BATMAN AND BRITAIN'S PATHETIC FILM CENSORS.

WE ARE in the middle of an epidemic of casual violence. A knife attack now takes place somewhere in Britain every 24 minutes, and more than 20 young people have already been stabbed to death this year in London alone. Lawmakers, teachers and parents shake their heads in despair as an explanation is sought for this upsurge in barbarity. But perhaps the reason is depressingly simple: knives have become cool. After all, what is the most popular movie of the moment and the fastest-earning film of all time? It's The Dark Knight, the new Batman blockbuster, in which a one-time comic book character, the Joker, played manically by the late Heath Ledger, explains why he prefers killing with a knife. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]