(Do you see the Saxophone player or is it a womans face?)

Many “hate”posts are one thing masquerading as something else. (Conversely the artist might not have intended any Saxophones in the picture at all.) It’s best to carefully consider what the intent is, before lending your support to, or raising your indignation about a submission!

While it is true, the World Wide Web is an extraordinary bastion for the principals of free speech and the free exchange of ideas it can also be a breeding ground for hate and groups who seek to spread it. Shockingly, these types of sites are on the rise in recent times. It’s a razor’s edge that divides the issue of free speech from lurid racism and bigotry.

This is a serious problem. On one hand, I personally am opposed to censorship. On the other, hate groups like Fred Phelps and the Westboro Baptist Church have certainly caused suffering and harm.

You simply can not have freedom of speech without giving it to others. People, even those who only seek to spread ignorance and hate, must have their right to speak. After all, it is never an issue to grant free speech to someone you agree with, it is granting that right to someone who opposes your personal views that is more difficult to come to terms with.

However we have no obligation to listen. I suggest as a Propeller member, if you view a post that promotes hatred, first recognize it for what it is …futile, worthless, and ignorant. Do not vote for it, sink it. Many sites submitted fly just below the radar by substituting slightly more “politically correct” terminology for obvious epithets. Yet in the end, a particular race, group of people, or religion is demonized as a source of all the problems in the universe. What I believe is the best approach is simply to minimize the volume of the voice of hate through community unity. If you agree with me that every human life is equally valuable, that hatred erodes our humanity, then do not patronize hate filled submissions. Don’t vote, don’t encourage, and if your so inclined, sink it. If you feel it obviously and seriously violates the terms of use, report it. If you don’t recall the Propeller terms of use, here they are as expressed on the site:

You may use Propeller.com for lawful purposes only. You may not submit, offer links from, or transmit through Propeller.com any material, or otherwise engage in any conduct that: violates or infringes the rights of others including, without limitation, patent, trademark, trade secret, copyright, publicity or other proprietary rights; is unlawful, threatening, abusive, harassing, defamatory, libelous, deceptive, fraudulent, obscene, pornographic, invasive of another’s privacy, tortious, or contains explicit or graphic descriptions, or accounts of, sexual acts; victimizes, harasses, degrades, or intimidates an individual or group of individuals on the basis of religion, gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, age, or disability;
impersonates any person, business or entity, including our employees and agents; contains viruses or any other computer code, files or programs that interrupt, destroy or limit the functionality of any computer software or hardware or telecommunications equipment, or otherwise permit the unauthorized use of a computer or computer network;
encourages conduct that would constitute a criminal offense, or that gives rise to civil liability; offers, promotes or encourages betting or wagering prohibited by law; violates these Terms of Use, guidelines or any policy posted on Propeller.com, or interferes with the use of Propeller.com by others. You may not use Propeller.com in a way that could damage or impair our servers or networks. You may not interfere with any other party’s use and enjoyment of Propeller.com. You may not attempt to gain unauthorized access to our services, user accounts, computer systems or networks. We may take any legal and technical remedies to prevent the violation of these Terms of Use.

Of particular interest to this article is: “victimizes, harasses, degrades, or intimidates an individual or group of individuals on the basis of religion, gender, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, age, or disability.” I don’t believe the large majority of members want knee-jerk (ooch!…My chin!) political correctness nor do they condone true gloating bigotry.

Special Comic Relief Section….

• Q. How many racists does it take to change a light bulb?
• A. 100 …. 1 to change the bulb and 99 to deny that the bulb is being changed.

• Q. What do you call a Muslim who flies a plane?
  
• A. ….A pilot!

• Q. How many Blacks does it take to change a lightbulb?
• A. …One

• A Rabbi, A Priest, and an Atheist walk into a bar………. Ouch!

….End comic relief

Some join the site for mischief, using site names that insult or degrade others. (This bears no similarity to a good natured jest). Some clearly state in their bios they are here to harass and denigrate. Still others are obsessed with hate and hijack every thread they post on with unrelated ranting. I recommend simply ignoring them. As in all these cases nothing pleases the perpetrators more than knowing they were effective cyber bullies. Propeller has enjoyed far less of this than other sites of this nature, together we can keep it that way. Shall we?

It is the expressed view of this site that many improvements and complaints can be addressed through the community itself , rather than expecting management to do it for us. Think carefully before giving an article your support. Is it hateful? Do you really want to participate in disseminating the article if it is? The community has it’s own inherent power to help or hinder any submission.

One for all, All for one!

(none for racism.)

Sincerely,

d’Artagnan