Ouch, you really went there?

"If you don't like being a part of the public, then you have every right to leave".

Praytell, how does one leave society currently? Other than suicide, since I doubt that's what you meant. If it was, then dude, you gotta check yourself. Which, what you said was bad enough without it being that, so you should check yourself anyway, since nobody can escape society at this point. There simply isn't anywhere that isn't under the authority of one country or another. But that's whatever.

But, you still don't seem to get that "the public as a whole" isn't unified. I certainly haven't agreed that a silly joke model is somehow inappropriate. I know for a fact I'm not alone in that, because other comments have said as much.

Are you saying that the officials are automatically correct in their judgement of what is and isn't agreed on by "the public"? Were the officials in question elected or appointed? What guidelines did they use to reach their decisions?

And, of equal import, if not greater, why should such a narrow and prudish opinion be the default? Because a vocal minority raised a fuss? That doesn't indicate a public agreement at all, it indicates the tyranny of the minority, and officials caving to it without actually consulting the public. Or did they consult the public in some way that isn't evident in the article? You may have information I don't. If that's the case, please do point me towards that.

What I'm saying is that the assumption that a given set of value judgements isn't right just because it happens to be what is common. Nor is a position of authority proof of rightness. That's simply proof of being given authority by someone. An elected official at least can claim majority authority, but an appointed one? Nah, that's specious at best. When that official is applying moral judgement, it needs a higher level of scrutiny.