Anti-porn Groups Demand Ban on Skin Mags [in Military]

Military.com ^ | 11/6/2007 | UPI

[mngran2]

Dozens of anti-pornography groups asked the U.S. Congress to force the Pentagon to keep sexually related material from being sold in military stores.

Pornographic material was banned from being sold in military establishments nearly 10 years ago, but Christian group American Family Association claimed that adult fare, including Penthouse and Playboy material, is still being sold in the stores, USA Today reported Monday.

The Pentagon deemed those materials aren't explicit enough to pull from its stores.

"They're saying 'we're not selling stuff that's sexually explicit' -- and we say it's pornography," Donald Wildmon, head of the American Family Association, told USA Today.

A letter-writing campaign launched Friday aimed to convince Congress to "get the Pentagon to obey the law," he added.

The Military Honor and Decency Act of 1996 is supposed to bar "sexually explicit material" from being sold in stores on military bases, the newspaper said. It defines porn as "the dominant theme of which depicts or describes nudity" or sexual activities "in a lascivious way."

[mngran2]

Hmmm...I agree pornography is extremely bad and can be a hazardous addiction that destroys families and spirits, but something tells me it's such an ingrained part of military service that it's not going to be stopped. I wonder what military chaplains would say about this. I would tend to trust their judgment.

[Mr Rogers]

This Act was breathtakingly stupid. It reflects the mentality that our military is made up of children.

[pissant]

Find another issue, folks. If our soldiers want to look at Penthouse, so be it.

[Crim]

LMAO....those arent even porn...

Ever stumble blindly around the internet lately?

This is where groups with good intentions jump the shark...

I heard some roads were paved with them...

[ari-freedom]

well don’t try to post those pics on FR

[Wolverine]

Marriott and Hilton Hotels

[TomGuy]

If a person is old enough and mature enough to join the military and possibly fight in wars to protect the nation, etc., they don't need American Family Association telling them what mags they should or should not be allowed to purchase.

[NY Attitude]

We are asking our military to go uut and kill the enemy in various and assundry ways yet we are asking that they not be allowed to look at Playboy etc. The entire thing is stupid.

[Cobra64]

[Tailgunner Joe]

What a dilemma for libertarians! Do they love porn so much that they actually want the government to be in the business of selling it?

[pissant]

that looks comfy

[ari-freedom]

a libertarian would probably want the military stores to be contracted out to private sector

[Squawk 8888]

Well, the drinking age of 21 is evidence enough that there are many who seek to infantilize *all* adults, not just military members, so I’m not the least bit surprised by this.

[matthew fuller]

"go uut and kill the enemy in various and assundry ways "

This is series and it's gotta stop!

[Squawk 8888]

Actually, I’m surprised that they haven’t been contracted out. I’ve seen lots of other private businesses (mainly restaurants) operating on bases both here and in the USA so it could make sense.

[fr_freak]

Find another issue, folks. If our soldiers want to look at Penthouse, so be it.

I consider this to be a trivial issue, myself, but the issue is not whether our military guys can look at porno. It is whether military stores (presumably AAFES) can sell it. The military guys would still be free to go to any civilian store in the world and buy whatever they want.

Buried in this trivial issue is a very relevant question: despite the fact that we may consider banning pornography to be prudish, if there is a law in place specifically to ban pornography from military stores, then why the hell isn't that law being followed? Either repeal the law or enforce it. Having laws on the books that everyone ignores simply destroys respect for the law in general, and I would think that one of the places we would least like to see lawlessness promoted is in our military.

[allmendream]

About half the people I ever saw buying skin mags at the PX were women with military style hair cuts. If they ban them how else will we receive confirmation that they are a thespian? ;)

[pissant]

Penthouse isn’t porn. It’s just naked chicks.

[Crim]

Duh.

[Keith in Iowa]

Can you define what ‘porn’ is?

I for one, do not want Wildman et al defining what is porn and what is not.