banned in Norway for its explicit sexual content. The ban was later lifted.[citation needed]

The Well of Loneliness Radclyffe Hall Novel Banned in the U.K in 1928 for its lesbian theme, republished in 1949.[87]

Well I never realized the amount of books the US and Ireland have banned. To me the worst on the list was the Grapes of Wrath.

[Redcard]

The US Government has been one of the biggest banners of books world wide. We rival islamic fascists and toltaltarian governments on that front. It was only very recently that book banning became an affront to freedom.

Also, the internet has exposed a lot of the items that used to go on. The small town where I grew up banned Dungeons and Dragons and fantasy books containing magic for a long time. Now, they dare not, and the big stores are all mega conglomerates anyway.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Redcard

The US Government has been one of the biggest banners of books world wide. We rival islamic fascists and toltaltarian governments on that front. It was only very recently that book banning became an affront to freedom.
.

Do you have data/references to back that up? Links? Studies?

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by Redcard

The US Government has been one of the biggest banners of books world wide. We rival islamic fascists and toltaltarian governments on that front. It was only very recently that book banning became an affront to freedom.

Also, the internet has exposed a lot of the items that used to go on. The small town where I grew up banned Dungeons and Dragons and fantasy books containing magic for a long time. Now, they dare not, and the big stores are all mega conglomerates anyway.

I recall all the hoopla over Dungeons and Dragons. It was compared to devil-worship, second in evil intent only to Proctor and Gamble's old logo their board of devil-worshiping directors dreamed up (according to the myth-makers) in one of their Satanic board meetings.

[Elfwreck]

Originally Posted by kennyc

Do you have data/references to back that up? Links? Studies?

I suspect that, objectively, the US has banned more books than any other country, because we probably *have* more books, and more government-supported libraries, than any other country. (Consider: every public school library is a government project; refusing to carry a book because of "offensive" content, rather than just lack of appeal to the age group, is a form of censorship.)

More libraries, more publishers, more bookstores = more bannings. I don't think we're more restrictive than, for example, Islamic countries; I think they haven't banned as many specific books as just not bothered to figure out how to bring them in.

Harlequin romances might be banned in many parts of the world--except that they're just not published in those languages.

[kennyc]

Originally Posted by Elfwreck

I suspect that, objectively, the US has banned more books than any other country,...

That's why I'm asking for references. It sounds very anecdotal to me.

[jamthecat]

Originally Posted by HarryT

I believe you'll find that Amazon can drop books from its catalogue (sic) purely on a whim if they wish to do so. What law do you think "obliges" them to have clear content guidelines?

Harry, if Amazon entered into an agreement to sell a book and did so for three years, then suddenly dropped the book "on a whim", it's in violation of that agreement...or don't you think corporations are obligated to keep their promises?

[jamthecat]

Originally Posted by Andrew H.

Amazon didn't violate their contract; they did not promise to carry your book.

I don't get your logic. If Amazon did not promise to carry my book, then why did they do so for over three years? Their action in posting the book indicates agreement to carry it, as is. Monies paid for the book's sales indicate agreement to sell the book, as is. Shipping the book to various customers around the world indicates agreement to provide the book, as is. How in any form of logic does that not mean they did not promise to carry my book? Even if you're NOT a Vulcan, this is illogical.

[jamthecat]

Originally Posted by screwballl

WHO CARES??

Amazon is a private business that has every right to sell or NOT sell anything they want to. This is not the local government funded library, it is a private business that can do things how they want. If they want to allow something, then remove it, then allow it, then remove it, who cares that is their choice. We do not tell you how to live your life, so don't expect to be able tell someone else how to run theirs.

I guess contracts mean nothing, be they implied, imprinted or written in indelible ink. Amazon's a private company that can do as it likes. And I'm sure you would not mind your bank feeling the same way about your mortgage or car loan or credit card agreement. They can change the rate ANY time they please and the contract be damned. Right.

[The Terminator]

They are a private company they can do what ever they want

[DMSmillie]

But Amazon's contract terms include the proviso that they can choose to list or delist a book at any time without being required to provide a reason. I don't like the fact that they do so, but it's no violation of their contract when they do.

[jamthecat]

Originally Posted by Nyssa

I have mixed feelings on this one. I agree that Amazon does have a right to choose what it will sell and what it will not, however, the rules must be in place before hand, if that is what will be used to "drop" a client. I also agree with the person who posted that the book should have been rejected in the first place, if Amazon knew there was a chance it would cause an issue. (how could they not know.)

As to the author of the book - What were you thinking!?! You really couldn't have come up with a better, less offensive title for the book? I, personally, would stay away from any book (regardless of genre) with the word "rape" in the title.

The publisher actually DID ask me to change the title. I thought about it but could not come up with one that was any better or even as good. So he agreed to print it under that title. And Amazon agreed to sell it under that title. And they did so for over three years. So...the point, while understandable, is moot.

One thing...there are a number of written works with "rape" in the title that I would hope you won't shy away from. Like "The Rape of Nanking," about Japan's annihilation of Nanking, China a few years before Pearl Harbor. Or "The Rape of Lucretia", which is a narrative poem by William Shakespeare about how a woman's rape and suicide inspired a revolt that lead to the founding of the Roman Republic. The word is not bad; it's that action that's vile.

[CWatkinsNash]

Originally Posted by DMSmillie

But Amazon's contract terms include the proviso that they can choose to list or delist a book at any time without being required to provide a reason. I don't like the fact that they do so, but it's no violation of their contract when they do.

Precisely. They spell it out pretty clearly that they can pull any item at any time without notice and for any reason. They can also change the terms that determine what content is acceptable at any time and pull items that are affected by the change. It's in all of their sales agreements.

I don't like it, but it's not a contract violation. Carrying an item for three years does not change anything.

[jamthecat]

Originally Posted by DMSmillie

But Amazon's contract terms include the proviso that they can choose to list or delist a book at any time without being required to provide a reason. I don't like the fact that they do so, but it's no violation of their contract when they do.

While true in the strictest legal sense, it's not true morally, nor does it work within Amazon's publicly-stated philosophy that they want to have "EVERY book ever printed available." And that's an actual quote from Russ Grandinetti, the head of content for Kindle...and has, thus far, been shown to be an absolute lie. Even in the strictest legal sense of the word.