This Is our Village

Saturday, February 27, 2010

PUBLICATION GUIDLINES - ANOTHER VIEW

Hi Randall,
The article of which you speak is simply one more result of failure to "fact check". I have raised this issue in the past, and I have been consistently ignored.



However I believe we are venturing upon very dangerous ground in raising the idea of Censorship of our UCO Press or any other means of expression; private or otherwise.

Let's look at just two problems in the current UCO Reporter:


1) Frank Cornish regular column "mysteriously" vanishes.


2) Myron’s Musings, what can be said!


I have always believed that the UCO Reporter was naught but a UCO House organ; highly arbitrary rules are applied as regards what gets published and what gets rejected.


In doing your research, don't forget the part about how many fought and died to secure the rights of Assembly, Redress of Grievance and yes Freedom of the Press. Tamper not with a fundamental pillar of the American superstructure.


There is an advertisement in the UCO Reporter implying that if we do not agree with one of the Candidates; we are "The Enemy" and we are “At War” How far may we expect that line of thinking to take us; I am not “At War” with any save, by definition, those that would deny me my Constitutional rights?


Finally, a thought from recent History.


as the Czarist Russian Government was disintegrating; Vladimir Ilyich Lenin was speeding in a railway car from Paris by route circuitous, to Moscow, issuing directive to his “revolutionary guards”: the following may prove instructive:


"The government is tottering. We must deal it the deathblow at any cost. To delay action is the same as death." The means of communication-the telegraph office, the telephone exchange, and the radio gear on the cruiser Aurora, the telephones at the Winter Palace-were ordered seized as a priority. The Military-Revolutionary Committee moved swiftly to take over printing plants, too. To hold the means of communication denied them to enemies.”


We all know the horror that ensued from that episode; some 75 years of Communist suppression.


The UCO Reporter needs to be freed from undue censorial suppression; arbitrary rejection of articles, and the deleterious effect of dilettante leadership.


Randall; please think long and hard before picking up the scimitar of censorship, we are not “the enemy”.


Dave Israel

3 comments:

  1. Dave,
    "The pen is mightier than the sword" (or scimitar, to use your veracular), but do we always need to draw blood in order to make our point clear? (by the way, I cut myself shaving today, so I don't want to think about picking up a sword)Can't we use reason to support our position on any matter?
    I guess the answer is, if our position is important enough, and all attempts at reason have been exhausted, then ends, therefore justify the means? You are so much more knowledgeable and worldly than I, so I guess I'll just have to be satisfied as a hopeful optimist with a side order of healthy realism.

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  2. Hi Randall,
    February 27, 2010 12:57 PM,

    I did not think my Post was unreasonable, I felt the need to raise a caution flag regarding censorship of any means of expression; even, by the way, campaign flyers.

    As I stated, I am not at war with anyone, perhaps that is my greatest mistake?

    Dave Israel

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  3. Hi Dave,
    You misunderstood my comment. I found your response quite reasonable and as always, very informative. Thanks to you, I keep a shortcut to an online dictionary so that I can quickly get the full gist of all your communications.
    I don't like censorship. People are entitled to their opinions. I just don't like to see people intentionally hurting other people. Truth isn't always pleasant, but it's the best friend we've got. If you think I would put myself in a position of determining what is acceptable for print in the Reporter, I'd have to have to have years of training and experience to do so, and I possess neither. I spotted a legal opinion (from a non-attorney) which was 'bad law', a legal opinion was gotten, and a retraction must be made in the next issue. My concern was for Boards which may have attempted to make such self-help remedies Association policy after reading the Reporter. I was concerned with resulting lawsuits.

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