I really think it should be, for the better of the community and world.

1) Last year or was it some whatever amount of time ago, was the V tech shooting. The media clams that the boy wrote some disturbing plays, amongst other signs. The question here is isn't overly violent manga or G manga the same or worse as writing about violent actions?

Before you say anything about it's their job, it's also the job of the student to write, if in english class.


2) There has been more and more crimes over the years and more and more violent crimes, serial murders and stuff. Doesn't violent media encourage these people? At the very least it certainly doesn't make them want to stop.


I'm just putting manga instead of media in the title for couple of reasons, one it's a manga website, but I'm sure you guys heard of this thing called movies. And 2 the Japanese's works have been getting out of hand, without mentioning the more crazy stuff, just something like berserk and TenTen, the stuff are already getting way too graphical.

And for those that say it's already 18+, when was the last time you saw a rampaging baby?



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Starter of Controversy.

No, I don't think so.

And no, media doesn't encourage this.
People who are mentally unstable enough to commit crimes and murder, have something wrong with them in the first place and it has nothing to do with manga or the media.

"crazy things?" Come on...
They are free to create stories and publish them.

First monitoring, then complete control?
Most of us live in democratic countries, no?

We will just go back to times and regime where literature was censored, and freedom of speech was not enforced, nor a right at all.

It won't make the world a better place.
It would only make more close-minded jerks and worse.

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If I had a fantasy self, it'd be a tentacle monster.

I read the worst of the worst. And I'm just fine!

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I don't think we can generalise. For one manga is still a very niche area (at least in England) and it's monitored better than many films or videogames which are more graphic in my opinion. Also violence is on the news everyday, not just gand fights but wars as well. Violence is a very deep-rooted part of human nature, eradicating it from media won't change that fact. After all humans were being violent towards each other long before media, think of the darek ages where they devised horrendous torture tecniques in a time when most people couldn't even read and you learn about such things in school, should we also police that?

I'm not saying that some people can become influenced by violent media but they can be just as influenced by songs or others and most people are not so easily swayed. I was watching certificated films long before the age intended and it has done nothing to increase my violent tendancies. I think things like bullying is way more influencial and we should spend less time policing media and more time actually paying attention to kids. The signs are always there if people just take the time to look.

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The pen is mightier than the sword...and considerably easier to write with.

hell no. although it is kinda ironic that the united states has that free speech thing and like all of their english adaptions are watered down. thats also why i barely ever read scanlations. i cant stand translations even if they are not edited.
but in this day and age, it should be up to only yourself to what you expose yourself to

Art of any form should not be limited, restrained or censored. Accessibility should certainly be a concern though.
i.e. its okay to have some really fucked up alternative hentai manga on sale, only have it accessible in public to only those who are old enough to purchase it.

I don't understand why everyone pins the blame on the United States for "censoring everything". At the moment, no films or books are banned, unless they are in clear violation of the law. Heck, not even 120 Days of Sodom is even edited over here.

So before whining about how we are ruining everything for you, go look at some of the "For the children"-esque laws England has been trying to push lately. Banning 'extreme' porn?

Sorry, but I'm not buying it. Until the day comes when American legislators become as uptight as you guys are about your manga and pr0n, I'm just going to sit back and lol everytime someone throws an insult towards my country for being 'closed-minded'.

(In before someone mention the Chris case of last year, where someone infamously remarked that just because the person/child doesn't exist, doesn't mean she isn't a victim. *facepalm*)

looking at most of the post, the general opinion is no, and it is normal to not want to have censorship. But don't we have to draw the line somewhere.

While I was working on a paper for college on this kind of stuff, I came across some really disturbing facts. I'm not gonna write everything down, but let's just say a lot of the serial killers had some had influence from violent media, but most were heavily involved in pornography. You know the kind I'm talking about.

I know freedom of expression is a privilege, but shouldn't there be some sort of guideline on what you can publish. After all this is not a debate on evolution, where the result have no harm on a person's life. This particular issue could lead to death.



unfortunately not everyone can. And if there are a few that can't were on the fence or had no desire to do anything crazy before hand and only had fantasies after reading/watching. Well, it could be prevented with some limit.

as to the comment above, I think America can really do with some censorship, they really don't need anymore death. I mean the deaths in America compare to the soldiers in the middle east is a joke.

