2018-05-18

Nothing Is Funny Anymore, China Martyrs Edition

A Chinese satire site was shut down for using a famous Chinese martyr in a 2014 video. The new law passed May 1 made such content illegal.

Inkstone: Y U NO TOE PARTY LINE? Rage comic site shut down for insulting Communist martyr
“We wrongly mentioned the martyr’s name,” said the rage comic star. “We will strictly follow and passionately embrace the Heroes and Martyrs Protection Law. We will refrain from making fun of martyrs, no matter what.”
I'm not defending this law, but which would you prefer, having a law that explicitly tells you things you can't say, or roving bands of Twitter mobs that enforce the same punishment based on sometimes random whims? The only difference between Chinese and American speech codes is Chinese don't pretend as if they believe in free speech.

More broadly, the curtailing of speech in China and the USA is a sign of intensifying negative social mood.

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