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Porn Is Like Heroin In The Brain
Focus On The Family ^ | Nov. 19, 2004 | Stuart Shepard

Posted on 11/19/2004 3:07:51 PM PST by Lindykim

Porn Like Heroin in the Brain by Stuart Shepard, correspondent

Senate committee discusses pornography and the First Amendment.

Experts on pornography's effects on brain chemistry testified at a Senate hearing this week where a key point of discussion was whether porn is a form of speech protected by the First Amendment or addictive material that should be unlawful.

Psychiatrist Jeffrey Satinover described how pornography is analogous to cigarettes, noting that "it is a very carefully designed delivery system for evoking a tremendous flood within the brain of endogenous opioids." It's time, he added, to stop regarding it as simply a form of expression. "Modern science," Satinover said, "allows us to understand that the underlying nature of an addiction to pornography is chemically nearly identical to a heroin addiction."

Dr. Mary Anne Layden with the Center for Cognitive Therapy at the University of Pennsylvania explained how a pornographic image is burned into the brain's pathways.

"That image is in your brain forever," she explained. "If that was an addictive substance, you, at any point for the rest of your life, could in a nanosecond draw it up."

Dr. Judith Reisman, president of the Institute for Media Education, called on the Senate to take action against pornography, saying it's time to mandate that law enforcement begin to collect all data and pornographic materials found in the possession of anyone involved in criminal activity. Doing so, she added, would yield data showing whether pornography is being used as a how-to manual for sex crimes.

"The evidence the panelists presented showed an overwhelming harm from pornography," said Daniel Weiss, media and sexuality analyst with Focus on the Family. He hopes the Senate will turn the evidence into action.

TAKE ACTION/FOR MORE INFORMATION If you think Congress should be taking serious action against pornography, you can start by thanking Sen. Sam Brownback for calling the hearing, then contact your representatives in Congress and let them know what you think. For help in contacting your elected representatives, please see our CitizenLink Action Center.

Also, to learn more about one person's struggles with pornography, we suggest the resource "An Affair of the Mind: One Woman's Courageous Battle to Salvage Her Family From the Devastation of Pornography." Author Laurie Hall shares her courageous struggle to protect herself and two children from her husband's addiction to pornography.


TOPICS: Culture/Society
KEYWORDS: addiction; brain; fotf; jennajameson; pantload; porn
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To: Antoninus; Sam the Sham

Your arguments were compelling. If I wasn't already convinced, I would be now!


261 posted on 11/21/2004 8:08:34 PM PST by little jeremiah (Moral absolutes are what make humans human.)
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To: little jeremiah; Antoninus; DirtyHarryY2K

I have to hit the sack now, but it has been enjoyable reasoning with you.

Good night.


262 posted on 11/21/2004 8:10:09 PM PST by Sam the Sham
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To: little jeremiah
Ever read the part of the Constitution which says that the powers not enumerated were left UP TO THE STATES?????

From the article:

Dr. Judith Reisman, president of the Institute for Media Education, called on the Senate to take action against pornography, saying it's time to mandate that law enforcement begin to collect all data and pornographic materials found in the possession of anyone involved in criminal activity.

They're not talking about leaving anything up to the States.

263 posted on 11/21/2004 8:14:02 PM PST by tacticalogic ("Oh bother!" said Pooh, as he chambered his last round.)
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To: mowkeka
The point is pornography is very, very addictive. And most of the porno out there isn't your cute, bunnyrabbit Playboy stuff. Some of it is cruel, disturbing and outright dangerous.

And you know this... how? Enquiring minds want to know.

264 posted on 11/21/2004 8:14:37 PM PST by Ichneumon
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To: trek
All the Senators and Congressmen are hip deep in the stuff.

Not a pretty word picture. I may have to poke out my minds eye. I keep seeing Hillary looking at porn. Yuk!

265 posted on 11/21/2004 8:14:47 PM PST by jamaly
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To: All

A couple of relevant quotes:

"It is impossible that a nation of infidels or idolaters should be a nation of free men. It is when a people forget God that tyrants forge their chains. A vitiated state of morals, a corrupted public conscience, are incompatible with freedom." --Patrick Henry

"Men are qualified for civil liberty in exact proportion to their disposition to put moral chains upon their own appetites--in proportion as their love of justice is above their rapacity;--in proportion as their soundness and sobriety of understanding is above their vanity and presumption;--in proportion as they are more disposed to listen to the counsels of the wise and good, in preference to the flattery of knaves. Society cannot exist, unless a controlling power upon the will and appetite is placed somewhere: and the less of it there is within, the more there must be without. It is ordained in the eternal constitution of things, that men of intemperate minds can not be free. Their passions forge their fetters."
-- Edmund Burke


266 posted on 11/21/2004 8:14:54 PM PST by little jeremiah (Moral absolutes are what make humans human.)
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To: Rytwyng
I beg to differ. I still, at 41, have perfect photographic memory of porn that I found when I was 12.

...and you spent how many hours looking at them?

267 posted on 11/21/2004 8:16:17 PM PST by Ichneumon
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To: tacticalogic

Am I Dr. Judith Reisman?

How about if the states had the right to restrict or even prohibit the production, distribution, sale and purchase of pornography? How does that sound?


268 posted on 11/21/2004 8:16:59 PM PST by little jeremiah (Moral absolutes are what make humans human.)
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To: Sam the Sham

Thanks.

I always learn when I practice with good marksmen.


