Family Fragments :: Fighting Pornography, Saving the Family

Miley Cyrus/Hannah Montana Pics and Disney

Justin Hart — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 01:30:00 +0000

I have two daughters thirteen and ten. They both love and admire Miley Cyrus, a.k.a. Hannah Montana. My wife and I admire her as well... We bought our daughters tickets to her world tour (which was also borderline inappropriate... but her parents should be just a bit more careful.

Exploitation is the name of the game in the magazine rags and anything that is edgy and nears child pornography is par for the course. See here for more.

The Lighted Candle Society - April Newsletter

Justin Hart — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 17:48:00 +0000

Lighted Candle Society - April Newsletter - Get more documents

Pornography and the Military

Justin Hart — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 14:32:00 +0000

by Justin Hart, VP Communications, Lighted Candle Society

There's a debate going on in Congress and on The Corner about pornography and the military. Arguments from people in the military, in the libertarian square, gov/legal perspective, and the common sense conservative outlook are valuable discussions points but there's another perspective: science.

One of the goals of the Lighted Candle Society is to finance and promote scientific studies into the effects of pornography on the brain and on society. A growing mountain of evidence points to the risks associated with pornography addiction. Later this year we will be conducting our own study using ground breaking fMRI technology to examine the effects on the human noggin'!

We've been collecting some prominent studies here, but here's a quick rundown:

Individuals who have had an extramarital affair are 3.18 times more likely to have used pornography than individuals who did not have affairs.
Young men who are high consumers of pornography are more likely to engage in anal sex, as well as have sexual relations with a friend (i.e. someone with whom they are not in a loving romantic relationship).
People who reported being happily married were 61 percent less likely to report using pornography.
People who have engaged in paid sex (i.e. used prostitution) or had extramarital affairs were three times as likely to have used porn than those who did not.
Pornography consumption is significantly associated with perceptions of emotional infidelity. People also perceive online acts of infidelity as being authentic and real as offline acts.
Married women are more likely to experience distress over a partner's pornography use than are women in dating relationships.
A relationship exists between frequent pornography consumption and sexually aggressive behavior. This relationship is especially strong for those with the highest "predisposing" risk level for sexual behavior.
Results also revealed associations between pornography acceptance and use and emerging adults' risky sexual attitudes and behaviors, substance use patterns, and nonmarital cohabitation values.

To use a common neocon analogy: not all Muslims are terrorists but most terrorists are Muslim. Not all porn addicts are rapist and pedophiles but most (if not all) rapists and pedophiles are porn addicts (see here for a two week example).

Beware the "bag of goods"

Justin Hart — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 19:31:00 +0000

There are two debates raging in congress which have little to do with each other but illustrate the serious misgivings that many have about the "trojan horse" nature of our elected officials.

One debate concerns the question of putting the polar bear on the endangered species list. We all love polar bears but listing this creature on the ESL is just a means to an ends. The back story here essentially dictates that CO2 emissions can be regulated from the Fish and Wildlife department. In short, the effort to save the polar bear is a ruse for a bigger and wider agenda that effects every American.

The second debate (which begins in force tomorrow) pits consumers against themselves in a chicken match of mixed benefits and scary consequences. The notion of "Net Neutrality" has made its way to Capitol Hill. In short, this initiative would mandate that ISPs (Internet Service Providers) provide one set rate and one set speed for all internet users, period. But, here's the trojan horse part again:

On the face of it this seems like a worthy endeavor. After all the entrepreneurial spirit of companies like YouTube and Facebook started garage-style with a simple internet connection. But, the fine print behind this initiative is a bit disconcerting. Essentially, it would prohibit ISPs from regulating or discriminating against any content across their wires. This is where we share some serious concerns with other who oppose Net Neutrality.

With the growing use of advanced technologies (such as Peer-to-Peer and Bit Torrent) eating up bandwidth for the rest of us... one has to ask... what is all that stuff being downloaded? According to one study, over 60% of the bandwidth hogging is all about extreme sexual content.

So, given that Net Neutrality would prohibit ISPs from putting bandwidth hoggers in a separate lane on the information highway and given that Net Neutrality would prohibit groups like the Lighted Candle Society from putting the crunch on porn distributors... I can say this much: I don't like it and I don't trust it.

LCS Interview with AdvanceUSA

Justin Hart — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 14:05:00 +0000

AdvanceUSA, a non-profit organization, recently interviewed Justin Hart, Vice President of Communications for the Lighted Candle Society.

Read the interview here.

From Every Walk of Life Continued...

Justin Hart — Mon, 31 Mar 2008 16:17:00 +0000

The swath of porn-related crimes continues unabated. We bring you (again) a litany of professions and people from every demographic you can imagine.

