HyperbAllea

Flipping through the channels while eating lunch, I stopped for a moment on Fox News where they were discussing the pending bill that would give all porn sites a .xxx extension and the Child Online Protection Act that would provide criminal charges and stiff punishment for anyone who knowingly made harmful material available to minors. I personally think it’s a great idea and would prevent children (and me) from stumbling across sites I really don’t want to see. It would also make it much easier to block porn sites from computers that children use (at home, in schools, in public libraries).

Apparently (but not surprisingly) the ACLU has a problem with this proposed law, claiming it violates the first amendment right to free speech. Just in case you’re not aware of the exact wording of the first amendment, here it is: “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.”

May I first point out that the first amendment protects our “freedom of speech”, but says nothing of our “freedom of action.” In other words, you can say anything you want and believe anything you want, but you may not do anything you want. There have been many studies on the effects pornography has on children. How does the right of a person to make and broadcast pornography supersede the right of a child to be protected from exposure to such harmful things? I don’t think anyone would claim that a person has the right to harm a child in any way. This law does not prohibit people from making pornography or making money from pornography. It just requires pornographers to notify people visiting their site that they are an adult site and make the person verify their age. In the case of the .xxx extension I think it would make it even easier for someone who was actually looking for a pornographic site to find one, so I fail to see how it would adversely affect the porn industry.

I’m not sure if I’m stating this all well. Please let me know what you think.

My mom and I went to a wedding shop yesterday to finalize my decision for bridesmaids dresses. They happened to be having a huge sale, so my mom browsed the racks of wedding gowns before I arrived. That’s when she found it…THE dress. We had been planning on remaking my mom’s wedding dress, but since it was on sale and in my size (and beautiful) I decided I should probably try it on just in case. So I did, and it fit like a glove. It doesn’t even need to be hemmed. I was amazed. And I’m thrilled, if you couldn’t tell.

Was it just me, or was the mud-slinging even worse in this past week’s election? I am always amazed at the level to which politicians will stoop to make their opponents look like crap, but I think this year was a record low. Some of the ads even sounded like old WWI and II propaganda films trying to brainwash voters into choosing them. And one campaign website I visited looked and read like a supermarket tabloid. I even heard one ad where the candidate accused his opponent of mud-slinging, then proceeded to sling mud right back at him.

For once, I would love to see a candidate stand up and say, “I know my opponent has said a lot of bad things about me, but I refuse to stoop to his level. Here’s what I stand for, and if you stand for the same things, then vote for me.” Even if I didn’t believe the same thing he did, I would have a lot of admiration for that person and I think he would probably gain a lot of votes just for being “more mature” than the others.

Who’s with me?