IP: Re: IP: Banned French Book Online

[Dave Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>]

Date: Sun, 28 Jan 1996 13:24:12 -0500
To: Dave Farber <farber () central cis upenn edu>
From: rjs () rpcp mit edu (Richard Jay Solomon)


I can't imagine why they care? The dumbest thing a censor can do is
announce to the world the existence (& location) of forbidden information.
Publishers used to bribe to get their books "banned in Boston."


Margaret Thatcher had "The Spycatcher" banned in England because it
documented how MI6 tapped the telephones of Labor P.M.'s, but she couldn't
ban it in Scotland or Wales or Calais, so Brits took the train or boat to
the border, bought the book and read on the way home in public. Now
everyone knew the British government tapped telephones of rival
politicians. Big deal.


How about an online business listing all banned information and where you
shouldn't go to get it? Isn't that what the porno filters _really_ do?


Richard