Mark Hoofnagle has a PhD in physiology from the University of Virginia and is currently a 3rd year medical student. His interest in denialism concerns the use of denialist tactics to confuse public understanding of scientific knowledge.
They're fighting for our freedoms. And in order to fight for our freedoms, thousands of miles away from home, thousands of miles from their sweethearts and husbands/wives, they must be kept pure and without sin. Therefore, Christian groups demand the military not allow PX stores to sell porn (aka Playboy).
A Christian advocacy group is encouraging military families, and other concerned citizens, to write letters to the Defense Department expressing concern over the recent decision by the Pentagon that allows the sale of certain adult magazines at military exchanges. ... Trueman says the Alliance Defense Fund is encouraging citizens to get involved in this fight over this pornography policy. "What we're going to do is try to get more and more complaints into the military about this policy. Because in justifying this policy by the military what they've said [is] they've had few complaints from families about the sale of pornography in the military," he says.Trueman says sexual harassment and other problems in the military are exacerbated by pornography. He says this new policy, of deeming magazines like Penthouse and Playboy as not sexually explicit, counters common sense.
Gambling on military bases is ok though, because what could they do better with their hard-earned cash? Surely, not send it home to family or save it, instead it's best if casinos on bases ensure their paychecks end up right back in military coffers. It's the best possible situation, because then they have less to spend on porn.
So support these heroic family values groups and their all-important crusade to keep our fighting men and women in Iraq, adults all, free from access to magazines that might show nudity. They must remain chaste over there, so that we can freely abuse ourselves over here.
Comments
Geezo... the LEAST we can do is allow them a little pleasure.
If Christian groups have their way... christening the soldiers before they leave... keeping them pure of heart... makes them sound a bit like they're headed off to a holy war.
And last I checked, not all soldiers were Christian. Perhaps if they don't want to read the articles... they shouldn't buy it.
Posted by: Sniderman | September 21, 2007 7:34 AM
Right, ...read the articles.
I'm going to be writing my congressman and senators in support of this initiative to see if I can assist in the inevitable backlash.
Posted by: Ted | September 21, 2007 8:30 AM
As a military brat, my father was a career soldier, I can tell you that Playboy and Penthouse were available at all military base post exchanges (PXs) I have ever been too and I am now 46. I do know that eventually Penthouse was removed and the publisher fought that. That must have been about ten years ago. Not sure what the big deal is, prostitution is legal in most of Europe and Asia. Who care about a few magazines?
Posted by: Dan | September 21, 2007 8:48 AM
CASTRATE CHRISTATUTES!
Christians who degrade their faith by obsessing about the crotch instead of the cross need castration. It's a solution.
Posted by: Howard | September 21, 2007 9:32 AM
Those boys are fighting for our freedom to tell them what not to look at.
Posted by: Boris | September 21, 2007 9:39 AM
I am concern about your idea"They are figthing for our freedom" ??? I dont see this in reality, or USA is in war with Irak?Is a very bizarre situation.The solution back troops to home and read Playboy in the USA.
Posted by: Jorge Gajardo Rojas | September 21, 2007 10:39 AM
If I'm getting shot at, I want to look at naked bottoms afterwards. Or better yet...
I asked one of my military friends what the army was doing in Iraq without Vietnamese women offering themselves for five dollars (since, you know, prostitutes tend to attract fast-moving rocks in Arab nations). It turns out some of the female soldiers are supplementing their income. And porn is the real threat to military marriage. Yeahhhhh. But at least it's not being outsourced to Halliburton.
Posted by: Owen | September 21, 2007 10:41 AM
Is Playgirl sold on bases? Did the demand mention that? Huh?
I shouldn't be surprised at the institutionalized gambling on military bases-- the military's cynicism at work again.
Posted by: maxine | September 21, 2007 10:43 AM
I'm pretty sure Mark was being sarcastic about "fighting for our freedom".
As for that last sentence, I think you may be on to something: maybe this Christian group is actually a stealth antiwar group. By banning Playboy, they'll ensure that the soldiers are more eager to come home, and there will therefore be greater pressure to end the war... from the soldiers themselves! It's a brilliant plan, actually.
Posted by: minimalist | September 21, 2007 5:04 PM
Cover the tablelegs!
Posted by: Suricou Raven | September 21, 2007 6:07 PM
I remember when the US bases are still operational in the Philippines, that you can buy Playboy (and much more hardcore stuff) from PX shops outside the bases. Surprising cause porn is supposed to be illegal here.
Posted by: Heathen Dan | September 21, 2007 8:13 PM
Man, think of the billions we could profiteer with a corporation called HalleBerryburton. We would bankrupt the republic. Faster, that is.
Posted by: Boris | September 21, 2007 10:07 PM
Big shocker. Christofascists trying to impose their godly world view on everyone else. Who would have suspected? Give the soldiers all the porn they like. At least there's one way to kill the stress when they're not busy killing and being killed.
