Freedom of speech: The pornography conundrum

“People who would hamper free speech always make the mistake of assuming that they are designing a world in which only their enemies will be forced to shut up.”

            —Lionel Shriver, Abominations

There’s an ick factor to this blog post. Kicking the room’s elephant in the nuts. Waking sleeping dogs. Poking the bear. Plumbing depths. Overturning rocks.

Cliches aside, we mustn’t fear discussing uncomfortable aspects of basic human rights. The extent and consequences of these rights, as well as the concomitant responsibilities.

This requires we consider freedom of speech as it relates to pornography.

We must accept that a foundation—the very bedrock—of freedom is the basic human right to freedom of speech and expression. Absent this fundamental right, we don’t just risk losing our other rights but guarantee this happening. Yes, freedom of speech is that important.

Unfortunately, the value of this precious right is greatly diminished in our society. Too many people support censorship against their foes and use this fascist tool as a means of trumpeting their own false virtue. This attack on free speech is proclaimed with comically inane sanctimony as “stopping” hate speech, misgendering, or misinformation. These faux do-gooders are smug (and often shrill as fuck) crusaders against what they assert are racism, antisemitism, fascism, homophobia, and transphobia.

Ironically, the censors want the word “crusaders” banned, as they claim it offends one of their pet victim groups (i.e., Muslims). Whether it does offend is irrelevant because (again) free speech is that important.

How did we get to this point where the censors run amok?

For some unfathomable reason, the mentally enfeebled (i.e., the Woke) are afforded vast influence in society. Undeservedly so and to our collective detriment. Censorship is not evidence of enlightenment or compassion as the Woke would have you believe. It is the weaponization of weakness and delusion for use against their foes and to obtain, maintain, and mercilessly wield power.

We allowed the Woke to become our tyrants and they behave, well, tyrannically.  

Hurty words are literally violence according to the thin-skinned and thick-skulled. Even scholarly debate on controversial issues cannot be allowed because it supposedly gives credence to the other side. Indecorous words require safe spaces for the frail offendees and gestapo-like deployment of law enforcement against the offenders. The Internet is scoured, as far back as necessary, to root out thought-crime and word-crime, which must be punished wildly disproportionately.   

There are no limits to how far the censors will go in pursuit of their goal. Modern-day Germany deploys scores of prosecutorial teams to pursue and punish miscreants whose online speech offends. British police regularly arrest people for social media posts not to the liking of the government or its overly sensitive Woke constituents. There is little doubt this is something the Gestapo would’ve done if the Internet had existed at the time of Germany’s Nazi regime, which makes one wonder if censorship is woven permanently into the Teuton DNA. 

America, the Land of the Free, is not immune from such madness.

A six-year-old girl in California faced the Woke Torquemadas at her school for an unthinkable crime: She countered “Black Lives Matter” with the childhood innocence of “All Lives Matter.” This incident became a court case, which thankfully the girl and her parents won. But think about the demented mindset of the so-called adults at this school who felt compelled to intervene and discipline a child over this. That there are adults in positions of authority who would do this should both enrage and terrify you, if you’ve a lick of common sense. These are your future camp guards who will eagerly await the arrival of the trains and then gladly escort you to the “showers.”  

Our society has become a pathetic caricature of George Orwell’s 1984.

The Woke censors are the worst. They are aggressive, relentless, and oh-so sanctimonious. Nothing is too trivial to escape their wrath. As the unfortunate schoolgirl found out, there is no parody of puritanical behavior which the Woke cannot turn into a nightmarish reality for the rest of us.

A key component of a Woke censor’s dark soul is a mirthless busybodiness. This is often the case for “words” the censor is not required to hear, read, or view. Not buying a ticket to see a comedian who “offends” one’s delicate sensibilities is passé and does not remotely offer the requisite outrage and trumpeted virtue-signaling. Silencing the snarky wag is necessary. And if these efforts include harassing the proposed venue or those with the temerity to buy tickets, or in one case going after the photographer who documented the comedian’s wedding, so be it.

A person digging that deep to harm a comedian. Calories foolishly expended in furtherance of pipsqueak fascism. The fucking wedding photographer! Comedians are the proverbial “canary in the coal mine” as a sentinel to the continued existence of our freedom of speech. The canary is dead.

There are no comedy clubs in North Korea or Orwell’s Oceania. Expect the same fate here if we don’t revolt against this madness. We already have comedy clubs in the United States that ban controversial comedians (i.e., ones who the Woke don’t like). These clubs are cowardly enablers of Wokeism.    

