OK to remove poster from public bulletin board you disagree with, or not?

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OK, we have a debate on another thread, where many people think it’s okay to remove a poster that they think will lead people astray spiritually. In this case, it was for a course on astral travel. It could very well be something else, such as a pro-choice rally, Lesbian support group, Since it was a little derailing the thread, I’m starting a separate thread.

My argument was that it is wrong because in a Free Country such as the United States, a public bulletin board should be a forum for all points of view, and that there should be a certain civic responsibility to tolerate opposing points of view, otherwise the whole system would break down, with people ripping down posters advertising things they don’t like.

Others on the thread stated that they were serving a higher good by saving people from being led astray by a class in astral travel, which is occult and evil.

So, what is right?
 
I think you’ll get mostly opinions, rather than a definitive answer, if there even is one at all about this particular topic.

My opinion is that if the bulletin boards isn’t yours, isn’t yours to control, and what is on the bulletin board is not intrinsically evil (the poster may be advertising something evil or immoral, but the poster itself is not intrinsically evil) , the proper civic behavior is to leave the poster alone.

A certain amount of tolerance for opposing points of view is what make a free, civil society exist, otherwise it could very easily degenerate into anarchy (no, not an anarchy that refers to no government, an anarchy in which people don’t tolerate anything at all which they don’t like. There are people who believe everything we do as Catholics is wrong. If you’d put up a poster for a retreat, or a meeting, or something related to the Faith, how would you like it if someone who believes we’re wrong would tear it down to keep people from being led “astray”?)
 
I kind of get the feeling with community bulletin boards that anything goes. It’s not like someone paid to post something in that space. If someone wanted to put up a new bulletin but there was no room, I think they can put it up over someone else’s or if someone saw a bulletin and wanted more information, they can just take the whole bulletin. I don’t think there was anything wrong with removing something that you think is objectionable.
 
As said, if the board isn’t yours then no… However, there is nothing stopping you from posting up your own flyers.

If it’s posted against the rules of the board, I see no problem in saving time for others and removing it though.
(IE: There was one on a board that clearly said “PUSH PINS ONLY. STAPLED POSTERS WILL AUTOMATICALLY BE REMOVED” so I saved them time and pulled out the staples. Ironically, the poster fell)

Oh, as for covering over the post… Ironically, most Bulletin boards will have several layers so if there is no open space, i see no problem in covering it up with another poster.
 
CatholicCid said:
If it’s posted against the rules of the board, I see no problem in saving time for others and removing it though.
(IE: There was one on a board that clearly said “PUSH PINS ONLY. STAPLED POSTERS WILL AUTOMATICALLY BE REMOVED” so I saved them time and pulled out the staples. Ironically, the poster fell)
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LITTERER!

😉
 
Yes, I think that we should remember how we, as Catholics, would want to be treated. Alot of people think we are a big cult, or an intolerant, oppresive patriarchal system. We also wouldn’t like it if someone ripped our posters down.

I think in a democracy, everyone needs to be committed to religious tolerance and freedom of expression, which neccessarily means that it has to include different points of view.

I agree, sometimes you need to rearrange posters on bulletin boards, and share thumbtacks. We have one at our post office, and I’ve done some rearranging at times.
 
Sailboat said:
Yes, I think that we should remember how we, as Catholics, would want to be treated. Alot of people think we are a big cult, or an intolerant, oppresive patriarchal system. We also wouldn’t like it if someone ripped our posters down.

I think in a democracy, everyone needs to be committed to religious tolerance and freedom of expression, which neccessarily means that it has to include different points of view.
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I think Catholics are much more “tolerant” to other views than our Protestant brothers. I have been unable to find an online protestant forum that does not specifically ban Catholic opinions, or suppress them by other means. (if anyone knows of an open Protestant forum please PM me)

After all, we can’t a have free will if were not aware of the options.
 
mosher said:
Error has no rights.
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Actually, yes. Yes, it does. Maybe your version of error has no rights in certain dictatorships. But where we’re coming from are pretty much exclusively free countries.
 