Posted by: Chad | September 22, 2007 12:32 AM
maxine writes:
If you want to create a stir, write a comment at One News Now as a concerned mother who just found out from her son serving in Khandahar that the PX there is forced to sell gay porn magazines because Coalition partners have demanded it. Not true but see if you can stoke the letter writing campaign.Posted by: Ex-drone | September 22, 2007 10:25 PM
Of course, bringing Playboy into a conservative Muslim country may be a bad idea, anyway. It could give Moqtada al-Sadr some talking points.
Posted by: Ray C. | September 23, 2007 4:56 PM
Interestingly, the bible doesn't have anything to say regarding porn. When the God Squad use theology to support their position, they are more or less putting words in God's mouth. They cant just turn to a 'thou shalt not look at porn' verse, so instead they start talking about God's view of sex and its rightful place in the world*, and how anything that doesn't fit the plan is an immoral and sinful deviation.
There is one verse that says that 'looking upon a woman to have sex with her' is a crime equal to adultery, but its really quite vague. Also thoughtcrimy.
There is a similar situation regarding abortion - there is nothing in the bible regarding it, so those searching for religious justification have to make stuff up, and repeat it in the hope that an oft-repeated claim will not be questioned.
*Heterosexual marriage, in the bedroom, and nothing kinky. For strict catholics, no contraception allowed.
Posted by: Suricou Raven | September 23, 2007 5:03 PM
My favorite comment from the One News Now article:
Posted by: Wes | September 23, 2007 11:43 PM
One of the ad-banners on OneNewsNow is advertising "Biblical healthcare solutions."
It appears to be a company that collects a monthly contribution from its mambers, then uses this money to pay the medical costs should any of the members require it.
Im not sure exactly how of it this differs from a plain insurance policy, other than that it sends prayer along with money. But they dont call themselves an insurance company.
https://forms.netsuite.com/app/site/crm/externalleadpage.nl?compid=312895&formid=66&h=90e321aee70b9ae53945&custentity_channelsource=Web%20Form&custentity_flight1status=Scheduled&leadsource=Internet-Website%20Banner%20Ad&custentity_urlreferralid=msc0005-wt
Posted by: Suricou Raven | September 24, 2007 2:19 AM
Our troops can choose to volunteer for service but aren't allowed to choose what they wish to look at? This is idiotic. No one is going to force a married, fundamentalist Christian (or anyone else) to buy this. Aren't these Christians up to dealing with the "temptation"?
Posted by: Shelley | September 24, 2007 11:26 AM
These Christian groups should get the stick out of their collective asses when it comes [pun intended] to "Pornography". It may help them to go see the movie "Mrs.Henderson Presents"
Posted by: cirano | September 24, 2007 11:51 AM
It's too bad that the Christians first don't understand that their religion is just a myth based on Pagan and Egyptian myths, there isn't a thing in the bible that is original or not plagiarized from other belief systems, yet they keep trying to use their false book and misguided understanding of this false book to take away freedoms. It's a shame that they have to stick their hands into everything when they can't even control themselves. They need to look inward and do a little house cleaning before they try to dictate what other good people are doing.
Posted by: Bruce | September 24, 2007 1:47 PM
You think these "Christian" groups could find something better to do with their time, like marching on DC or at least putting a campaign together to petition their congressmen to demand the troops be brought home! Oh wait, that's right, these hypocrites WANT our troops in Iraq to kill the evil enemy, I$LAM. One more thing; if these "Christians" are going to attack the "porn" they also need to attack the gambling.
Posted by: nikolai | September 24, 2007 4:24 PM
No, they're not. Which is precisely the problem, I suspect.
Posted by: MartinM | September 25, 2007 7:11 AM
I was going to say a couple of things, but Boris and MartinM have hit the nail on the head. The faith of these people is pretty weak, if it's there at all; and if it's not their faith they're worried about, it's the faith of the people they preach to.
I don't have an inside angle on the world of the loony Christians (I left that a long time ago), but the thing that really impressed itself upon me was their willingness to turn to Scripture for everything that upsets their personal applecarts. And I thought to myself (but never said, which I've not forgiven myself for), "If you people are as full of the Holy Spirit as you claim, don't you think it would give you the ability to make these decisions on your own initiative?"
I'd love to throw a copy of "God Is Not Great" (Hitchens) into a crowded congregation of these people, just to watch them recoil in horror and to see how they disposed of it. My guess? With a handkerchief or napkin which would itself be discarded along with the book. And the person tasked to do it would probably wash their hands afterwards.
In answer to Suricou Raven, the passage you're thinking of has Jesus saying "You have heard it said, do not commit adultery, but if any of you looks at a woman and wants to possess her, he has already committed adultery in his heart." My interpretation of this (as a Christian) has always been "Wanting to commit adultery is as morally bad as committing it." And adultery is, let's face it, not good.
Too many Christians leave that first bit off - Jesus is IMO clearly speaking about wanting someone else's woman. In his society, probably most of the unmarried girls were either at home helping Mummy or too young to matter.
Posted by: Justin Moretti | September 26, 2007 6:59 PM