Note: this doesn't take us very long to do, these cases have been in the news over the past two weeks only:

Bigfoot made me do it

Justin Hart — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 20:18:00 +0000

This about takes the cake for excuses:

Fredericksburg.com - Molester claims he was victim of Bigfoot: "A man who claims that he was molested by Bigfoot as a child was ordered to serve 20 years in prison yesterday for his own molestation-related activities.

Gene R. Morrill, 57, of New Ipswich, N.H., had previously pleaded guilty in Stafford Circuit Court to 20 charges stemming from his efforts to solicit 13-year-old boys over the Internet.

Defense attorney Terrence Patton cited Morrill's mental health issues in seeking leniency from Judge J. Howe Brown.

Morrill told an investigator preparing his pre-sentence report about being sexually assaulted by the legendary Bigfoot, a North American folklore character said to be between 7 and 10 feet tall, and covered in dark brown or dark reddish hair. Patton said Morrill really believes the assaulted happened."

Pink slip for the whistle blower

Justin Hart — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 14:32:00 +0000

"An Obscene Firing"

Its tough enough for people who work and volunteer at schools having to deal with the flurry of child pornography making the rounds on teenager cellphones... but the PC police wreak further havoc on our culture by sticking it to the adults who stand up to perverts.

WND reports in an exclusive piece on a local California woman who was recently fired from her job at the library for reporting the virtual peccadilloes of a patron with a predilection for child pornography. The offender was using a library computer to visit obscene child porn sites on multiple occasions.

Now, if the librarian had maliciously thrown the 23-volumes of the Oxford English Dictionary at the man (which is the instant reaction I would have), one would understand the firing. But no... her crime? Calling the police on the perp.

We'll have more on this soon.

College Campus Debates

Justin Hart — Tue, 04 Mar 2008 16:14:00 +0000

We mentioned previously the shenanigans at Yale, Stanford and William & Mary where a traveling show of "sex workers" try to pass off their wares as art. Kudos to the School Board at W&M who denied President Nichol a second term.

Last week Yale hosted an important debate about pornography with the two traveling debators Craig Gross (pastor at XXXChurch.com) and Ron Jeremy, porn star. If you have a moment, watch the debate, its engrossing and appropriate for each of us to understand what the challenge is.

From Ground Zero to the Family

Justin Hart — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 13:18:00 +0000

First, kudos to Utah Governor Huntsman who earlier this declared February as White Ribbon Against Pornography Month. Our friends at Communities for Decency deserve a lot of credit for seeing this through. Other Utah mayors followed suit. Mayor Mike Daniels of Pleasant Grove recently noted: "Pornography can and will destroy a nation, a state, a city, a neighborhood, a family and an individual if we do not fight it".

Ground Zero

On the other side of the coin, college campuses in North Carolina and Virginia cleared a path for an annual Sex Workers Show. Deemed "art shows" these porn-ivals provide little sanctuary or hope for impressionable college students who are already saturated with promiscuity on campuses. The campus is truly "ground zero" for this growing threat.

Fortunately, some campus leader get it and are working to help students cope with the addictions. The University of Wisconsin recently hosted a forum that many thought was a pro-porn rally. Instead, the audience heard from Michael Leahy, a recovered sex addict. Kudos Michael!

That First Amendment Thing

Of course, reasonable people can object about the intersection of pornography and first amendment (we have the specious and spineless rulings from the Supreme Court to thanks for that). But the evidence of a darker side to pornography is mounting. We take heart to note that younger generations of Christians recognize the issue of Internet pornography as a top priority.

Recently, Spanish experts have concluded that pornography plays a prominent role in the psyche of pedophiles. As we've noted elsewhere, not all porn addicts are rapists and pedophiles but all rapists and pedophiles are porn addicts.

Elsewhere, lawmakers are grappling with various legislative initiatives to thwart these issues. Lawmakers in Florida are considering bills that deal with a "pole" tax, adding a dollar or so to state coffers for live sex shows. Texas just implemented a $5 tax on strip clubs. Utah has added a tax on escort services. Colorado is going down the similar road and a bill in Pennsylvania would tax all pornography.

We believe these are interesting pursuits but there is one HUGE side effect. It legitimizes all of these enterprises. I suppose the pragmatic side of the porn challenge requires us to DO something but we feel that the recent trends to ELIMINATE strip clubs are better in the long run.

Child Pornography

Fortunately, child pornography is something that almost everyone can agree to fight. Flint Waters, a special agent of the Wyoming Internet Crimes Task Force recently used state-of-the-art technology to produce a map for a county in Great Britain showing the breadth of child porn trafficking in their area. We expect the same procedures to become commonplace here in the states. Indeed, many states are making inroads strengthening existing child pornography laws while other groups lobby Congress for funding to battle this epidemic. We also expect higher education panels such as this one to address the problem.

