Andre Faria: Freedom of speech is one of the most...perhaps the most...valuable rights we as individuals have. Yet...like all valuable rights...it is not absolute, and much depends upon the context. A child may not stand up in a classroom & curse his teacher with an endless barrage of profanity, for example. Most of us would agree. Yet the child is certainly free to hate and/or disapprove of his teacher...and may at the proper time & in a suitable outlet express that hatred/disapproval publicly.

You certainly must curtail, to some extent, the natural freedom-of-speech right of your own child. That is, if it becomes necessary to do so. It doesn't mean you devalue freedom. We all have standards of taste, and they are not entirely bad or without warrant.

This board is about poetry. Social criticism in poetry is welcome. Poetry & art of all kinds are appropriate & excellent mediums for social protest. But most of the posts I've deleted....yours included....are not poems in themselves but rather a discussion about censorship. I call your attention to the fact that I've also deleted several of my own posts. No disrespect is intended. I want to get this board back on track.