To censor even a single word of a book is to diminish the entire book. The word may not be an important word. It may even be possible from context to determine what the word was. The damage is measured not by what was lost in censoring, but by the fact that censorship took place at all.

Books are a record of ideas and ideals, expressions of human thoughts and souls. They vary like their authors in quality and merit, but all are equal in being true to the mind of their creator. To censor is to deny the true record of an author, or worse to force the author to perform the censorship themselves, and bend and break  them to surrender their own free will.

Censorship is a disease more insidious and pervasive than any blight. Once a single word has been censored, in time it spreads to surrounding words, widening and consuming more and yet more words again until there are no words of free thought left. The damage is done when the very first word is struck through and the book becomes contaminated with a fatal disease. It is a death sentence to free thought and expression for which there is no cure. Any book shining bright with the lustre of thoughts and ideas instantly become dull, pallid  and tarnished the moment the first word is censored. It matters not which word was chosen.

The damage from censorship of Blizzard’s Overwatch is not about removal of the pose. The pose may have been one of many considered by the creators, and the omission of those other poses that were not chosen is of no consequence. Many people may not have even noticed the pose or the replacement pose, it is not central to the gameplay. Were there no poses at all, it probably would not impact the enjoyment of the game. The object of the censorship is unimportant.

The damage is in the first fetid touch of censorship to the game. That can never been undone. It will always be remembered for the censorship. That oily tarnish cannot ever be polished away. It will remain a stain on Overwatch and Blizzard forever. How much else of the game will be censored behind closed doors? How many other Blizzard games will be censored behind closed doors? What other developers will follow Blizzards leadership and censor for fear of trivial offense to the perpetually offended? The bitter taste of the rot of censorship forever lingers on the tongue and in the mind.

The only protection is to resist that first touch of censorship with all of the passions that a creator has. To accept censorship is to accept others choosing and dictating what you may think and say. To accept  censorship is to invite an all pervading rot into your creative world, that takes hold the very first time and can never be expunged. All censorship must be fought and rejected. Be true to your ideas as a creator. Have faith in your own self. Reject the imposition of arbitrary boundaries by others. Give to your audience all of yourselves, and trust in the audience.

“Won’t anyone think of the gamers?”