rb@cci632.UUCP (Rex Ballard) (10/07/86)
>Investigate is nice harmless word, but you *seem* to want to investigate this >possibility by removing an *unspecified* range of materials from everyone's >accessibility. >Your reference here seems to be to pedophilia, but you have >said similar things about violent porn, which you shade together sometimes >with so-called "psychologically violent" porn, which may include Playboy, but >you call us overreacting if we mention Playboy, 'cause the courts have >already ruled it OK... can you begin to see that it might be your responsibility >that we are (I am) a little confused about just what you are arguing for???? This is a common censorship tactic, though Mark may not be aware he is using it. "Child buggering" is almost universally not accepted. By creating the image of exposing a 5-year old to sexual abuse, or to porn, the basis for a "we need something" opinion is formed. By creating the image of a violent physically abusive rape being glamourized, filmed, or caused by some form of porn, the basis of another "let's do something" opinion is formed. There are hundreds of cases of child molesting, and equally numerable cases of physically abusive rape. It is so easy to get arguments for either more or less censorship. It still gets good reviews on the road though. Then comes the mandate to "do something" among voters, politicians, and even scientists. In the process of deciding "what to do", the decision makers get broader and broader in their definition of "Children", "violence", and "Pornography". Eventually, a "child" becomes anyone under the age of 21 (because some local governments have legally defined them as such), "violence" becomes any form of sexually explicit depiction, and pornography becomes any form of nudity, sexually suggestive attire, or activity not encountered in normal daily life (This is why a shoestring bikini is rated "G", but a 4 garter full length corset, seamed stockings and panties is rated "R", or even "X"). This is the second time I have lived through the "porn crackdown". In the first one, people were incensed that in "I am curious yellow" 20 seconds of "Actual SEX" was shown. To heighten the drama, fundamentalists were taking their 5 year old kids to see it, claiming ignorance. The famous quote of the day from ratings/censorship advocates was something like "Parents send their kids to see 'Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolf' thinking its a nature show", indeed, they had documented evidence of several hundred cases of this. The whole thing was orchestated by one of the big-time evangelists of the day, like Billy Graham or Oral Roberts or someone like that. The end result. Virginia Wolf is a Shakespearean classic compared to the language and situations depicted in the avarage "PG" rated movies. "G" rated movies are mostly re-releases of old Disney films. If there is any "Actual Sex", the film is automatically rated X. The average "XXX" rated film (a fictitious rating by the way), now has a whole 20 seconds of coherant dialogue, a whole 3 minutes where the performers aren't totally naked, and over twenty minutes of even more explicit "close-ups" and "zoom-ins" than the scene that caused the censorship movement in the first place. About the only facet that still stands today, was the contriversy over "Myra Breckenridge", the story of a transexual's transition from male to female, including scenes of the male attractively cross-dressed. Did you know that "Uncle Miltie" was taken off the air because of this? Transexualism and transvestite activities are still the "ultimate taboo" in american televison, film and "general consumption print". According to one rumor, the North Carolina "porn movement" was prompted by parents seeing Boy George on MTV!! Again, the ugly head of censorship, with it's threat of even more and harsher restricitons, raises it's ugly head. The targets haven't changed that much. The tactics haven't either. The result, unfortunately, will probably be as bad, or worse this time, as they were the last time. Did you know that Ben Franklin, Paul Revere, and several other presses sympathetic to the Independence movement were shut down on the basis of "pornography"? In particular, dirty limericks about loyalists and King George. >> from Mole End Mark Terribile > - Phil Rex B.