| |
Justice Department in War Against Porn, chilling effects hit SuicideGirls
by Rattle at 4:56 pm EDT, Sep 25, 2005 |
According to the Washington Post, the new anti-obscenity squad, which will consist of eight agents, a supervisor, and assorted staff, will be responsible for accumulating evidence to use against those that produce and distribute criminally obscene content. So what constitutes criminal obscenity, and how does that relate to our first amendment rights? Under current American law, the Miller test is the means by which the courts determine if content is obscene and consequently not eligible for first amendment protection. The Miller test evaluates the literary, artistic, political, and scientific value of content as well as contemporary community standards. If content or expression is well within accepted community standards or it has intrinsic value, it does not constitute criminal obscenity. According to an electronic memo from FBI headquarters, established legal precedents indicate that conviction is most likely in cases where the content "includes bestiality, urination, defecation, as well as sadistic and masochistic behavior."
The War Against Porn rages on, to the dismay of anyone with a realistic view of civil liberties and free expression. I'm all for hanging folks from the trees that exploit minors. Sure, lets pull the stockades out of the basement, line them on both sides of the DC Mall, and stick the child pornographers in them. Of course, we do have the 8th amendment, so I'm not about to hop into the car with a bushel of tomatoes and head to DC.. Someone at the Justice Department needs to read over the 1st. Wait, correction.. Several people at the Justice Department needs to have sessions similar to what they did to the guy in A Clockwork Orange. Rather than pure scenes of violence, they need to be shown cops breaking up raves, the Waco raid, feds seizing fetish pornography collections, all manors of law enforcement doing illegal searches, et cetera, you get the idea.. Occasionally the soundtrack of explosions and screeching metal would stop, some heavenly music would start, the 1st and 4th amendment would scroll on the screen, they would be given a chance to blink, and then the cycle would repeat. After their "session", they would be forced to sit in a room for an hour to contemplate, its walls lined with plasma displays showing the events of September 11th, the Oklahoma City bombings, rooms filled with meth heads, et cetera. Maybe they would come out the other side with an image in their heads of what's important. If you want to post pictures of yourself getting peed on, go for it. I have nothing against consenting adults doing nasty fetish crap, and neither should anyone else. Its a form of expression. Granted, its one focused on sexuality, rather than the more palatable ideas we are used to defending. Its still a form of expression, that many consider art, and the people's right to do it and share it should be protected. I jus... [ Read More (0.2k in body) ] |
| |
RE: Justice Department in War Against Porn, chilling effects hit SuicideGirls
by MaxieZ at 7:06 pm EDT, Sep 25, 2005 |
Rattle wrote: In the most recent blow against evil pornography, the feds have pointed the chilling effects laser at SuicideGirls, forcing them to take down
Do you have any information on how they were forced to take the images down? I'm dug around and it looks like they were simply removing them to avoid any problem. I mean I don't doubt it, but I'd like some more info. |
|
| | |
RE: Justice Department in War Against Porn, chilling effects hit SuicideGirls
by Rattle at 7:33 pm EDT, Sep 25, 2005 |
Do you have any information on how they were forced to take the images down? I'm dug around and it looks like they were simply removing them to avoid any problem.
I got that impression as well. I believe this fits the definition of a chilling effect. They were clearly pressed to exercise a form of prior restraint. This is a problem. |
|
| |
RE: Justice Department in War Against Porn, chilling effects hit SuicideGirls
by Decius at 7:49 pm EDT, Sep 25, 2005 |
Rattle wrote:
In the most recent blow against evil pornography, the feds have pointed the chilling effects laser at SuicideGirls, forcing them to take down a number of photo-sets and individual photos.
It doesn't look like the Feds actually DID anything. They are pre-emptively taking photosets down in order to stave off prosecution. But the fundies have already won. If I were running SG I'd stand my ground and fight rather then wimping out like this. The linked article is a good one, particularly in the way that it juxtiposes Alan Ginsberg with the rambling incoherent tripe from WorldNetDaily in which the author argues that if you're going to allow obsenity you have to allow homeless people to be murdered. Fucking stupid. How can you possibly be that fucking stupid?! (U:Benjamin Shapiro goes to Harvard Law School and he can't wrap his mind around the idea that that homeless people are people and therefore there would be a state interest in protecting them from murder in a rights based society?! Man, law school must be easier then I thought! I hope he doesn't skip the classes that explain what inalienable means.) The 60s are not ancient history. If they came for the poets then, they'll come for the poets now. Republican MemeStreamers who are wondering why I have a problem with their politcal party can look no futher then the coming crackdown on thoughtcrime. (And, yes, Hillary Clinton, thats why I don't like you, too, and will not vote for you.) |
|
| |
RE: Justice Department in War Against Porn, chilling effects hit SuicideGirls
by SeriouslyUGuys at 8:17 pm EDT, Sep 25, 2005 |
Rattle wrote:
In the most recent blow against evil pornography, the feds have pointed the chilling effects laser at SuicideGirls, forcing them to take down a number of photo-sets and individual photos.
It doesn't look like the Feds actually DID anything. They are pre-emptively taking photosets down in order to stave off prosecution. But the fundies have already won. If I were running SG I'd stand my ground and fight rather then wimping out like this. The linked article is a good one, particularly in the way that it juxtiposes Alan Ginsberg with the rambling incoherent tripe from WorldNetDaily in which the author argues that if you're going to allow obsenity you have to allow homeless people to be murdered. Fucking stupid. How can you possibly be that fucking stupid?! The 60s are not ancient history. If they came for the poets then, they'll come for the poets now. Republican MemeStreamers who are wondering why I have a problem with their politcal party can look no futher then the coming crackdown on thoughtcrime. (And, yes, Hillary Clinton, thats why I don't like you, too, and will not vote for you.) |
|
| | |
RE: Justice Department in War Against Porn, chilling effects hit SuicideGirls
by Catonic at 3:20 pm EDT, Sep 26, 2005 |
seriouslyuguys wrote: Rattle wrote:
In the most recent blow against evil pornography, the feds have pointed the chilling effects laser at SuicideGirls, forcing them to take down a number of photo-sets and individual photos.
It doesn't look like the Feds actually DID anything. They are pre-emptively taking photosets down in order to stave off prosecution. But the fundies have already won. If I were running SG I'd stand my ground and fight rather then wimping out like this.
Sounds like Prior Restraint to me. |
|
| | | |
RE: Justice Department in War Against Porn, chilling effects hit SuicideGirls
by ubernoir at 7:13 pm EDT, Sep 26, 2005 |
Catonic wrote: seriouslyuguys wrote: Rattle wrote:
In the most recent blow against evil pornography, the feds have pointed the chilling effects laser at SuicideGirls, forcing them to take down a number of photo-sets and individual photos.
It doesn't look like the Feds actually DID anything. They are pre-emptively taking photosets down in order to stave off prosecution. But the fundies have already won. If I were running SG I'd stand my ground and fight rather then wimping out like this.
Sounds like Prior Restraint to me.
I was refered to a piece about the owner of Suicide Girls by the Sensual Liberation Army site in which although looking superficially alternative the Suicide Girls site owner is in person quite right wing so perhaps he is only out to make money rather than a member of the libertarian right.
Surely attempts to stop this sort of consensual material will continue and needs perhaps to go to court to reaffirm 1st Ammendment rights. The argument about community standards is strange. Surely the 1st ammendment is to protect minority voices against majoritarianism. The question arises, if the shape of the Supreme Court changes because liberals on the Court retire or die, will a real threat to 1st ammendment rights occur. |
|
|
|
