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Top 10 Reasons Giuliani Decency Panel is Absurd

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Apr 5, 2001, 10:26:12 AM4/5/01

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Top 10 Reasons Giuliani Decency Panel is Absurd
by Robert Lederman

In his 4/4/2001 press conference announcing the Art Decency Commission New=20
York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani said:

"The panel will examine situations in which there is perceived or in reality=
=20
an affront, an attack, a debasement of religion, ethnicity, race, sexual=20
orientation, gender."

Giuliani has repeatedly called the Brooklyn Museum=E2=80=99s recent exhibiti=
ons,=20
anti-Catholic bigotry. Let=E2=80=99s assume for the sake of argument that th=
e Mayor=20
is absolutely right.

Also for the sake of argument, let=E2=80=99s further assume that the Mayor i=
s right=20
that tax dollars should never be used for any art or any cultural work, film=
,=20
live performance, television show or museum exhibit that is or can be=20
perceived as, "...an affront, an attack, a debasement of religion, ethnicity=
,=20
race, sexual orientation, gender."

Here are ten of countless possible examples of well-known works of art on=20
display in NYC museums that receive tax dollars from the City and that can b=
e=20
readily perceived as an affront by one or more ethnic, racial, religious or=20
sexually-oriented groups.

1. The Ten Commandments prohibit the making or displaying of any "graven=20
image", i.e. all depictions of the human body, God, pagan deities or any=20
object intended to be worshiped such as a crucifix, or statue of a saint.=20
While the Jewish Old Testament has been the inspiration for much of Christia=
n=20
religious art, such works directly contradict a basic tenant of Judaism and=20
of the Ten Commandments. That=E2=80=99s why synagogues never have paintings=20=
or=20
statues. Should religious Jews, who make up a very large minority group in=20
NYC and a very significant portion of the tax base, have their tax dollars=20
used to display images of Christian, Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Assyrian,=20
Central American and African deities? The Brooklyn Museum and the=20
Metropolitan Museum of Art have two of the world=E2=80=99s largest such coll=
ections.=20
The City significantly funds both.=20

2. Most NYC museums have paintings and/or statues about Columbus=20
"discovering" America. What we now know from journals written by eyewitnesse=
s=20
on those journeys of exploration was that Columbus enslaved and murdered the=
=20
native inhabitants wherever he landed. Paintings and statues by artists such=
=20
as Frederick Remington depicting the conquest of the West and of American=20
cavalry killing Native Americans are on display in many NYC museums. Native=20
American activists have made it known over the past 25 years that they find=20
such depictions insulting and offensive. Should their tax dollars pay to=20
maintain the images of conquerors like Columbus or of General Custer and=20
other genocidal "Indian fighters" in NYC museums?

3. The Museum of Modern Art, The Metropolitan Museum and the Brooklyn Museum=
=20
have vast collections of religious and burial artifacts from Native American=
,=20
Middle Eastern, African, Oceanic and Central American cultures. Many if not=20
most of these artifacts were obtained by dubious means, often stolen or=20
smuggled out of their native countries. Some, like the Egyptian mummies, ar=
e=20
actual human remains stolen from their burial sites. How do the millions of=20
New York City taxpayers descended from these cultures feel about their=20
ancestral remains and cultural heritage being stolen and put on display in=20
New York City museums?=20

4. The Met has a number of paintings depicting Plato, a Greek philosopher wh=
o=20
advocated man-boy love-a felony crime in NY State. The Museum of Modern Art=20
(MOMA) has a number of paintings of prepubescent girls by Balthus, a=20
well-known German pedophile. MOMA also has numerous paintings by Salvador=20
Dali, a surrealist well known for bashing Catholicism. In one, his wife hang=
s=20
crucified on the cross instead of Jesus. Should MOMA=E2=80=99s 65 million-do=
llar gift=20
from Giuliani be withdrawn? Shouldn=E2=80=99t Giuliani=E2=80=98s Decency Com=
mission remove=20
all these paintings?=20

5. If tax dollars can be removed from a museum that allegedly attacks=20
religion why not remove funding for museums supporting religion? Using=20
government funds for supporting religion is a direct violation of the First=20
Amendment. Why should Jews, Buddhists, Muslims, Taoists or atheists pay for=20
the exhibition of thousands of paintings created specifically in order to=20
convince people that Jesus is God?=20