Stopping the hurty words is imperative to the Woke. Paradise is to be had if Woke-decreed decorum is imposed universally and unfailingly. Any degree of ruthlessness in this endeavor is justified.

Adult children—of whom there are far too many—do not understand that rights come with responsibilities, sometimes terrible ones. Decorum is not the responsibility required for free speech. Freedom of speech comes with the responsibility to not just endure speech you don’t like but to defend the right to espouse it.

The Woke aren’t the only censors among us. They are just the most vicious of these. There are non-Woke people who aren’t immune from the temptation to wield the sword of censorship. For example, a type of speech often targeted for censorship is pornography. Smut is blamed for many of society’s ills. Non-Woke feminists and the Religious Right—and politicians pandering to them—have for a longtime seethed at the existence of this form of expression. 

Boy, is it a much larger target nowadays. The Internet provides an abundancy of porn, to an extent unimaginable to the teenage boys of yore whose opportunities to view nudie pictures were limited to National Geographic magazine or a father’s hidden Playboy stash. The luckiest kids were those who chanced upon secreted copies of Penthouse or Hustler magazines!   

Should pornography be allowed if we value freedom of speech?

Yes, except where there is a direct and unresolvable clash with other rights.

For example, freedom of speech doesn’t mean the Woke or anyone else possess the right to insert age-inappropriate materials into the public school system, which the Woke do with self-satisfied glee. Children should not be exposed to pornography or sexualized drag shows—and parents have the right to insist this is the case.  

Doesn’t this contradict the notion of free speech?

No. Reasonable restrictions based on age are appropriate because this is balanced against another important right: parental rights regarding what their children are exposed to. A child might be denied access to certain speech or expression, but this is not a lifetime ban. Once an adult, they are free to partake of these things.

Don’t be fooled. The fact the Woke are hellbent on exposing kids to age-inappropriate material is not because they are champions of free speech—they are censoring fucks big time regarding speech they don’t like. They intend to facilitate a creepy pro-transcult agenda and sexualize children. Fighting this Woke madness is a non-partisan issue. There are sensible gay and trans-identifying parents who are appalled at the materials the Woke want children exposed to, including those related to homosexuality and transgenderism.

People who oppose transgender ideology often cite certain porn genres as culprits in promoting this harmful ideology and want it censored. At least they do so without the childish shrillness of the Woke.

The format of this supposedly harmful material is video, pictures, or the written word. Social media sites, such as Reddit and Discord, also arguably fuel the psychosis of the transcult.

Did you say genres?

Oh yes, quite a smorgasbord of carnal delights is available on the Internet. I wonder who first came up with the notion of many of these, um, categories—never underestimate the “ingenuity” of the human mind when sex is involved, especially if somehow monetized. Perhaps the biological impetus for every species to reproduce is the foundation of our inherent pruriency, especially among human males.

Indeed, the pornography websites often list these genres under the heading categories and may be in either video or written form, much of it free, and for some of these selections it is reasonable to rhetorically ask, “Good God, who is the market for this!”

But the “market” must exist. Otherwise, the commodity wouldn’t be created.  

Not surprisingly, transgender porn is a thing. Again, I wonder who the audience is. There obviously is one or it wouldn’t be made. Gynandromorphophiles, autogynephiles, tranny chasers, conflicted homosexuals, bisexuals, taboo thrill seekers, the down low, or some other category of motivation? These connoisseurs of transgender porn may very well be your friends, co-workers, relatives, neighbors.

Trans-exclusionary radical feminists (TERFs) are brave warriors in the fight against transgender ideology and are often themselves subject to ruthless censorship because of their beliefs. I greatly admire their taking on this battle at great personal and professional cost to themselves. They often cite transgender or sissy porn as contributing to the increase in trans-identifying people, particularly insufferable males who insist they’re female. There are TERFs who suggest pornography be banned for everyone, not just children.

Gender-confused (or gender-contrived) males are certainly annoying as hell, particularly the ones who insist they’re lesbians. The “activists” among them are also fascist censors who want criminal penalties and other harm imposed on offenders for what they call “misgendering”—the sane among us would describe it as accurate-gendering. They are also willing to use violence against the TERFs and regularly attempt to disrupt public speaking events put on by TERFs and others opposed to transcult ideology.    

I reviewed some of the websites which offer this material. My first reaction: Yikes! And this is stuff on the regular web. I don’t want to think about what can be found on the Dark Web.

