Books, As Dangerous as The Ones Who Read Them

"I suggest that the only books that influence us are those for which we are ready, and which have gone a little farther down our particular path than we have yet got ourselves." ~E.M. Forster

No man can be called friendless who has God and the companionship of good books. ~Elizabeth Barrett Browning

Lately I have thought a lot about the history and importance of books. Funny subject I guess but quite an important one for me because I have always loved books with a passion!
I have thought about the Communist need to burn books.
"But even religious materials have been subject to censorship. For example, various scriptures have been banned (and sometimes burned at several points in history. The Bible, and other religious scriptures have all been subjected to censorship and have been banned by various governments. Similarly, books based on the scriptures have also been banned, such as Leo Tolstoy's The Kingdom of God Is Within You, which was banned in Russia for being anti-establishment."

And also recent events where people have blamed books for child abuse, child neglect, bad marriages and so on.
I say that a book is only as dangerous or profitable as the one reading it!
If we skip the Ezzo's book and the people who didn't feed their babies after reading it, and skip the Helpmeet book and the people who blamed it for child abuse or marriage problems ,we can go right to the real problem.
We live in a time where people refuse to take responsibility for their own actions in EVERY area of life.
I read the Ezzos book and didn't like it at all but I know others who do. That said, if I had tried their advice on infant feeding and saw that my baby was thin and hungry, I WOULD HAVE FED MY BABY anyway. If I starve my own child it's because I am irresponsible and lazy. I should be the one blamed.
If this seems like a harsh point of view then let's just skip to the most controversial book of all, The Bible.
The Bible Says:
Proverbs 23:13-14
Do not withhold discipline from a child. If you beat him with a rod, he will not die. If you beat him with the rod, you will save his life from Sheol.

Deuteronomy 21:18-21
If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father; or the voice of his mother, and, though they chastise him, will not give heed to them, then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his city at the gate of the place where he lives, and they shall say to the elders of his city, "This our son is stubborn and rebellious, he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton and a drunkard." Then all the men of the city shall stone him to death with stones; so you shall purge the evil from your midst; and all Israel shall hear, and fear.

How many 'unwise'.'naive','ignorant' people have read this and used it as an excuse to abuse their children? I would say a very great many! I know of a few myself. If a person has abusive tendencies they may pick out these verses as their primary guide to parenting. A wiser person will read the rest of the Bible, look for proper context and seek the heart of the Author.
Is the answer to ban the Bible? Or maybe we should decide who is smart enough to read it? Maybe just the college trained ministers? Should we label it dangerous and keep it from all the simple people?
No, of course not! It is not the book of God or the many books of advice that are to blame for wrong actions and lack of common sense. It is those who choose not to truly study, seek and know. It's the choice to be lazy and blame others or to bend the written word to suit our own inclinations.

"To choose a good book, look in an inquisitor’s prohibited list. ~John Aikin"