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From: berman@psuvax1.UUCP (Piotr Berman)
Newsgroups: net.women
Subject: Re: Possible Ban on Pornography
Message-ID: <1775@psuvax1.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 9-Sep-85 06:49:26 EDT
Article-I.D.: psuvax1.1775
Posted: Mon Sep  9 06:49:26 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 11-Sep-85 08:17:27 EDT
References: <369@scirtp.UUCP> <1870@reed.UUCP>
Distribution: net
Organization: Pennsylvania State Univ.
Lines: 45

>  Were I to find that an otherwise kind,
> intelligent, sensitive male of my acquaintance read pornography
> or watched pornographic films, my immediate response, as a woman
> and a person of color, is to wonder whether he sees my face on
> those trussed-up, whipscarred, burned, mutilated, impaled,
> spermsmeared bodies; whether he would like to see me tied up and
> whipped and burned; and most of all, whether he believes, in his
> deepest convictions, that I would enjoy it when he beats me to
> death.  And I would be terribly, terribly angry, and afraid, and
> ashamed, for him.
> 
> Ellen Eades
> 
  It is a jungle out there, Ellen.  It may well be that ALL otherwise
kind, intelligent, sensitive etc. males in this country (and many
others) both read pornography and seen porno films.
It just happens that somebody is not loosing his/her kindness,
sensitivity, intelligence etc. by a contact with porn.
You are disgusted because I happen to subscribe to Playboy for
a year, a fellow from net.politics is disgusted because I read
Galbraith.  I think that this fellow was more right than you:
while I never imagined any women being trused-up, whipscared etc.,
I indeed share certain views of Galbraith which are genuinely 
disgusting for him.
  There are countries with hardly any pornography, like USSR. 
What happens?  If someone wants to be a pig toward women,
he may easily reinforce himself with the use of numerous
misoginistic jokes.
  I read complains about the look of women in Playboy.  In my local
K-Mart there is a large section of romance novels.  Guess how do
women look there?  Always in arms of powerfully looking men, thrilled
with inexplicable passion, obviously ready to a passionate intercourse
(those covers are not sexist however, men look equally idiotic).
The view of hundreds of such covers could convince someone gullible
that the main reason in life is finding a sexual partner with ever
desired characterictics of All-American-Man (or All-American-Woman).  
God forbid any individual features!
  One does not need to ban stupidity, this is hopeless.  One rather
needs positive examples, like examples of joys of kindness, sensitivity,
and, not least, intelligence and individuality.  
Be more optimistic, Ellen!  We are not beast (we who watched porn),
and may keep imroving in spite of an occasional porno-flick or a
stupid romance novel.

   Piotr Berman