Theos-Talk Archives (January 2005 Message tt00733)

First of all I wonder how someone could be so depraved to think the site ashumorous and also to make up a discourse about freedom of expression defending the right of cruelty through jokes or any other form to be promoted freely on the internet and claiming that censorship of cruel sites would eventually affect the freedom of expression of others. I see no more than a fallacy in your analogy. 

 

Second if you were so intelligent to recognize immediately the website was a joke when you first saw it years ago, you should consider giving some lessons in the FBI about cleverness, once some years ago they were investigating the site.

 

If you ever read any literature related to animal cruelty, vivisection etc,you would know that , such site is not for everybody a clear joke, as muchworst things with animals are happening in the world. 

 

E. L.

 

 

Below there is the copy of an article about the case:

 



 

Since December 2000, The Humane Society of the United States has received literally thousands of complaints about a "Bonsai Kitten" web site—subsequently determined to be a hoax—that describes how to stuff kittens into glass containers to warp their bodies into the shape of the container. The site's creator describes and illustrates in detail the method for abusing these animals. Most of the illustrations, which appear to have been altered with photo-editing software, depict live kittens being jammed into glass containers. 

The HSUS investigated these complaints and found that the site was a joke created by a student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.), who had registered it at his school under a false name. Encouraged by all the negative attention, the student cited his right to free speech in an attempt to keep the site online, but M.I.T. sided with the animal protection organizations and citizens who complained, and removed the site on December 22, 2000.

The following month, the site resurfaced on a new host, WEB2010.com. We contacted this company to voice our concerns, and the company removed the siteon January 17, 2001.

While we were grateful to these hosts for removing the site, history tells us that creators of offensive web sites often seek out new hosts until theyfind one that has either no User's Agreement or allows all content, no matter how offensive, permitted under the First Amendment. The creator of the Bonsai Kitten site followed this pattern, and the site is currently hosted by a new company that refuses to remove it.

The Massachusetts SPCA and the FBI initiated an investigation of the site'screator, but discovered no evidence of actual animal abuse or the sale of bonsai kitten "products," though the investigation remains active. If the creator is not e-mailing the obscene materials to an unwilling audience, violating a User's Agreement, committing the abuse depicted on site, or actually selling products involving animal cruelty, then the site is considered free speech and is protected by the First Amendment.

How You Can Help

Please do not e-mail or otherwise contact the person running the site. The negative attention he's received has fueled the posting of the site in several locations and the formation of a group of supporters. One course of action is to contact the Internet Service Provider (ISP) that hosts the site. There are some exceptions, but in most cases, ISPs have removed sites because they determined that the sites' content violated their User's Agreement.For information on how to determine the ISP that hosts a particular site, see our web page on "What You Can Do about Web Sites that Promote Animal Cruelty."

A more effective response to web sites that depict animal cruelty is to submit information about them to the "Animal Cruelty Action List." The list's goal is to coordinate the efforts of the online community through targeted legal and time-sensitive methods, so that such sites are removed quickly, thus frustrating the purpose of the sites' creators to draw attention to themselves and their site. For more information, visit the Hugs for Homeless Animals web site by clicking the link below.

The numerous complaints we have received about the Bonsai Kitten site have made us aware of the many good-intentioned people eager to make a difference. Every day animals are deliberately set on fire, beaten, tortured, drowned, dragged behind cars, stabbed, or otherwise abused. We need your help to put an end to the abuse of all animals. If you would like to become involved with issues that need immediate action, follow the link to the right to subscribe to our free weekly e-newsletter, HUMANE lines. You can start making a difference for animals in distress today!

 

http://www.hsus.org/pets/issues_affecting_our_pets/animal_abuse_and_neglect/bonsai_kitten_web_site/index.html

 

 

 


John <John@LiteracyCurriculums.com> wrote:

The website may be a joke. I certainly believe it was intended as a
joke. In fact, one version of the page, a few years ago, had a
statement buried in a remote link that it was so intended.

I believe the vast majority of visitors recognize it to be a joke.

I believe my analogy to be a valid one. I'm already seeing signs that
the Christian Right is doing more and more to prevent other points of
view from being recognized. A minister is Governor of Arkansas, and
our state is one of the states that chose to impose the
Judeo/Christian "law" about homosexuality on everyone, even to the
point of outlawing anything that remotely resembles gay marriage.

The day may come that some government units go even further and make
it against the law to promote any view that disagrees with the
pseudo-majority, and if that day comes, some of the theosophical sites
may be censored just as you wish to censor this site.

