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Add to My Yahoo! uses of obscenity and abuses of erotica: introduction to book

I wrote a book on porn because sexy pictures and songs and shows are sources of great power. The content of popular culture and media, whether erotic or obscene, reflects deep biological, psychological, social and even spiritual patterns that require our attention. We can shape those patterns ourselves or we can allow other interests to do it for us (which means in their own best interest). With progressing technology the stakes in our sexuality are beyond the hopes of any Pope or Playboy.

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We Owe It to Future Generations to Participate in Debate. In trying to determine what is appropriate in terms of the consumption and display of sexually explicit material, it is imperative that we take risks and participate in the public forum on sexuality. Many new moral and legal issues now confront us, especially in the realm of digital porn. The central question here is not simply whether porn is harmful, nor how government should function in regulating porn, nor even whether the whole point is moot given the advent of the world-wide-web. What is crucial is whether we are inhibited in our ability to produce and consume good material (i.e. the erotic), and whether we are able to participate in public arguments over the how and why of censoring bad material (i.e. the obscene). Whether we enjoy erotica or debate censorship, we are engaging in political expression and are contributing to the larger dialogue regarding cultural values. We rely upon such discourses for attaining and maintaining democratic principles, and they serve as a yardstick by which we measure our success. In many societies, the notion of being accountable to posterity is at the heart of the entire moral system.
Dealing Honestly With Sexuality Requires a Balanced Consideration of Conflicting Views In all discussion of sexuality and of what constitutes normal sexual behavior there is no truth independent of power relations, no truth without a politics of truth . 1 Yet as an artifact porn predates any political attempts at regulation it is ephemeral and ubiquitous because sex is one of our greatest preoccupations. Eroticism is presumably even older than prostitution and explicit depictions of sexual organs and behavior, obscene or otherwise, can be found throughout history. Stylized representations of large penises and buxom women presumably had not only a functional role (early sex toys?) but also served other purposes. Such artifacts help to define a culture, perhaps positively, as in the case of fertility symbols, or negatively, as when they signify depravity and obscenity.
History Shows that We Forget Past Victories and Defeats Walter Kendrick argues that we keep on fighting the same old battles incessantly 2 because the issue of porn has never been openly addressed. Perhaps there are no final answers, and for sure the issues are complicated, in part, because the scientific and legal facts keep changing. However, basic questions still need to be addressed through personal, creative and even humorous dialogue. Walter Lippmann notes that it is not possible to be indifferent 3 about important issues like divorce, contraception, monogamy, and prostitution. Likewise with porn, we cannot just abstain from judgment, though we can withhold it. We can dismiss the issue saying I do not know about it, live and let live, I am sickened and angered by it, I profit by it, I enjoy it. Or we can feel threatened, puzzled, intimidated or intrigued by porn, sometimes even simultaneously. We can insist that the law should not enforce any restrictions whatsoever, or argue strenuously for more censorship. Either way, as George Orwell says, it s difficult to discuss obscenity because people are afraid of appearing either scandalized or not scandalized enough . 4 There is an urge to identify with one group or another because otherwise we fear getting caught in the crossfire. Polarization leads to incessant squabbling, not debate and resolution, and when a single aspect of life, our sexuality in this case, bears the full force of a major ideological battle, the results are truly obscene. More Details 1 (Lacombe, 1994) p. 13 2 (Kendrick, 1987) 3 (Lippmann, 1929) 4 (Arcand) 1982. p. 40

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