7 August - Political censorship in the UK - Click the YouTube button to see the video full-size
When I was last with my hospital consultant we spent more time discussing Bexley council’s
obsession with secrecy and their dubious methods of enforcing it than matters
medical. Following my comment last Friday that August is devoid of significant council
activity and there is consequently a shortage of news he sent me a link to how the
British government censors news. It’s not Bexley related but if you have come
here expecting to find something new, I don’t like to be a complete let
down, and if I don’t use the doctor’s link he may start lecturing me on why
I’m not taking statins again or find something else to complain about!
His link takes you to a site which shows a video in which it is explained that
the UK government is getting YouTube to remove videos it doesn’t like. Not because
they are libellous, or pornographic or anything remotely like that, but purely because
they show people exercising their legal rights in a way that government doesn’t like -
err, on second thoughts maybe there is a Bexley council connection.
It is said that about 2,000 videos are being removed through UK government intervention
every year (latest period available, 2009), far higher than in any other European
country. My doctor is a little out of date, whilst the link he has given refers to
a particular video that has been censored and shows only a short extract,
web users are a resilient lot and so of course the video keeps popping up again.
Currently it is available in full from a new source but as it says beneath the
video, “Please download the video, because it will be blocked”.
The video shows a disturbance within a Courtroom in Birkenhead while someone is
challenging the legality of council tax, but things get out of hand when it becomes
apparent that the council has not followed the Judge’s directions. The explanation
of the case, such as it is, is given at the end of the video; but the real question
is why are we not supposed to watch the video? At least no one tried to stop camera
users entering the building as would be the case in Bexley where our council’s form
of censorship is imposed before the event, not after it.
Note: This video has been withdrawn from YouTube.