I wrote a piece last month about a brave student who, after Christian parents convinced his school to ban an award-winning book because it had a line about masturbation, began distributing free copies of the book.

Shortly thereafter I got wind of another book banning at a school district in Tennessee because the book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time uses the f-word:

“The F-bomb is pretty common in that book, and that’s what I have a problem with,” said board member Wayne McNeese, who received complaints about the book from some of his constituents. “I’m not dumb enough to think students don’t hear that language, but it doesn’t mean we should promote it.”

This came after a few parents complained to the school board. The district already allowed parents to opt their children out of assigned readings from non-textbooks, but that wasn’t enough apparently: the book must be banned for everybody.

I wonder how many of those parents would prefer (or even insist) their children read a book where a man who was willing to murder his son is portrayed as a hero? This is a book where the biggest “hero” in the book committed genocide against almost all of humanity because they were simply too human. It’s a book where Lot, another hero, gives up his daughters to be gang-raped, but as long as they don’t call it “fucking” then I guess it’s all good.

Christians, if you clutch your pearls at the mention of masturbation or the word “fuck” because you want to protect children, but think kids should read your book full of wanton murder, rape, incest, genocide, etc. instead, then not only are your moral priorities beyond fucked up, but you’ve just abdicated your right to ban books on the basis of propriety.