Impact on Families

The impact on families is no less dramatic. One pastor notes the "cheap love" effect in our culture. It's not just "second-hand" pornography at libraries (a great phrase by the way) but the violence that pornography breeds. Our kids our literally the "idols" in this plague which makes raising kids that much harder.

As families turn to professional help the psychiatric field continues to address with the problem in unfortunate ways. Indeed, many professionals still do not recognize the problem. Meanwhile, our entertainment turns more aberrant, industry decisions are deeply influenced by the porn world, and innocent teenage communications turn ugly. The side effects are divorce, debt, and debauchery.

At the Lighted Candle Society, we intend to fight this battle in a two unique ways:

By funding scientific research into the effects of pornography and
By helping to bring civil litigation against producers and distributors of pornography

We've been pretty mum on our approach and our efforts but this will change shortly. Stay tuned!

Other news:

Excellent overview of the online pornography problem
Federal and state agencies are taking a closer look at employee computer habits after a slate of porn problems on computers.
More pedophiles appeal to the Supreme Court. We'll be following this one closely.
Thank you France for this innovation.
AU Teacher keeps job after encouraging students to research pornography.

News from across the porn-o-sphere

Justin Hart — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 12:47:00 +0000

by Justin Hart

I like to start these posts with some positive news:

MySpace

MySpace has agreed with the 50-some-odd Attorney Generals who were knocking at their door: time to get serious about online predators.

You might recall last year a news story where over 10,000 sexual predators were found to have a profile on MySpace. This is not a pretty site.

Fortunately, MySpace has agreed to basic identity checks and age verification to avoid ugly incidents. Other points of the agreement include:

Allow parents to submit children's e-mail addresses to MySpace to prevent anyone from misusing the addresses to set up profiles
Make the default setting "private" for 16- and 17-year-old users
Respond within 72 hours to complaints about inappropriate content and devote more staff and resources to classify photographs and discussion groups
Strengthen software to find underage users
Create a high school section for users under 18 years old

My guess is that other social networking sites will follow suit. Facebook is currently surpassing MySpace on sign-ups. Arm yourself with our free Facebook guide to protect your kids on this popular site.

The results of addiction

If you haven't noticed already we've redesigned the HerStoryLives.com website. The stories told there are both eye-opening and inspiring. The site is a place to share the tragedies and successes that women have experienced in their lives around pornography addiction. The site allows women to anonymously share these stories.

Here's one story you must read: a stark confession of a teenage addict and his road to recovery.

Porn Taxes

A state senator from Pennsylvania is proposing a tax on the production and distribution of pornography. We applaud her efforts.

China cracks down

China has begun to clean up its image before the Olympics opens its doors:

China's authorities shut down 44,000 domestic websites and homepages and arrested 868 people while investigating 524 criminal cases in a campaign against Internet pornography last year, a national teleconference has heard.
Another 1,911 people involved in 1,609 Internet pornography activities were penalized, while the authorities canceled more than 440,000 pornographic messages online.

I'm worried about what happens to those arrested but I applaud their efforts. Note: North Korea is still the largest producer of pornography from what I understand.

The Family Friendly Airwaves

There's a battle afoot to determine what happens with the next band of wireless communications. One group, the Family Research Council, wants to use this spectrum for family friendly communications.

Other Good Reads

J. Matt Barber takes the DOJ to task to failing to enforce obscenity laws.
Brent Bozell takes on a new and popular podcast.
ABCNews investigates the world of amateur pornography. We've noted in the past that the big names in the porn industry are suffering financially because of the massive free pornography efforts afoot. It turns out the money is just shifting.
The Oscars of the porn world happened last week. Quick note from the event: Jenna Jameson is starting her own fragrance and line of clothes.
The porn industry is always ahead of the game when it comes to technology.
The military struggles with the implications of pornography.
Coming to a vending machine near you.

From Every Walk of Life

Justin Hart — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 12:33:00 +0000

by Justin Hart

One of the things we frequently discuss at the Lighted Candle Society is how pervasive the problem of pornography is. Every profession and every walk of life seems to be represented. My job in gathering this information is pretty darn easy. Here's a quick sampling of news items just in the last week.

A Pizzeria owner from Sydney, NY was sentenced to 25 years in prison for raping a 10 year old girl and recording the episode.
Three Virginia High School students are in trouble for sending pornography around the school via cell phones
A Wyoming soldier on leave from military duty was found to have 800 child pornography images in his posession.
A Binghampton, NY bus driver admitted to owning child pornography.
A Toronto after school volunteer, who apparently posed as a clergy, is accused of trading in child pornography.
An ESPN radio broadcaster was found to have 40 hard core videos of child pornography in his home.
An Alabama EMT was sentenced to two life terms after being found guilty of sodomizing a 12 year old and, of course, filming his exploits.
An online internet sting caught a dozen or more people including a former Scout master.

