I was at Virgin here in Lebanon checking out the Ingmar Bergman special edition DVD collection when I noticed the box looked like it was missing a DVD. I then noticed a warning label on top which said:
This box set is missing item(s) that were confiscated by the general security for censorship reasons.
So it happens even in Lebanon although DVD censorship here is not as common as in Kuwait and is usually left to really controversial stuff.
19 replies on “Virgin Censorship”
i was reading the review on Amazon web site when i noticed that it is really interesting to watch his movie(s). So mark which film they took it off this collection?
What is there to censor on his movies! they are all sombre and sad.
Thats kind of wierd… didn’t think they would censor anything in Lebanon
“confiscated by the general security”? fuck me it sounds like a bomb or somethin
Could it be that they came to Kuwait first, then they were dispatched to Lebanon?? It’s very wierd that things get censored in Lebanon.
well at least they fucken say if they took somethin… here the madahis or what ever they’re called shuts down the store “L.A police style” and pour red wax all over the entry doors
wow… Even Lebanon has some form of censorship. I am losing hope! Well, there is always Turkey!
censorship is everywhere .. in china and other countries they block websites and sometimes complete servers. its not something new or only applied in the middle east .. u know whats worse. my friend in Canada bought some books about aviation, but since he was was a muslim, the next day his house was raided by special forces and they took him into custody till the proffosser had to testify that it was for a project .. so what do u think is worse, censorship or voilating people rights due to their prefrences … the west is worse .. they even censor anything that doesnt serve their big corporations intrests .. open ur eyes !! .. eveything u see on american and european tv is filtered.
:: Viva Dubai
Nirvana was banned in Lebanon throughout the 90’s because some kid committed suicide similar in style to Kurt Cobain and they blamed it on the music.
DJ X, I criticize all forms of censorship, regardless of where it shows its pathetic/ugly head. Even in the US. Yeah it takes a different form there “oh its unpatriotic for you to read/see/buy this item, ” “real Americans get their news from Fox”… blah blah, over there you have to defend your rights just like your friend, who in the end thankfully prevailed. I equally criticize that, but the subject matter here is Lebanon’s censorship.
even in the u.s. there is censorship , people here think its only in kuwait
Please enlighten us, what did you find that was/is censored in the US?
Let me get this straight.. so Kuwait shutdown Virgin for violating a Law they had broken, and it was mayhem in this forum, to an extent where people judged an entire country based on an action taken by the ministry against a BIG company.
Now you see censhorship in lebanon, and believe me it isn’t something new, and the best comment so far is “Thats kind of wierd… didn’t think they would censor anything in Lebanon”
What happened to all those juicy comments like “Fucking ignorant ministry, this country is going backwards, how dare they shutdown Virgin, everybody is stupid, i hate this country.”
not to mention the record breaking posts for that one piece of event.. it’s been 3 days since this post and all i see is 14 posts..
so i guess all those ppl that had negative things to say about the Kuwaiti ban really feel stupid now that they are seeing other stuff being banned in more “open” countries (as people will call it) they will have a change of opinion and say that censorship is a good thing.. Bah, a bunch of cattle i swear..
sorry for ranting but it’s Saturday morning and i am in a really bad mood..
Censoring Ingmar Bergman movies? Maybe they felt Lebanon has enough problems without having people watching depressed and suicidal Swedes on DVD
Cali87… it seems the US government is trying to ban Michael Moore’s latest film “Sicko”. I call that censorship
https://www.michaelmoore.com/
Hi Zadoun, you are talking about the movie Sicko, fimled partially in Cuba which violates sanctions against earning income from that country. Its not an outright ban as with stuff here, these are after all lawyers who brought up the subject that the movie “might” be confiscated. It’s is silly but more than likely Moore maybe fined,but knowing the US, it will not be banned. Frankly, I don’t know anything that is baned in the US unless its something really beyond human decency like child porn where you exploit and harm innocent children for profit. That is a serious crime anywhere. Here though, we witness the ban of trivial things even stuff that does not harm anyone. Like cutting out Buddah’s face of a CD. Who is hurt by seeing Buddha’s face or a book with some sexual content, so friggin what? The news shows you people blown to bits in Iraq, that is ok to see but you can’t see a on screen kiss?
As for Feras, what happens in Lebanon is not directly affecting the quality of our life here, so its not going to get as big of a response as the Virgin fiasco. Look, censorship is like the government acting as your parent “don’t read this, don’t see that, don’t… don’t.. don’t” If that is the role you want the gov’t to play then that is your opinion. I for one prefer to chose what I like to read and see without anyone babysitting me and telling me what I can and can not do. In my view, if your not harming anyone else by reading/listening to/or viewing it then you have every right to access it.
Umh yeah they censor here, and if you buy a DVD from amazon they open it for you :S and then repack it with an “OK” paper.
But we’re still better then surrounding countries that’s for sure and you can always get what you want from the internet (download) we’re lucky to have an unrestricted (but slow 🙁 ) net so they can’t know what I buy from it!