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From: jeffw@tekecs.UUCP (Jeff Winslow)
Newsgroups: net.books,net.women
Subject: Re: Kiddie Porn (Re: R. Draves)
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Date: Sat, 19-Jan-85 18:00:57 EST
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Posted: Sat Jan 19 18:00:57 1985
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> Since people are pressing me for definitions, I'll do the same.
> What definition of kiddie porn will distinguish effectively between
> it and "cute pictures of naked kids".  I think we will run into
> the same difficulties here as we would if we were to attempt a
> legal definition of adult porn.
  
I agree. And I wouldn't attempt either.

> As for the "consenting" part of your distinction, I have already
> remaked that the fact that the kids aren't consenting is because
> kiddie porn is illegal in the first place.  If it weren't it would
> be done by "consenting" children.  I'll explain that by saying
> that it is the parents who would give consent.  Last week I heard
> on the news of a couple who was arrested by an undercover agent
> posing as a kiddie porn producer.  They "sold" their daught
> (either 8 or 12 years old, I can't remember) over to him for
> $300,000 saying that they could do anything they want to her.
  
That's not "consent", it's commerce, and I believe there are already
laws against that, regardless of any kind of pornography. I also
wonder what kind of undue pressure the agent brought to bear to
convince the parents of the sale (other than the price), but that's 
another story.
  
> It could be argued (though no one would dare) that keeping 
> kiddie porn illegal only gives impetus to the mistreatment of
> the children used.  

I'll dare. At least, I will if there is any relationship between the
willingness to break laws and willingness to mistreat people, which I
suspect there is. Much the same problem occurs in drug laws, which tend
to encourage the spread of drug use (users must sell to support habit)
and drug related crime (users must rob and burglarize to support habit)
by making the drug illegal, and therefore expensive. A matter of
"consenting adults" there, also. But that's another story.
  
> If the production of adult porn is as protected as that of non-
> pornographic material, why does the situation change when kids
> (with parental consent) are used?  

Yeah, I wonder too. That's why I voted against a local politician who
tried to win an election by distributing a letter saying "vote for me,
my opponent voted to weaken child pornography laws". Of course, the
fact that there was no reference to the bill number or the details
of the bill in question helped somewhat. :-)

				Jeff Winslow