269 posted on 11/21/2004 8:18:28 PM PST by little jeremiah (Moral absolutes are what make humans human.)
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To: PeterFinn

If porn's affects were strictly affecting just the viewer, perhaps you would be right. But porn also affects those who participate in it including under-age children. Plus porn seems to induce a few more unstable individules onto more vile and even murderous activities (a la Ted Bundy).!


270 posted on 11/21/2004 8:18:35 PM PST by mdmathis6
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To: little jeremiah
Am I Dr. Judith Reisman?

How about if the states had the right to restrict or even prohibit the production, distribution, sale and purchase of pornography? How does that sound?

Is the subject of this thread you or the article?

271 posted on 11/21/2004 8:20:26 PM PST by tacticalogic ("Oh bother!" said Pooh, as he chambered his last round.)
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To: tacticalogic
They're not talking about leaving anything up to the States.

With the advent of the internet, the Feds have to get involved for any real reform to be workable. The internet crosses state and national boundaries. I propose the following on the federal level:

-> Restricting all porn to a certain web domain (.xxx or some such) that can easily be blocked by everyone's ISP. Any foreign site that doesn't conform may be blocked. The operators of domestic sites that don't comply will be shut down and subject to fines and jail time.

-> Huge fines and jail time for those who send unsolicited pornographic spam email.

I consider the above the unlawful intrusion of smut-peddlers into my home--imposing their immorality on me and my family. As a result, they should be held criminally liable.

Does this sound unreasonable to you?
272 posted on 11/21/2004 8:22:27 PM PST by Antoninus (Santorum in '08)
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To: tacticalogic

Oh, you don't think I should be making comments on the thread?

You mentioned to (ahem), me, what Dr. Reisman wants. So I naturally asked you if you thought I am she.

I am not in favor of federal laws that do complicated stuff like that.

I am in favor of states and communities not being hogtied by a leftist SCOTUS and evil ACLU from enacting laws or statutes that they want to enact. I am in favor of more states' rights, and less nanny government throttling and frogmarching by the ACLU and its minions.


273 posted on 11/21/2004 8:23:50 PM PST by little jeremiah (Moral absolutes are what make humans human.)
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To: Antoninus

Those are good ideas.


274 posted on 11/21/2004 8:24:29 PM PST by little jeremiah (Moral absolutes are what make humans human.)
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To: SaltyJoe; All


It's not necessarily what goes into you that defiles you but what comes out of you. Christ said"It is not what goes into a man that defiles him but what comes out of him, for what goes into him goes into the (draught)digestive system." It is how a man chooses to act that defiles him!

Like my grandma said"Bats may fly thru your belfry, but you don't have to let them make a nest!"

Proverbs says "Guard the heart, for OUT of it flows the issues of life"

Many of us here have come across or stumbled upon sensuous materials in our child-hoods that we remember. Yet I doubt there are many serial rapists among us!


275 posted on 11/21/2004 8:26:57 PM PST by mdmathis6
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To: Antoninus
Does this sound unreasonable to you?

It sounds impractical, but I have a technical background and see lots of potential problems in how to implement it. I'm also something of an originalist with regard to the Constitution, and I don't know of any enumerated power of the federal government that would cover this.

276 posted on 11/21/2004 8:29:08 PM PST by tacticalogic ("Oh bother!" said Pooh, as he chambered his last round.)
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To: Lindykim
This thread is too depressing to me. I don't like porn, but my marital relationship is difficult.

I feel like my wife is addicted to criticizing me. I think she gets an endorphin-like rush for using certain critical phrases that she has used during 10 years of our marriage. These key phrases are burned in both of our brains.

Today she called me into the kitchen to show me some plastic placemats she had placed on top of the gas burners. She wanted to point them out to me to make sure I wouldn't be too stupid to turn on the gas burners with them still on top, because of course they would melt and burn. Upon my direct questioning she confirmed that she actually thinks I am that stupid when I cook my eggs before I go to work.

There's a verse in the bible where it talks about the criticisms of a wife being corrosive to a man, and believe me I feel that every day now.

I should not have entered this room...I don't want to hear the discussion.

277 posted on 11/21/2004 8:30:59 PM PST by ReveBM
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To: little jeremiah
Oh, you don't think I should be making comments on the thread?

You can make all the comments you want. If you want to discuss a comment I've made to someone else, I'll be happy to, but it's going to be in the context and subject of that comment. If you can't do that, then leave it alone.

278 posted on 11/21/2004 8:32:55 PM PST by tacticalogic ("Oh bother!" said Pooh, as he chambered his last round.)
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To: BlueNgold

WOW! This is Ann as she should be! I wanna see her on Hannity and Colmes looking like that. I know it's a photoshop job, but it's answer to the prayers of many of us.


279 posted on 11/21/2004 8:36:51 PM PST by willyboyishere
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To: Antoninus
I wrote: Since 1993, rapes have declined by 60%; attempted rapes by 71.4%; and sexual assaults by 37.5%, according to NCVS figures.

Antoninus wrote: Do yourself a favor and look up the stats on STDs. Including the trans-condom virus HPV which infects up to 30% of sexually active women currently.

If you have a point to make, then provide the stats and make your point, as I did with post #91. I'm not going to do your work for you.

Still think the "Culture of Porn" is a great idea?

I showed that you cannot make a statistical claim that porn leads to sex crimes. You can show a correlation of increasing porn with fewer sex crimes, but that does NOT mean porn causes fewer sex crimes.

Do you see the distinction?

280 posted on 11/21/2004 8:41:46 PM PST by Ken H
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