richardt@orstcs.UUCP (richardt) (09/20/85)
<all hail the mighty line-ea<munch, munch> >Richard Threadgill (orstcs!richardt) rambles on about: >> ... studies that ... link Porn and violence. >Explain. Is that an established cause/effect? A number of studies indicate some link between pornography and violence. Would-be pornography censors chose to see this as a cause/effect relationship. I personally disagree with this line of reasoning, however dealing with this issue alone could take several articles. My point is still valid regardless of whether or not this is a causal relationship. >> Pornography does not, in and of itself, cause violent and anti-social >> behavior. >I agree with your argument but this is vaguely reminicent of the NRA -- >"Guns don't kill..." [I favour much stronger gun control.] To the extent that it goes, the NRA argument is accurate. However, there is a very fundamental difference between pornography and guns: guns can be dangerous simply because someone doesn't understand them, whereas porn is only dangerous in the hands of a (mentally) sick individual -- be they male or female. >> Most Men (and Women, for that matter) have Submission/Domination fantasies, >> of one variety or another. >Wait a minute. As I say to my (computer science) theory instructors: "Prove it." A reasonable amount of psychological research bears this statement out, although I couldn't site exact sources at this time. However, perhaps I should have qualified this. The actual situation is closer to: Most people have Submission or Domination fantasies of one form or another at some point in their lives. This in itself is an (apparently minor) psychological aberration in itself. However, these fantasies usually remain just that: fantasies. BTW, you might note the S & M jokes going past on net.jokes as an example of this. >> I do know that far too much of the world population is very sick. >So I'm not the only one who has noticed this. True. You, Me, a large number of Social Scientists, and a lot of SF writers ave been maintaining this for while. Unfortunately, it looks like they're right. >> ... banning Pornography, or Guns, or Alchohol ... will not work. >Perhaps licensing? All of these three (vices) are currently regulated by >age. You have to take a driver's test, right? There surely are no gun >tests. Is it unreasonable? (seriously). The problem with licensing: it works almost as well as outright ban. For example, if licensing were effective we wouldn't have teenage alchoholism, children getting blown away when playing with real guns, or 12 year olds going to 'R' rated movies. And you wouldn't have driving-without-a-license citations. Actually, I believe some gun licensing agencies do require that you show a minimum competency with a weapon, as well as the no felonies, etc. regs. >> ... this society is doomed. I just hope that interstellar colonization >> becomes viable before civilization collapses around our ears. It may be >> a cop out, but I'm taking the first slow boat out. >This is seriously pessimistic. Too bad I agree. If they're selling tickets, >save me a seat. >/David Luner Actually, even though this society is heading for the dump at warp speed, this planet, race, and (to a very limited extent) culture may have some chance of surviving. We'll see if the paranoids blow up the world before population pressure finally starts fighting back. Of course, the new plague may be hitting in a way which was unexpected... The degenerative diseases are showing up more often, as well as the fact that Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (the ever popular AIDS) is rapidly reaching epidemic proportions. If these bring down the population pressure enough, the world may have a good chance of survival. I suspect that Earth is something of a dead end however. That isn't pessimistic; It's just time for humanity to start growing up. orstcs!richardt "The Apparition" Richard Threadgill 104 S 20th <-- SnailMail address soon to be changed Philomath Or 97370 "All of them are in tune, the ones who really love you, walk together outside the wall Some hand in hand, Some gathered together in bands; The bleeding hearts, and the artists Make their stand And when they've given you their all, Some stagger and fall After all, it's not easy, Banging your heart against some mad bugger's wall" -Pink Floyd, "The "Wall"