As long as we have Freedom of Speech, we have to allow that this
freedom extends to freedom for people to speak who disagree with our
points of view.

Stalin believed in Freedom of Speech, as long as it was speech that he
agreed with.

Are we going to move to that point of view that the only freedom is
for the people we agree with?

I hope not. Because the logical extension is that someone else, who
disagrees with us, may make the rules. I do not believe that the
minority should make rules for the majority, and the majority should
not make rules for the minority.

I believe this case to be a case of the small minority (percentage
wise) of people who take this site seriously (think it should be shut
down) to be trying to shut down freedom of speech for the majority
(who think the site is merely a wry commentary on society as a whole)

John

>
>The website is a cruel joke! Such sites must be censored. If you 
>consider that freedom should have no limits and we do have to accept 
>everything in the society, even the promotion of cruelty through 
>sick satires that offer torture tools to use on animals, what to say…
>
>Your clever analogy left me speechless.
>
>Erica
>
>
>--- In theos-talk@yahoogroups.com, "John" wrote:
>
>>The first time I saw this site (or one of its mirrors) a few years
>>ago, I recognized it for what it was, a satire.
>>
>>Intelligent people should be able to recognize that someone 
>
>invented
>
>>the site for satirical purposes, and enjoy it for what it is. I 
>
>know I
>
>>did, and I'm not tempted to try to manipulate my cat's appearance.
>>
>>If we censor sites like this one, just because we don't like their
>>"simulated cruelty", then what's next, someone censoring a
>>theosophical site because it doesn't agree with their personal 
>
>religion?
>
>>John
>>http://www.GodLovesEveryone.org/spiritual-dvds-every-month/
>>
>>I checked out one month's worth of DVDs and loved every minute. 
>
>And I
>
>>really appreciated the fact that they didn't try to promote just 
>
>one
>
>>point of view.
>>
>>*** previous msg ***
>>
>>Thank you Krishna for your e-mail, but it is really a bad joke and 
>>many people will believe to be truth, as for sample I believed and 
>>you too. This site stimulates cruelty toward animals, and is a 
>
>site 
>
>>that should not be online. 
>>
>>Erica
>>
>>--- In theos-talk@yahoogroups.com, "krishtar" 
>>wrote:
>>
>>>>Hi Erica
>>>>
>>>>Me and my wife were Persian Cat breeders until last year and 
>
>also 
>
>>we were aware of it in a site used to promote techniques of how to 
>>get and produce a " Bonsai Kitten". I went so disturbed and 
>>perplexed at that time ( 3 years ago) that I started posting 
>
>emails 
>
>>to many Cat Breeders authorities in USA and England and after 
>>parallel investigations we discovered that .
>>
>>>>To cut the story short the site www.bonsaikitten.com was and 
>>
>>still is a very well produced joke, always consfusing people and 
>>also FBI investigated it due to many complainments the cat-
>>associations received!
>>
>>>>The interesting is that the site also teaches how to bottle the 
>>
>>kitten, how to feed it and also forges to sell equipment and books 
>>on it. Many other countries had also imitators of this bad tasted 
>>joke.
>>
>>>>Definitely there are many sick and black-humored people in the 
>>
>>net!!!
>>
>>>>Krishtar
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> ----- Original Message ----- 
>>>> From: Erica Letzerich 
>>>> To: theos-talk@yahoogroups.com 
>>>> Sent: Thursday, January 20, 2005 7:27 AM
>>>> Subject: Re: Theos-World Re: Please Read this E-mail
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> Cruelty to Animals,
>>>>
>>>> 
>>>>
>>>> Please Copy this message and post it again after return it to 
>
>me 
>
>>with the signatures. It is disgusting the level of cruelty people 
>>can develop. 
>>
>>>> 
>>>>
>>>> A web page in which that was closed one year ago is online 
>>
>>again. We have to close it forever.
>>
>>>> 
>>>>
>>>> A Japanese in New York is trying to produce and sale cats 
>
>which 
>
>>he names "BONSAI CATS". To make it he closes the cats on bottles 
>>where the cat live all his life in permanent incarceration 
>
>receiving 
>
>>food through a tube and through another tube releasing urine and 
>>excrements. The cat end up having the shape of the bottle and 
>
>after 
>
>>is used as an unique object of decoration.
>>
>>>> 
>>>>
>>>> This is a barbarian method used in New York, China, Indonesia 
>>
>>and New Zealand. 
>>
>>>> You may see the site at: http://www.bonsaikitten.com/







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Erica Letzerich .'.






		
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