Bwog’s chief Lecture-Hopper and free speech enthusiast Mark Hay reports from last night’s panel discussion moderated by David Remnick, (editor of the New Yorker), with Bernard–Henri Levy (philosopher and author), and Peter Awn (Professor of Islamic Religion and Comparative Religion, Director of the Middle East Institute, Columbia), Kent Greenawalt (Professor of Law, Columbia), Philippe Schmidt (President of the International Network against Cyber Hate and LICRA Vice President).

Freedom of speech is a concept beholden to every democratic movement, a concept with a primary place in American history. It is a concept so well defended and so cherished by Americans especially that, GS Dean Peter Awn argues, “to be an American is to be offended.” Indeed, Bernard–Henri Levy goes so far as to say that without this keystone right, all of the freedoms that characterize our lives would fall. Thus we must call in five experts for a panel discussion to mediate our conflicted feelings and repressed censorial urges.

Why is censorship still prevalent? Levy’s answer: words can be weapons, and we fear their potency. We have silently agreed that in cases like the Rwandan genocide, where Levy argues the absence of key words could have prevented the loss of thousands of lives, censorship is certainly in order. But in our Hippocratic quest to do no harm, we have begun to censor too much, to undermine the foundations of liberty by legislating against blasphemy and insult. Levy claims, by doing so, we are in fact fighting for fascism.

The report continues after the jump. Read more…

There’s trouble afoot on the internet today, namely over at right-wing web blog/apparent Matthew Arnold fanzine Sweetness & Light. It seems they’ve taken none too kindly to a certain magazine’s Controversial cover image — and it’s not the cover image (or the magazine) you’re thinking of!

No, their bone to pick is with the Jester, specifically the cover of its “Tragedy” issue, which memorably features the Titanic crashing into the World Trade Center. Says S&L: “Granted college humor is normally juvenile and often in bad taste. But this is somewhat beyond that.”

Commenters chime in with hilarious noose jokes, while others point out that the cover is obviously a reflection of Columbia’s “socialist” and “pro-Islam” bias.

UPDATE 6:32 PM: We receive an exclusive statement from Jester‘s press attaché: “The staff of the Jester would like to issue our sincerest apologies. We have no idea how this offensive image was not caught by our art staff, layout editors, publisher, editor in chief, printer, or distribution staff. As a token of our true regret, please accept one free humor magazine.”