6. A satirical portrait of Oscar Wilde could be a perceived affront to gays.=
=20
An unflattering painting or news photo included in a documentary exhibit=20
about Martin Luther King, Jesse Jackson or Al Sharpton could be perceived as=
=20
an affront to African-Americans. Should such works be banned?=20

7. A fundamentalist Christian might find the statues of Egyptian, Greek and=20
Roman gods which fill NYC art museums to be an abomination. The Met in=20
particular is filled with paintings and sculptures of nudes depicting sexual=
=20
situations, homosexuality, rape, incest etc. Should they all be removed? How=
=20
about the hundreds of African fertility sculptures on display depicting=20
exposed genitalia which are far more explicit than the works in the=20
controversial Brooklyn Museum shows? Are statues and paintings of nude=20
children, the nude putti and angels popular in so many Greek, Roman and=20
Renaissance works of art, child pornography? Isn=E2=80=99t child pornograph=
y a=20
felony crime in New York?

8. The Rockefeller family=E2=80=99s MOMA shows a number of paintings stolen=20=
from Jews=20
by the Nazis, which have been the object of civil lawsuits. The Rockefeller=20
family were major supporters of Hitler. Their company, Standard Oil, owned=20
1/2 of IG Farben, the Nazi chemical and munitions cartel which built and=20
operated Auschwitz. MOMA has received hundreds of millions of tax dollars=20
from the Giuliani administration. Isn=E2=80=99t that an affront to all Jews=20=
and a=20
desecration of the Holocaust?

9. Some feminists might find the thousands of erotic female nudes in NYC=20
museums (almost all of which were painted by men) to be sexist and=20
exploitative. Women are more than 50% of NYC taxpayers. Should all female=20
nudes be removed if a few women complain that they were offended?

10. Many sects of Protestants and Baptists consider the Pope and the Catholi=
c=20
Church to be the anti-Christ. Millions of New Yorkers are members of these=20
Christian sects. Should all Catholic-influenced Renaissance art be removed=20
from all the museums based on it offending these taxpayers?

Be assured, I=E2=80=99m not advocating the removal of any of these works. Th=
e point=20
is that all art can be perceived as offensive by someone and more than likel=
y=20
has been perceived that way at some time or another.=20

The Catholic Church censored Michelangelo=E2=80=99s Sistine Chapel murals by=
painting=20
fig leaves on the figures despite this masterpiece having been commissioned=20
by a Pope. The French rioted over Impressionism. Many Americans still=20
consider Picasso and Mattise, let alone the Abstract Expressionists, to be=20
non-artists with less talent than their own children have.=20

As the archetypal example of a cultural lowbrow, Rudy Giuliani has repeatedl=
y=20
said, "if I can do it it=E2=80=99s not art". Should some taxpayers=E2=80=99=20=
wishes be=20
followed and all modern paintings be removed from taxpayer funded NYC museum=
s?

Is Giuliani a prude, a cultural philistine, just plain crazy or is there a=20
perfectly logical governmental agenda to his Decency Commission? For a=20
detailed explanation of the real agenda behind this seemingly absurd effort=20
see my articles, Giuliani Decency Commission Exposed and Giuliani on Art,=20
Hitler on Art at:=20
http://baltech.org/lederman/

Bush-Nazi connection, Giuliani, Manhattan Institute, eugenics, West Nile=20
Virus information
http://baltech.org/lederman/
http://baltech.org/lederman/spray/
http://www.levymultimedia.com/lederman/index.htm

Street artist information
http://www.openair.org/alerts/artist/nyc.html=20

Robert Lederman, President of A.R.T.I.S.T.
(Artists=E2=80=99 Response To Illegal State Tactics)
ARTIS...@aol.com (718) 743-3722

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Content-Type: text/html; charset="UTF-8"
Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable
Content-Language: en

<HTML>[Please Forward Widely]
 Top 10 Reasons Giuliani Decency Panel is Absurd
 by Robert Lederman
 
 In his 4/4/2001 press conference announcing the Art Decency Commission N=
ew=20
 York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani said:
 
 "The panel will examine situations in which there is perceived or in rea=
lity=20
 an affront, an attack, a debasement of religion, ethnicity, race, sexual=
=20
 orientation, gender."
 
