Originally Posted by 2HousePlague

FACT: The only thing that's kept us legal is Free Speech.


Quote:
"The Constitution's framers believed that freedom of inquiry and liberty of expression were the hallmarks of a democratic society.

But historically, at times of national stress -- real or imagined -- First Amendment rights come under enormous pressure. During the Red Scare" of the early 1920s, thousands were deported for their political views. During the McCarthy period, the infamous blacklist ruined lives and careers. Today, the creators, producers and distributers of popular culture are often blamed for the nation?s deep social problems. Calls for censorship threaten to erode free speech."

>>> more



FACT: To circumvent the Free Speech Defense, the argument against the continuing, unrestrained distribution of pornography (as provided for under the auspices of the First Amendment) has changed. The threat of pornography has been re-characterized, sharpened and connected to a "victimhood" that will rally unprecedented support for the censorhsip of porn. The nebulous mechanics via which pornography, it was previously claimed by our detractors, eroded moral standards and therefore posed a National Threat, have been replaced by a suggested relationship of direct cause and effect: They are saying Porn Ruins Kids.

FACT: In response to this new angle of attack, our Industry has turned its attention to the mechanics of effect, the ways in which online pornography and minors intersect -- and so we've been busy putting padlocks and fences and "warnings" of various types in a perimter all around us and what we do. Why are we doing this? Is it because we believe that Porn Ruins Kids?

FACT: We have taken the "FREE" out of Free Speech. Damn, we're good -- Do a Google search on "big tits" or "hairy sluts" or "shaved pussy", and I bet I'll see my friends & colleagues all over that mofo SERP. Nice job, really -- I know it's hard work and took great cunning and intelligence to funnel most of the world's porn-seeking traffic into our front yard. And you have my admiration, also, for making your sites and tours as effective as they are at converting traffic into cash. But the problem is... I don't see a whole lot of "Expression" in that "Speech". It's all starting to look rather HOMOGENEOUS and uninspired -- a little too commercially motivated -- you know what I mean -- ? Combine that with an arguable monopoly on porn-related traffic, and our argument for protection starts to look pretty weak.

FACT: Free Speech is Intended to protect Free Thought. So where is the thought in porn? Now go BACK and read Halcyon and Harlan, and see if a light bulb goes off.

OPINION: Since coming into this industry two years ago, I have been more than just occasionally disturbed by the appearance of what I would have to describe in these subtle terms: BIGOTRY, INTOLERANCE, HATE on this board, on other boards, at tradeshows -- in this business, is my point. Of course, I would be a hypocrite if I asked those of you who might judge or condemn a person for his or her own sexual preferences to STFU. So, I won't. But I will say this: There is an INESCAPABLE HYPOCRISY in using Free Speech to protect your livelihood, when you believe certain people don't have a right to be who they are and express the things that make them who they are. That is a hypocrisy that exists like a cancer within our industry, that keeps us divided and therefore less strong than we could be. That is a hypocrisy that pervades our products and our sites, that creates an argument for re-classifying pornography as something less than Speech.

Change. Diversify. Let's get some speech in that porn, that it might stay free --







2HP