Burning Books/Banning Books

We're reading Fahrenheit 451 in English. My teacher made us debate about certain topics from the book, and I was appointed to support the statement "Some books are evil and should be destroyed."

Honestly, I don't support burning, but I don't necessarily believe that all books should be made freely accessible to everyone. For example, The Anarchist Cookbook, in November 2007, a teenage boy was arrested in Philadelphia, for supposedly planning a Columbine-esque school shooting. When the police searched his belongings they found a copy of this book, several explosives, handguns, and school blueprints.

If you ask me, that's a little scary. I don't necessarily support banning of books, but I think in certain cases, control is necessary.

Well you know most people start talking about human rights and freedom of speech when they hear about banning books, but most of them also agree with banning like... pro-suicidal books.

the endless.:

Honestly, I don't support burning, but I don't necessarily believe that all books should be made freely accessible to everyone. For example, The Anarchist Cookbook, in November 2007, a teenage boy was arrested in Philadelphia, for supposedly planning a Columbine-esque school shooting. When the police searched his belongings they found a copy of this book, several explosives, handguns, and school blueprints.

Well, that's obviously an extreme case. You could also use the exapmle of The Catcher In The Rye and how it was involved with the John Lennon shooting, but now almost every high school in America teaches it. I don't think a book can make someone do something, it could possibly influence them, but I don't think their decision would be based solely on a book, like with your example. I'm not saying it was coincedence that the book was there, but I highly doubt it was the reason he was planning a school shooting, there had to have been other reasons.

So with this whole thing, I don't think a book should be banned for any reason, even if it was found with a killer, or someone planning a school shooting, or anything like that.

Omg! Fer srs?:

So with this whole thing, I don't think a book should be banned for any reason, even if it was found with a killer, or someone planning a school shooting, or anything like that.

Even if the said book brought really strong arguments in favor of suicide, racism or homicide ?

sueno?:

Even if the said book brought really strong arguments in favor of suicide, racism or homicide ?

The minority still has the right to express their opinion.

the endless.:

When the police searched his belongings they found a copy of this book, several explosives, handguns, and school blueprints.

Is that the books fault? No, it's his parents for not being aware of the things he was doing in his life. Banning the book wouldn't change anything.

Does a book tell a person to commit suidice, homocide, or be racist? No. The book did not push the person and tell them to pick up a gun and shoot someone. The individual made the decision to do so.

Kurtni Von Teese:

sueno?:

Even if the said book brought really strong arguments in favor of suicide, racism or homicide ?

The minority still has the right to express their opinion.

Isn't assisted suicide illegal in most countries?

disastrous.:

Does a book tell a person to commit suidice, homocide, or be racist? No. The book did not push the person and tell them to pick up a gun and shoot someone. The individual made the decision to do so.

Ever heard of propaganda?
I don't know how much pro-suicide material you have read -and I hope you haven't - but it usually makes suicide a great deal attractive.

disastrous.:

Does a book tell a person to commit suidice, homocide, or be racist? No. The book did not push the person and tell them to pick up a gun and shoot someone. The individual made the decision to do so.

Exactly.

sueno?:

Isn't assisted suicide illegal in most countries?

Yep, and everyone has the right to speak out against laws this disagree with. We cannot silence free speech simply because it contradicts popular opinion.

sueno?:

Ever heard of propaganda?
I don't know how much pro-suicide material you have read -and I hope you haven't - but it usually makes suicide a great deal attractive.

Propoganda isn't illegal.

Burning and Banning books is just a sad attempt at trying to 'govern' the community.

Other countries, particularly communist ones, try their best to keep the community under control and practically want them all to think and feel the same way.

Books are a great way to start thinking. Getcha' thinkin' real deep. So what's a commie leader to do? Burn 'em.

I don't believe in burning books.

But as far as censoring goes, there are some limits we just have to respect and obey.

(accidental double reply.)

Burning and banning books is just like the time before the Renaissance (pardon me, I forgot what it's called) when all the art and things were banned. It's horrible, it says that the author's opinion does not matter and I know that if anybody ever burned/banned a book that I wrote, I would get pretty shitty.

I like the idea of sections of banned books in book-stores.

Also, how do you find out whether your town has banned a book or not and what the book is?

The Renaissance was a time when the old ages started to think more clearly and actually became more envolved with art and philosophy, so it must be something else that you were thinking of.

Dasha:

Also, how do you find out whether your town has banned a book or not and what the book is?

I'd like to know the same thing if anyone knows..

I agree Kurtni Monroe. Individuals are the ones who choose actions, not books. They can influence certain people, but that doesn't mean they should be banned.

Dasha:

Burning and banning books is just like the time before the Renaissance (pardon me, I forgot what it's called) when all the art and things were banned. It's horrible, it says that the author's opinion does not matter and I know that if anybody ever burned/banned a book that I wrote, I would get pretty shitty.

I like the idea of sections of banned books in book-stores.

Also, how do you find out whether your town has banned a book or not and what the book is?

Before the Renaissance=Dark/Middle Ages.
Also, ask your local library. They should tell you what books are banned.

I don't think banning books is necessary. And burning books, in my opinion, is horrible. I like the idea of rating books like movies because if someone doesn't like a certain book, then they don't have to read it.
Whenever I hear of towns banning certain books, I always think of the movie Footloose because they banned dancing in that movie.

Oh, and at my school, every month the library showcases books that have been banned in other areas. They encourage the students to check them out. It's really cool.

Rating or burning I don't like. What happened to freaking freedom of speech. If you just don't like them, then don't read them and don't make a fuzz about it. I read a lot of adult books, and I enjoy reading ahead of my age. So ratings are stupid. of course this is my opinion. I just think that there are a lot of people in this world that are stupid and want to make everything harder for others because well... they don't have anything better to do.

Rating books/Banning them =stupidity.

I think banning/burning books is ridiculous. Yes, I can understand that some parents might not want their children reading things that aren't appropriate for their age, but that doesn't mean the books shouldn't be accesible to everyone else. Just because a book is on a shelf doesn't mean that you have to pick it up and read it.

I think that if you ban it, the more the people will try to read it! If that happened in my town (which it hasn't as far as I know) I'd completely want to read/watch/listen that thing more than before.