 Giuliani has repeatedly called the Brooklyn Museum=E2=80=99s recent exhi=
bitions,=20
 anti-Catholic bigotry. Let=E2=80=99s assume for the sake of argument tha=
t the Mayor=20
 is absolutely right.
 
 Also for the sake of argument, let=E2=80=99s further assume that the May=
or is right=20
 that tax dollars should never be used for any art or any cultural work,=20=
film,=20
 live performance, television show or museum exhibit that is or can be=20
 perceived as, "...an affront, an attack, a debasement of religion, ethni=
city,=20
 race, sexual orientation, gender."
 
 Here are ten of countless possible examples of well-known works of art o=
n=20
 display in NYC museums that receive tax dollars from the City and that c=
an be=20
 readily perceived as an affront by one or more ethnic, racial, religious=
or=20
 sexually-oriented groups.
 
 1. The Ten Commandments prohibit the making or displaying of any "graven=
=20
 image", i.e. all depictions of the human body, God, pagan deities or any=
=20
 object intended to be worshiped such as a crucifix, or statue of a saint=
.=20
 While the Jewish Old Testament has been the inspiration for much of Chri=
stian=20
 religious art, such works directly contradict a basic tenant of Judaism=20=
and=20
 of the Ten Commandments. That=E2=80=99s why synagogues never have painti=
ngs or=20
 statues. Should religious Jews, who make up a very large minority group=20=
in=20
 NYC and a very significant portion of the tax base, have their tax dolla=
rs=20
 used to display images of Christian, Egyptian, Greek, Roman, Assyrian,=20
 Central American and African deities? The Brooklyn Museum and the=20
 Metropolitan Museum of Art have two of the world=E2=80=99s largest such=20=
collections.=20
 The City significantly funds both.=20
 
 2. Most NYC museums have paintings and/or statues about Columbus=20
 "discovering" America. What we now know from journals written by eyewitn=
esses=20
 on those journeys of exploration was that Columbus enslaved and murdered=
the=20
 native inhabitants wherever he landed. Paintings and statues by artists=20=
such=20
 as Frederick Remington depicting the conquest of the West and of America=
n=20
 cavalry killing Native Americans are on display in many NYC museums. Nat=
ive=20
 American activists have made it known over the past 25 years that they f=
ind=20
 such depictions insulting and offensive. Should their tax dollars pay to=
=20
 maintain the images of conquerors like Columbus or of General Custer and=
=20
 other genocidal "Indian fighters" in NYC museums?
 
 3. The Museum of Modern Art, The Metropolitan Museum and the Brooklyn Mu=
seum=20
 have vast collections of religious and burial artifacts from Native Amer=
ican,=20
 Middle Eastern, African, Oceanic and Central American cultures. Many if=20=
not=20
 most of these artifacts were obtained by dubious means, often stolen or=20
 smuggled out of their native countries.  Some, like the Egyptian mu=
mmies, are=20
 actual human remains stolen from their burial sites. How do the millions=
of=20
 New York City taxpayers descended from these cultures feel about their=20
 ancestral remains and cultural heritage being stolen and put on display=20=
in=20
 New York City museums?=20
 
 4. The Met has a number of paintings depicting Plato, a Greek philosophe=
r who=20
 advocated man-boy love-a felony crime in NY State. The Museum of Modern=20=
Art=20
 (MOMA) has a number of paintings of prepubescent girls by Balthus, a=20
 well-known German pedophile. MOMA also has numerous paintings by Salvado=
r=20
 Dali, a surrealist well known for bashing Catholicism. In one, his wife=20=
hangs=20
 crucified on the cross instead of Jesus. Should MOMA=E2=80=99s 65 millio=
n-dollar gift=20
 from Giuliani be withdrawn? Shouldn=E2=80=99t Giuliani=E2=80=98s Decency=
Commission remove=20
 all these paintings?=20
 
 5. If tax dollars can be removed from a museum that allegedly attacks=20
 religion why not remove funding for museums supporting religion? Using=20
 government funds for supporting religion is a direct violation of the Fi=
rst=20
 Amendment. Why should Jews, Buddhists, Muslims, Taoists or atheists pay=20=
for=20
 the exhibition of thousands of paintings created specifically in order t=
o=20
 convince people that Jesus is God?=20
 
