Warning Labels

I replaced some doorknobs this weekend
in my house. I browsed through the directions quickly to keep from
making a boneheaded mistake, but I already knew how to install them.
At the bottom I noticed the warning that the state of California has
determined that some of the materials cause cancer. At first it
sparked my interest. What in the world are they saying is dangerous
about my new doorknobs? But then it struck me that this is just
something they are required to do. I don’t believe that my family’s
health is really in danger by installing these doorknobs. More to
the point, I don’t have any confidence that the state of California
knows how to accurately and honestly determine and communicate what
is dangerous.

Then last night I was watching a movie
and a warning came on the screen just before it started that
said:

“THIS FILM HAS OUTDATED ATTITUDES, LANGUAGE AND CULTURAL
DEPICTIONS, WHICH MAY CAUSE OFFENSE TODAY”

A quick search revealed that the movie
service Sky has added this warning to a number of movies. I just
happened to see it at the beginning of Beverly Hills Cop 2 on a
channel that highly censors the content.

It makes me wonder. They already
remove offensive content like violence, language and nudity. It
seems likely to me that they will someday edit out offensive outdated
attitudes, language and cultural depictions. Or maybe the channels
will be forced put labels on their wares that the government has
determined to be dangerous or offensive.

Where will this end? Will our Bibles
require this label? Will our churches need a prominent warning that
they promote outdated attitudes, language and cultural depictions
that are offensive?

I’ve heard that in Europe and Canada,
some passages in scripture are considered hate speech. Preaching
from them in public can lead to fines and imprisonment. We have some
protection from this in America through the First Amendment of the
Constitution, but our freedoms are being diminished over time. I
wouldn’t be surprised if one day we will be free to speak as long as
we prominently post a warning that our speech has been determined to
be outdated and offensive.

I had my laptop on my lap with the
movie playing on the television in the background. I wondered what
content prompted them to give the warning label to the movie. But I
was working on something more important, and the thought was just
noise to tune out. I don’t really care what they label things.

But someone cares enough to devote time
and resources to labeling (almost) everything as dangerous in the
state of California. Someone cares enough to view old movies and
warn us about how we should think of them. When they turn their gaze
on us, will we be forced to warn people about our wares and content?
In my opinion, it seems like the momentum is moving in that
direction. How will we respond?

So much today is silenced without a word.  Shadow banning and fact checking tags on posts are already happening all the time.  Maybe it’s already here.