...but since it's real life,
it's absolutely hilarious.
"City lawmakers are scheduled to vote Tuesday on an ordinance that would prohibit nudity in most public places, a blanket ban that represents an escalation of a two-year tiff between a devoted group of men who strut their stuff through the city's famously gay Castro District and the supervisor who represents the area.
Supervisor Scott Wiener's proposal would make it illegal for a person over the age of 5 to "expose his or her genitals, perineum or anal region on any public street, sidewalk, street median, parklet or plaza" or while using public transit."
'Freedom of expression in all its forms and manifestations is a fundamental and inalienable right of all individuals. Additionally, it is an indispensable requirement for the very existence of a democratic society.'
ReplyDelete-Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Principle 1, Declaration of Principles on Freedom of Expression
'A principle is the expression of perfection, and as imperfect beings like us cannot practice perfection, we devise every moment limits of its compromise in practice.' -Mahatma Gandhi
Yeah, but his name's 'Wiener'.
DeleteAlso, the problem is that they're using sex toys on the street. That's not just "free expression," right?
DeleteIf you can, email me that article you mentioned (about having to witness various different spectacles on a bus). When you say, 'That's not just 'free expression', right?', I want to say 'Right, but so what qualification is it we want to add?'; is it a criticism? is the permission of such behavior in public an unambiguous sign of society in decline? Social boundaries are being challenged-- and yep, its a more radical form of advocacy. So maybe I'd want to say, sure, there is a line to be drawn (and plenty of Weiner's just dieng to draw them), BUT I also sort of appreciate the task of re-visiting/re-negotiating (from time to time) the questions of when, where, who, and how to draw out those boundaries. So no, its not just freedom of expression, its pretty controversial behavior, unfamiliar, discomforting, etc. but I think I rather like living in the sort of a society that is willing to tolerate being made uncomfortable from time to time (i.e. being made to revisit/re-assess appropriate standards of conduct in social interaction).
ReplyDelete