4 replies to this topic

[Comadrin]

I posted this in the Friendly Winter forums, since that is where I found the following. At the bottom of the scanlation of chapter 25 there is a logo with a pair of scissors cutting a drawing pen nib in half, along with the words:

NO CUT
We say NO to
Korea Communications
Standards Commission's
proposed designation
of webtoons as 'contents
that may be harmful to
minors'.

Sorry, I couldn't cut it from the page, as the whole page was a jpeg. I thought this was definitely a subject worth having a discussion topic on, although the administrators may want to move it from the TFW forums.

I think it would be a sign of authoritarian/totalitarian type muzzling of the web/internet to categorize ALL webtoons this way. The webtoons that I have been following are not for small children (who would be confused by the concepts presented and bored since they are more about thoughts and emotions than actions), but none of them, from Dr. Frost to TFW are about smut, rape, gore, or any of the things norally associated with harm to minors. I am sure there are webtoons out there that would fit these categories, but to paint all of them with the same brush is ridiculous. Is it perhaps because several of these webtoons challenge cultural norms as seems to be the case in The Friendly Winter?

I would love to hear from anyone who has more information on this proposed designation and how it is to be implemented. While I don't propose that children under ten should be exposed to hentai and all the fetishes embodied in so much of it, I really hate blanket censorship and all the stifling of creativity that goes into it.

[Solipsist]

"Events do not have meanings. Events are events, and meanings are thoughts."

Going by that logic, claiming that any content given to a certain demographic is flawed because its depiction may challenge the viewer in a "negative" way, in my opinion, is bullocks. Why do people keep thinking that content needs to be locked down? Children can handle anything given the opportunity, and I am here talking especially on the taboo on exposure of sex before minors; which, again, I believe is complete bullcrap. There are children which start to fap at the age of 10, or even below that mark; trying to protect the "innocence" of a child is nothing short of authoritarian dictatorship. The same can be told about violent mediums, thinking that children will go berserk because of stuff like that only motivates the opinion that the parents are obsolete as much as the authoritarian system which locks down everything, because they do not serve as a role model to get any life tools and information from, the most popular feedback eventually boils down to : "WE must tell them how to think, indoctrination is our guide. Ignorance before authority is our pal. Teach axioms as a common-conception; all hail the system." (You may have guessed by now that I am a lil' Anarchist with a few beefs unsettled.)

I somehow came to ask my parents about sex when I was about 6, they gave me a book to read while explaining the business to me. I shrugged it off after we finished talking about it as a boring occupation which holds no interest to a young mind, and why would it be? When I saw people kissing on TV I went : "This is disgusting" instead of : "I AM SO CONFUSED WHAT IS THIS I DON'T EVEN... ANARCHY! ANARCHY!"; just like that, I never even knew what hentai or porn was until I was about 12~14 since I was never had a reason to be interested in it. I played "gorey" games like Diablo 2 when I was about 8, sure it gave me nightmares which made me stop playing it for a while until I figured I want to conquer the game, but that's life for you; it is not wrapped in diaphanous sugar paper. People ban certain genres for the most ignorant of reasons it sometimes pisses me off.

And all of this rant of a comment boils down to the free access of the internet, because...How can you really lock the internet? I can understand parenting tools; but a government plan? What the fuck?
It would be interesting to hear more about these plans, I heard all sort of government related bans and hyperbolic prosecution measures on all sort of things; but not quite on something like web toons...Think what would happen if anyone would claim that Newgrounds or 4chan need to shut down for that purpose. <: That would be a lung buster.

Edited by Solipsist, 03 November 2012 - 04:10 PM.

[tallrice_]

This happened a while ago, so you see these 'No Cut' banners in a number of webtoons. I believe that the bill never passed, in the end. So the storm blew over. I don't really know much more about it, but I'd be interested in hearing more about the exact measures that were proposed as well!

[Passerby]

TFW wasn't subjected to this law, but there were other webtoons that did. That logo you saw was a gesture of solidarity from webtoon & manwha authors in general who were against the enforcement of such a law, and thankfully, the authorities backed down and the law was never enacted.

[Solipsist]

If such a thing would had been allowed to pass, surely such a law would cause a catastrophic chain reaction against free speech; once you take one thing down you have a legitimized reason to compare the other case to the previous, it is even done in the court of 'justice', when one wants to compare or contrast the current case and its claims against or pro any side of the prosecution or defendant; they are allowed to use previous ruling of cases as a form of retroactive evidence. It's like saying : "They took one show down due to religious reasons, that means we have a legit reason to demand ourselves to take down shows which offend us culturally or religiously!"

But that's people for you, always trying to be offended from someone or something; always being upset with the symptom rather the cause. (Like blaming drugs for one' state rather take a poke at the depression of the individual that lead em' to drugs)

Edited by Solipsist, 04 November 2012 - 06:24 AM.