 6. A satirical portrait of Oscar Wilde could be a perceived affront to g=
ays.=20
 An unflattering painting or news photo included in a documentary exhibit=
=20
 about Martin Luther King, Jesse Jackson or Al Sharpton could be perceive=
d as=20
 an affront to African-Americans. Should such works be banned?=20
 
 7. A fundamentalist Christian might find the statues of Egyptian, Greek=20=
and=20
 Roman gods which fill NYC art museums to be an abomination. The Met in=20
 particular is filled with paintings and sculptures of nudes depicting se=
xual=20
 situations, homosexuality, rape, incest etc. Should they all be removed?=
How=20
 about the hundreds of African fertility sculptures on display depicting=20
 exposed genitalia which are far more explicit than the works in the=20
 controversial Brooklyn Museum shows? Are statues and paintings of nude=20
 children, the nude putti and angels popular in so many Greek, Roman and=20
 Renaissance works of art, child pornography?  Isn=E2=80=99t child p=
ornography a=20
 felony crime in New York?
 
 8. The Rockefeller family=E2=80=99s MOMA shows a number of paintings sto=
len from Jews=20
 by the Nazis, which have been the object of civil lawsuits. The Rockefel=
ler=20
 family were major supporters of Hitler. Their company, Standard Oil, own=
ed=20
 1/2 of IG Farben, the Nazi chemical and munitions cartel which built and=
=20
 operated Auschwitz. MOMA has received hundreds of millions of tax dollar=
s=20
 from the Giuliani administration. Isn=E2=80=99t that an affront to all J=
ews and a=20
 desecration of the Holocaust?
 
 9. Some feminists might find the thousands of erotic female nudes in NYC=
=20
 museums (almost all of which were painted by men) to be sexist and=20
 exploitative. Women are more than 50% of NYC taxpayers. Should all femal=
e=20
 nudes be removed if a few women complain that they were offended?
 
 10. Many sects of Protestants and Baptists consider the Pope and the Cat=
holic=20
 Church to be the anti-Christ. Millions of New Yorkers are members of the=
se=20
 Christian sects. Should all Catholic-influenced Renaissance art be remov=
ed=20
 from all the museums based on it offending these taxpayers?
 
 Be assured, I=E2=80=99m not advocating the removal of any of these works=
. The point=20
 is that all art can be perceived as offensive by someone and more than l=
ikely=20
 has been perceived that way at some time or another.=20
 
 The Catholic Church censored Michelangelo=E2=80=99s Sistine Chapel mural=
s by painting=20
 fig leaves on the figures despite this masterpiece having been commissio=
ned=20
 by a Pope. The French rioted over Impressionism. Many Americans still=20
 consider Picasso and Mattise, let alone the Abstract Expressionists, to=20=
be=20
 non-artists with less talent than their own children have.=20
 
 As the archetypal example of a cultural lowbrow, Rudy Giuliani has repea=
tedly=20
 said, "if I can do it it=E2=80=99s not art". Should some taxpayers=E2=
=80=99 wishes be=20
 followed and all modern paintings be removed from taxpayer funded NYC mu=
seums?
 
 Is Giuliani a prude, a cultural philistine, just plain crazy or is there=
a=20
 perfectly logical governmental agenda to his Decency Commission? For a=20
 detailed explanation of the real agenda behind this seemingly absurd eff=
ort=20
 see my articles, Giuliani Decency Commission Exposed and Giuliani on Art=
,=20
 Hitler on Art at:=20
 http://baltech.org/lederman/
 
 Bush-Nazi connection, Giuliani, Manhattan Institute, eugenics, West Nile=
=20
 Virus information
 http://baltech.org/lederman/
 http://baltech.org/lederman/spray/
 http://www.levymultimedia.com/lederman/index.htm
 
 Street artist information
 http://www.openair.org/alerts/artist/nyc.html=20
 
 Robert Lederman, President of A.R.T.I.S.T.
 (Artists=E2=80=99 Response To Illegal State Tactics)
 ARTIS...@aol.com  (718) 743-3722
 </HTML>

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