One almost wonders who hates Americans more, the Americans or the middle east people. In the east or back home.



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Starter of Controversy.

@lemondude you say that serial killers had influence from violent media, but maybe all that means is that violent people like violent media, not that the media made them violent. Also you say draw a line somewhere, but, if one thing is censored then it will lead to another and another until we start burning all the books. It is general illogical to blame violence on new media since humans have been violent since our origin. People who say that the past was less violent ignore the fact that violence was indeed being perpetrated, it just wasn't a big deal. I mean not that long ago if you were a violent person then it was perfectly acceptable to go take it out on what ever minority group you felt like.

Vikings
Witch burnings
Crusades
Nero
Jack the Ripper
you name the time period and someone can name a killer, small and large scale. And I doubt they were reading manga .
Humans are naturally volient, just as we are naturally compassionate. These people are either unbalance or can't control their urges, or both. Personally I think we are slightly more peaceful then we have ever been, especially when you acknowledge our larger population. No amount of media can change these facts.

Oh, and censorship is baaaaaaaaad.

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Do you have any statistics, or are you just saying that because you remember that, and are not familiar with what came before?

And I don't mean just school shootings, but a bigger picture of crime statistics. My belief, for one, is, that those killings attract the media, but are statistically insignificant. In countries like my own Russia people, including lost teenagers, commit gruesome sh*t in levels far exceeding that of the better-off countries. It simply doesn't make the headlines.

So I'm for fighting serious problems, not flashy ones.

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This must be the most one-sided poll on MU ever.



But well, I agree to everything that has been said here. And let me add my two cents.

Example #1, Japan. Eroguro mangas sell, so obviously they have quite a niche, just look at how many titles are out there compared to...dunno, slice of life or josei? Wouldn't that mean Japan should be a country full of rampart murderers?

Example #2: Young man in a village high up in the mountains, doesn't know how to read, never saw a book of any kind, he sheep-herded all his life, rapes an old woman next to his house.

See any links? The violent media isn't the cause of all the crimes nowadays. As people said here before, things like these happened ever since we climbed down from the trees and stopped being hairy monkeys. Or not.


And come on... Berserk and Tenjou Tenge?...

OP is so alone.

A lot of serial killers were found to have refrigerators in their homes. Does that mean refrigerators cause people to murder?

Correlation does not imply causation.

I highly, highly doubt that all the deaths in America are due to its violent media alone.

For one, when you compare Japan, which has a much lower murder/rape rate to the US, you do realise two things:

Many murders in the US seem to stem from a lack of cultural understanding/racially motivated.

In Japan, where 99% of the country is homogeneous, you get the idea that the entire country is on the same wavelength. They all pretty much have the same background, save for the tiny minority of foreigners living there.

America is what some people call a 'melting pot' (which is why I don't understand the assertion that America is a 'closed-minded' country) I'd say that there is quite a bit of conflict between ethnicities that hate each other, notably in the form of gang violence.

~~~

Again, serial killers often have some serious mental problems, and I can understand why some people want to ban porn. (And CP is banned for a reason.)

However! What some people do should not influence what the government decides is appropriate for a mass of over 300 million people in our country. That isn't right. America does have issues, but I am almost shocked by how much people don't realise that the media plays a big part in blowing every issue out of proportion.

I know someone is going to bring up "but rape/murder/kidnapping is on the rise in America!"

Re-word it: "Coverage of murder/kidnapping/rape is on the rise!"

People want something they can all mutually agree on. And what most Americans agree on is that murder is bad and kidnapping is bad. So much for diversity, if our media does not even really focus on more positive things- is it any wonder people think our country is so, so violent?

IF you're implying that a mentally ill cannot/should not own porn, then I feel very offended, as I've met some pretty messed-up people who are able to keep to themselves, save for occasionally yelling at someone. (I might continue this later, I just woke up lol!)