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2004.02.22
Free Speech and Kids
I try to keep myself informed about the adult entertainment community, so I subscribe to newsletters like, YnotMaster's. Recently, they featured a 2 part article (sorry, no longer available for review) focused on the Bush / Ashcroft agenda to shut down adult business on the very abstract grounds of obscenity definitions.
Connor Young offers an articulate view on how the conservative political bias has approached its attack thru dishonest, militant and hypocritical means. Depending on the U.S. President, the industry tends to thrive or survive. Being that it is a voting year, if you are a consumer who enjoys your porn--think hard and ACT on your right to vote.
However, I do believe much of the Adult industry's political scrutiny would vanish if we could find a way to keep our Adult Free Speech away from the General Public ( kids ) Audience, this includes Television, Movies, Music and Games--All art and media plays a role in this--Not just pornography.
A very small part of Young's article was focused on the harmlessness or lack of proof, there of, that adult media has on our kids--so, I wrote in a note (sorry, also no longer available for review) challenging this somewhat. One of YnotMaster's Moderators, Rochard, offered a stealthy reply defending that mainstream media was more damaging to our Kids. I'm sorry, but is that lacking some substance? The point IS, that it is all a problem. And Parents should have some easier choices and options about if and how their kids are exposed.
I am a fairly liberal parent and so thru my choices my kids are probably going to be exposed to mature matter sooner than others, but that doesn't mean every parent has to be like me. It's not that easy to just turn it off--and we know it.
I can see my 10 and 13 year old boy's interests moving from flatulence to boobies. And so, I take a lot of time to train them in values of self-restraint and responsible gentlemanly behavior. I really do not think that I need the influence of all this blatantly sexual and violent material to fuel them with energy that is premature for them to deal with.
Our society expects them to keep their sexuality in check until they are 18 and to solve problems by means other than violence. While, I don't believe in prudism--I don't think these influences "nourish" our kid's efforts to follow the societal plan.
If I had it my way, The Adult Industry would self regulate thru an easy invitation to mark their sites with urls that were lead by xxx instead of www. This would make search criteria incredibly easy for schools, libraries, parents, etc. No material greater than PG material would be permitted to public view. This would not eliminate the portion of offerings posted by rebels--but maybe it would be easier to excuse black balling their resistance.
Things don't have to stop being free or independent either, because if a credit card or check can be verified--why can't there be some global cooperative structure about age verification? Would it just open another fraud can-of-worms? Are adults too skittish to admit who they are thru an ID check? We demand it at our bars and book stores. Perhaps, I am just too Idealistic.
I don't believe in censorship--but I do believe in keeping mature material protected from the immature. Since, the Adult Industry is not going to help us with that--As parents, we are on our own. So, you can look at my site and call me a hypocrite. But, as long as I am forced to play by the current rules...I don't see that I have options that will permit my site to be independent AND survive.
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