I get the temptation to want to ban it. Transgender ideology has caused much harm and continues to do so, with no end in sight. The videos are troubling and beg legitimate questions: How does a person find oneself in this line of work? Who is recruiting these actors and actresses? Are they truly consenting adults, since their participation is a result of mental health troubles, with gender confusion as a symptom? Isn’t there another form of employment available to the gender-confused rather than sex work? Are they gainfully employable outside this? What happens after their porn “career” ends? Should they be singled-out when there is a vast world of non-transgender pornography in existence?   

Many of the gender-confused make themselves unemployable in the regular workforce via dress, body modification, and attitude. Unresolved mental health comorbidities don’t help matters. This is also true of many non-transgender people who we see in today’s world of rampant online exhibitionism and whose toxic narcissism is greatly amped-up by social media. Why would a rational employer want the headache of an employee of questionable value who aggressively and shamelessly presents himself as a weirdo?

Perhaps a man in a dress is an exemplary employee. Or a person who has made his face resemble a pin cushion. But a potential employer is prudent to take a person’s first impression into account when hiring. Our parents and schools used to advise youths how to present themselves in a professional manner at a job interview. I’m guessing such commonsense advice is now deemed a form of bigotry—or even a hate crime—by the Woke, though I’m betting heavily they’d change their tune in a nanosecond if an applicant showed up wearing a MAGA hat. (I’d advise against the hat but not with the apoplectic fit the Woke would do.)   

Pornographic literature (transgender or not)—which I pray is fiction—is particularly creepy and disturbing. It really, really pushes the boundaries far beyond what a reasonable person would agree is common decency. Some of the written stuff (e.g., short stories) if physically manifested would be a serious crime worthy of severe punishment. The writing is also sophomoric, but the quality of the writing is not the issue. Should any of it be banned? is the question.

I don’t want to know what a person watches or reads in private regarding sex matters. Unfortunately, ignorant bliss is difficult to achieve in the Internet Age. Too many fools want to overshare explicit details about their private life but then expect universal approval or laudation for their efforts.  

People believe porn results in great harm—and it might very well do so. But this does not trump the right to free speech. It is the physical manifestation of notions that we are right to fight and do so like mad if the cause is important enough. Preventing exposure of children to adult speech and expression is one such fight.

A drag show for an exclusively adult audience is morally a far different beast than one for children. The Woke are hellbent on exposing children to these shows and we are right to fight against it. Shows where kids are putting money in male drag queen G-strings, with laughing and clapping Woke parents onlooking, are particularly disgusting. The parents bringing their kids to these shows are demented. Their faces beam with Woke craziness, “We’ll show those bigots just how tolerant we are!”

What they are is tolerant of evil.

Laws prohibiting children at such shows are reasonable and unfortunately necessary. As are laws protecting children from other age-inappropriate speech.

Here are my suggestions regarding pornography and other adult “entertainment”:

• Pornographic videos should not be banned if the actors and actresses are consenting adults.
• Pornographic literature should not be banned.  
• Adults should be able to view such material in the privacy of their own home.
• Age restrictions for access to pornography are a reasonable accommodation to balance free speech with the right of parents to control what their children are exposed to.
• We must not ban speech because of what people might do under its influence. The supposed harm is irrelevant. Free speech is that important. There is ample proof that the Bible and Koran inspire people to grave misdeeds against their fellow man, yet these should not be banned either.
• We have the right to fight against any manifestation of the notions contained in speech but not the expression of the notions. The Woke manifestations must be fought as if the continued existence of our world depends on it—because it does.
• Prohibitions against child porn is a must. A child cannot under any circumstances consent to sex. It is always sexual assault if a minor is involved; therefore, a crime was committed in producing it. Additionally, the existence of the picture or film violates the victim’s right to privacy. We don’t allow the release, distribution, or possession of the medical photos of rape victims; likewise, the possession of child porn is a serious crime as it violates the privacy of the victim.
• People “acting” in porn videos must have the same workplace protections as other jobs. The participants must be consenting adults and means to assure this is the case enforced. The health and safety of workers is important, whatever the job. The porn industry must clean up its act regarding the untimely demise of far too many actors and actresses.

In summary, pornography is speech and expression. Freedom of speech and expression must be protected. The appropriate and necessary fight against the madness that is transcult ideology is against its physical manifestations: medical harm via unnecessary surgeries and pharmaceuticals, pronoun fascism, censorship, perjurious government documents (e.g., birth certificates changed to an incorrect gender), violated female sports and spaces, and other outrages.

I’m grateful the TERFs and others fight against the madness of transgender ideology. But censorship must not be one of the weapons used.