We are developing the social individualist meta-context for the future. From the very serious to the extremely frivolous... lets see what is on the mind of the Samizdata people.

Samizdata, derived from Samizdat /n. - a system of clandestine publication of banned literature in the USSR [Russ.,= self-publishing house]

Samizdata quote of the day

We work hard to create a community everyone can enjoy and which also enables people to express different opinions. This can be a challenge because what’s OK in one country can be offensive elsewhere. This video – which is widely available on the Web – is clearly within our guidelines and so will stay on YouTube

YouTube Official Statement. Bravo YouTube!

19 comments to Samizdata quote of the day

  • Brave words. Really. But, let’s hope they manage to make them stick.

  • Alisa

    I don’t see what’s so brave about this. There is (yet) no law in the US that can make Google take that video off it’s US website, so they didn’t. They did take it off in countries where such laws exist.

  • Regional

    In Boganstan Utube pulled a video of an act at the CFMEU Conference that damaged Labor’s attack on Tony Abbott, gutless.

  • PersonFromPorlock

    [W]hat’s OK in one country can be offensive elsewhere. This video… is clearly within our guidelines….

    As in the joke, they’ve already decided what they are, they’re just haggling over the price now.

  • JohnB

    It is interesting to extrapolate the present into the future.

    Under duress the West will have to draw a line at some stage (or be swamped by medieval blind obedience and totalitarian enforcement).

    The danger may be that in order to draw that line the West will have to take on some of the mechanisms of totalitarianism.

    Oh, sorry. That’s already here. But I guess we ain’t seen nuthin’ yet.

  • Regional

    JohnB,
    The Boganstan Labor Government is going to raise the price of Chateau Collapsible from $10 to $40 to stop binge drinking, never mind the people on restricted incomes who enjoy a glass of wine

  • 'Nuke' Gray

    Minority Government doesn’t get much done, but it sure is good theatre! Our one-seat government is doing all it can to hang on to power, except govern responsibly!

  • The Jannie

    Yet another predictable reaction. If they hadn’t created all that fuss I might not have noticed the film’s existence and I might not made a point of watching it . . .

  • Alisa

    Personally I have very mixed feelings about Google: on the one hand, it provides a service that over the years I came to see as nothing less than vital, in an entirely private and independent manner; but on the other hand its founders’ philosophy is clearly progressive – either that, or it is not a philosophy at all, but rather they are driven by pure greed, “untainted” by any kind of morality whatsoever.

  • Rob

    Hope they have very good security, because the odds that ROPers will carry out some sort of attack on them are reasonable high, and they must know that the US establishment, from the POTUS down, will blame Google and not the ROPers.

  • Alisa

    You have a point, Rob – maybe they are brave after all.

  • MakajazMonkee

    Maybe google should be nominated for an Islamophobia Award! 🙂

    http://www.ihrc.org.uk/islamophobia/

    You can troll them and Nominate here

    http://www.ihrc.org.uk/islamophobia/suggest.php

    Mine was Me, because Islamic “Human RightS” is the most fecking hysterical expression I’ve heard all year

    I would take one of these over anything from the Nobel commitee any day of the week!

  • Paul Marks

    No doubt the political opinions of the top people at Google are vile – that is my default assumption (so much so that I was actually shocked that the opinions of the top person at Amazon were not vile).

    However, in this case they have done a good thing (for whatever motive). So I agree with Perry.

    Bravo!

  • Sam Duncan

    From the linked Telegraph article:

    Thousands of Muslims have pledged a series of protests against Google HQ for a “hateful and offensive” anti-Islam video, saying they now live in an “age of mockery”.

    Yes, you do. Get used to it. The rest of us had to.

  • Julie near Chicago

    Well, my opinion is that Google is amoral. They go along to get along…e.g. in China…although there is a legitimate argument about playing along with the Chinese regime. Personally I’ve always been very much of the opinion that one does not deal with murderers, torturers, slavers. Would one deal with Al Capone?

    Even aside from the really nasty stuff as above…would one knowingly buy stolen stuff out of the back of a truck?

    On the other hand, I don’t think a company like Google has a big problem with the U.S. government.

    And Google has had all sorts of interesting creatures on the Board, such as AlBore.

    Summary: I prefer to avoid Google wherever possible. (Many thanks to Laird for the help there. I’m now using Ixquick for searches. With the Proxy feature.) I do watch UT…but only watch, and once in a very great while sign on long enough to comment, then immediately sign off again.

  • Julie near Chicago

    D-UH!!! (Smacks self upside the head)

    You folks (Paul, Alisa, Perry) are talking about Google’s bravery in going up against the Islamocreeps! Of course. And you’re absolutely right. On that score, cheers for Google! A little spirit of the old America still lives on, I guess. And if it is motivated by the urge to make a buck, so what?

    I’m pretty fixated on the Government aspect of things…so I was thinking in terms of Google’s “bravery” in telling the U.S. Govt. to go soak its head.

    Color me dense….

  • Julie near Chicago

    Heavens! Two smites in a row!

  • Dave Walker

    A commenter on a article covering the same story over at Ars Technica says what I would, and a little better – so I’m just going to be lazy and link to it:

    http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2012/10/10000-uk-protestors-demand-google-censor-anti-islam-video/?comments=1&post=23381191#comment-23381191