Live data from Hacker News

After 'South Park' Censorship Episode, China Deleted the Show from the Web

vice.com

71–80 of 167 posts

Re: After 'South Park' Censorship Episode, China Deleted the Show from the Web

#71
post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

God help us when South Park is helping us find our moral compass...

I don't know that I agree with your sentiment. Irreverent comedians who have achieved significant success and not really accountable to anyone are perfectly positioned to "tell it like it is" and may be the best individuals to do so. I'm glad our society embraces and can cultivate such individuals especially in this time of cancel culture.

You had me until "cancel culture"

Exactly how many irreverent comedians who achieved significant success and are not really accountable to anyone, telling it like it is, have been cancelled by the cancel culture?

Cosby, TJ Miller, Louis CK, Jeffrey Tambor, James Franco, ...? A good list of people who did morally reprehensible things of varying degrees, from illegal to merely opening their employers to civil liability, and in my mind, they should be "cancelled." Maybe you can argue some of these, I don't think so.

Azis Ansari? I don't know how tranchant his "speaking truth to power" has ever been, but he did a Netflix special this year, and I would need pretty compelling evidence to believe that's your smoking gun. I predict he'll be just fine in a few more years.

Kevin Hart? Maybe. Again, not much of a politically-motivated comedian, but getting removed as Oscar (?) host was damaging. Nonetheless, it looks like he had 5 movies/specials in 2019 and has work scheduled for 2020. Besides the car crash, I think he'll be alright.

Dan Harmon (like James Gunn) was a political hit job and didn't go anywhere.

Am I missing anyone?

Outside of e.g. #metoo, some people didn't like Dave Chappelle's recent Netflix special. I'm not a fan of him "punching down" at trans people myself, but, I don't think it's anything he hasn't said before. Nonetheless it was trending in the top five for most of last month, I think he is, and will continue to be, doing fine.

I just don't see where people attribute all this power to "cancel culture." Chik-fil-A, Nike, ..., all doing just fine despite on-going boycotts from "cancel culture."

Re: After 'South Park' Censorship Episode, China Deleted the Show from the Web

#72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The One China policy is moronic. If they keep being assholes, it is about time to give Taiwan their long overdue recognition. Hell, give them back the Security Council seat that they had until the 70s...

> Hell, give them back the Security Council seat that they had until the 70s... I'd rather prefer reforming the UN SC to get rid of the "veto" concept. It's time that the US, China and Russia have to finally be held accountable for the shit they did all over the world.

Hum... Are you aware that the UN has no intrinsic power, but is just a forum that hosts diplomatic negotiations?

What change do you expect getting rid of the veto would bring?

Re: After 'South Park' Censorship Episode, China Deleted the Show from the Web

#73

Good, good....the more the merrier. Maybe finally the world will stop cuddling with China like they did in past 3 decades and start treating them for what they really are. A tight grip censorship dictatorship that has thrown dust in the world's eyes posing as softies while behind the scenes they amassed a lot of wealth riding West blindness.

God help us when South Park is helping us find our moral compass...

uhhh.... I think they've done a better job of speaking truth to power than pretty much anybody and have shown they are quite comfortable making fun of themselves. Seems pretty moral...

Re: After 'South Park' Censorship Episode, China Deleted the Show from the Web

#75
post #60

I see lots of Anti-China sentiment. I would be very careful here into not falling into the trap of making ourselves China's "Enemy". China in its current form needs an "Enemy" to survive, without it, it has to deal with difficult questions like "censorship", and in order to survive will need to change - and that's what really scares them.

[deleted]

Re: After 'South Park' Censorship Episode, China Deleted the Show from the Web

#76

Make no mistake, China knows South Park doesn't give a fuck about this. This is about sending a very clear message to everybody else. You can be as big and well known and South Park, yet be cancelled in one second.

> You can be as big and well known and South Park

I think you’re overestimating South Park’s popularity, especially when compared to the NBA. They cancelled it because they don’t like being made fun of.

Re: After 'South Park' Censorship Episode, China Deleted the Show from the Web

#77

Good, good....the more the merrier. Maybe finally the world will stop cuddling with China like they did in past 3 decades and start treating them for what they really are. A tight grip censorship dictatorship that has thrown dust in the world's eyes posing as softies while behind the scenes they amassed a lot of wealth riding West blindness.

Agreed.

Maybe one day the world will stop cuddling U.S.A too for all of our war crimes and atrocities.

Re: After 'South Park' Censorship Episode, China Deleted the Show from the Web

#78

Earlier quoted context omitted.

National Socialism was state capitalism. The CCP's control of their corporations and conglomerates is almost like they took Speer's notebooks and followed them to the letter. It's possible that Krupp and IG Farben and Messerschmitt were able to wag the dog a little more than their Chinese equivalents, but the resemblances are striking.

If the workers can't control the means of production, it is not socialism. Socialism calls for the democracy of the workplace. What China has done is replace the authoritarian bourgeois with an authoritarian government. Just because North Korea's name is Democratic People's Republic of Korea doesn't mean it is democratic. Naming stuff their opposite doesn't make it so, but I'll admit it has been pretty effective for…

[dead]

Re: After 'South Park' Censorship Episode, China Deleted the Show from the Web

#79
post #74

I love how a single episode of a show can piss off the government of a country. Just recently Saudi Arabia banned an episode of "Patriot Act" and now this. Tyrants are really sensitive I guess.

relevant quote from pg:

> No one gets in trouble for saying that 2 + 2 is 5, or that people in Pittsburgh are ten feet tall. Such obviously false statements might be treated as jokes, or at worst as evidence of insanity, but they are not likely to make anyone mad. The statements that make people mad are the ones they worry might be believed. I suspect the statements that make people maddest are those they worry might be true.

http://www.paulgraham.com/say.html

Re: After 'South Park' Censorship Episode, China Deleted the Show from the Web

#80
post #55

All the other stuff doesn't matter I guess (nba, hollywood, apple, blizzard, etc)? But since techies love south park for some reason we suddenly care? HN are full of hypocrites. In any case, I need to go rewatch the episode with chinese translations. Watched it on hulu and CC didn't show for the chinese speaking parts :( .

Top story right now: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=21190265
Post reply on HN