Only one question would suffice, and I should ask thus: would it be okay for you if someone removes and throws away a poster about the Church, or an activity sponsored by the Church, like for instance Bible study? Or would it be okay to see a poster inviting people to Mass in the trash can? These should be pondered upon; if we cannot take it because it goes against our faith, then we have to ask then what right we have to do this to others who believe differently.
 
Please define “public board” for the purposes of this discussion.

Just because a board is accessible publicly doesn’t give anybody the right to post on it if the person who owns the board doesn’t want them to.

If the board is truly public, as in paid for with taxpayer funds, then I agree they may not be discriminated against.

All that said, I certainly believe that the most effective way to engage those with “alternate” points of view is to hear them out and respond to them in love. One cannot know what to say to them unless one listens to them to begin with. I think this is a strategy issue more than a “rights” issue, if I’m understanding the intent of the original question. Certainly a board operator can control the posting in whatever way they wish, but isn’t is better to engage those with opposite point of view than to try to keep them quiet? If that’s what we’re talking about I tend to agree that trying to squelch anothers’ opinion often strengthens it – maybe less heresy gets exposed in the process but its source remains strengthened rather than drained of power.

Alan
 
Sailboat said:
OK, we have a debate on another thread, where many people think it’s okay to remove a poster that they think will lead people astray spiritually. In this case, it was for a course on astral travel. It could very well be something else, such as a pro-choice rally, Lesbian support group, Since it was a little derailing the thread, I’m starting a separate thread.

My argument was that it is wrong because in a Free Country such as the United States, a public bulletin board should be a forum for all points of view, and that there should be a certain civic responsibility to tolerate opposing points of view, otherwise the whole system would break down, with people ripping down posters advertising things they don’t like.

Others on the thread stated that they were serving a higher good by saving people from being led astray by a class in astral travel, which is occult and evil.

So, what is right?
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I think it’s a case of repression or education. The interesting paradox comes about when you consider some people are stupid and will never be clever. Do you take it upon yourself to look after their best interests by removing the poster, or do you provide the information they need patiently and consistently so that they can make an informed decision?
 
AlanFromWichita said:
Please define “public board” for the purposes of this discussion.
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I think, in reference to the thread about astral projection, public board would mean a place where you put posters, ads, announcements and the like; or to be more precise, a physical message board, not an online one.
 
Milliardo said:
I think, in reference to the thread about astral projection, public board would mean a place where you put posters, ads, announcements and the like; or to be more precise, a physical message board, not an online one.
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Thank you. I had missed that somehow; it makes more sense now. 😛

Alan
 
I think removing a poster does more damage to the common good (free and polite public discourse) than does allowing a poster advocating astral projection.

A public bulletin board is based upon a shared consensus of values: that all persons are of equal value and that their voices deserve to be heard. If a self-appointed censor begins removing voices that he disagrees with, the function of the public bulletin board begins to break down. Force is the enemy of the free exchange of ideas; by coercion it elevates one voice above the others.

However, force is properly used by authority. In a public bulletin board, only persons authorized to remove posters from the board should do so. When unauthorized persons remove posters they are using force to coerce, which lessens the common good.
 
Dale_M said:
I think removing a poster does more damage to the common good (free and polite public discourse) than does allowing a poster advocating astral projection.

A public bulletin board is based upon a shared consensus of values: that all persons are of equal value and that their voices deserve to be heard. If a self-appointed censor begins removing voices that he disagrees with, the function of the public bulletin board begins to break down. Force is the enemy of the free exchange of ideas; by coercion it elevates one voice above the others.

However, force is properly used by authority. In a public bulletin board, only persons authorized to remove posters from the board should do so. When unauthorized persons remove posters they are using force to coerce, which lessens the common good.
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eloquently put! 👍
 
Just to re-clarify, I’m talking about a community bulletin board that you stick actual paper notices up with old fashioned thumbtacks.
 
Liberalsaved said:
Actually, yes. Yes, it does. Maybe your version of error has no rights in certain dictatorships. But where we’re coming from are pretty much exclusively free countries.
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But we aren’t talking about the constitutional issue of it. The question is the morality of removing such a poster.
 
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