To reiterate, these are instances caught just within the last week or so.

Facebook Guide for Parents

Justin Hart — Mon, 03 Dec 2007 21:22:00 +0000

Facebook is a popular interactive website that many kids and adults use to keep in touch with friends and family. It provides an easy way for people to communicate, share information, photos, videos and download information about others. There are many exciting ways to use Facebook but there are also significant pitfalls and dangers, especially for teenagers and children. Parents should know that there are many sexual predators online that utilize websites like Facebook to meet victims. Facebook can be a positive and engaging website if you take measures to protect your children against these dangers.

This guide is intended to help parents educate themselves and their children on how to use this powerful tool and (most importantly) how to guard against the very real hazards that Facebook and other sites present.

CLICK HERE TO GET YOUR FREE COPY

And the beat goes on

Justin Hart — Mon, 05 Nov 2007 12:59:00 +0000

Let's be clear. The fish which we are trying to fry here in America is a big fish. But there are other fish in the sea so to speak. A few weeks ago we noted a report from the UK Dept. of Justice citing research that shows the harmful effects of pornography. Prompted by this official government document, many groups in the UK are now demanding a closer look at the filth that permeates the airwaves.

Down under, the worst case scenario has surfaced. Backwoods aboriginals have gotten hooked on pornography. An epidemic of child abuse has arisen. This has led to serious introspection in Australia and New Zealand. A new report shows that a third of all teenage girls in Australia have been "sexually harassed via the Internet". On top of that, another study showed that teenage girls are copying sex acts from online pornography. A pedophile's dream, a parent's nightmare to be sure.

Of course, in the States, we're hardly exempt from these influences. New Jersey State Troopers arrested an Allentown man last week for arranging prostitution for two teenage girls. Still, many pundits continue to water down the effects of pornography on the nation. Some cite a supposed drop in rape and sexual crimes over the past few years but fail to mention the rise in sexual misconduct across schools in America.

But far worse than the actual crimes committed are the number of marriages destroyed by pornography. Research confirms that a person who views pornography is more than 3 times more likely to have an affair. There are serious ramifications for these issues that we cannot ignore. Quick note: the national Cyber Tip Line has received over 1500 reports of child pornography... just last week.

On the positive side of things, there are those that are still fighting the good fight. The local chapter of the Catholic Daughters of the Americans in Columbus, OH have been doing just that for over 15 years. Morality in Media recently applauded there efforts. Or the relentless Peggie Miller and her efforts to curb the addiction.

We should also note that churches, pastors and parishes across the country are waking up to this serious issue; the business world is taking note of their liabilities and technology companies are stepping up to the plate. Of course, none of the approaches can be taken by itself. A comprehensive approach to tackling pornography addiction is seriously needed.

But we have a mountain to climb to make it happen. There are people who will use all their talents and skills to oppose us. Many simply do not see the danger that they promote. The "porn fairy" defense simply will not fly.

To be clear, we are under no illusion that pornography is going away. Rather, we envision a world where the vice is shunned, spurned and recognized as a serious threat to society. A world where the negative consequences or producing and distributing pornography will far outweigh the financial benefits.

But while we're focused like a laser on our unique mission at the Lighted Candle Society we will be challenging certain egregious efforts that cannot be ignored.

UPAC Conference: Jack Sunderlage from Content Watch

Justin Hart — Thu, 01 Nov 2007 20:56:00 +0000

This last weekend the Lighted Candle Society took part in the Utah Coalition Against Pornography conference which featured numerous speakers and notable scholars discussing the challenges of the day regarding pornography addiction.

Here's one PPT presented by Jack Sunderlage, CEO of Content Watch discussing the technology solutions:

| View | Upload your own

Positive Developments

Justin Hart — Wed, 31 Oct 2007 13:21:00 +0000

In the past months we've noted numerous positive developments where activists on every side of the political spectrum have come to see pornography in a new light. Last month Naomi Wolf, an icon of the feminist left, entertained the idea that pornography impinges the natural passions that exist between men and women. This last week, Catherine MacKinnon, Professor of Law at Harvard, proposed that pornography cannot exist separately from the mainstream of American culture.

The warning flares about pornography have often originated from the conservative movements but the breadth of supporters across the political divide cannot go by without mention.

The next time you think your job is tough take a moment to thank the people on the front lines of this fight. Law enforcement officials across the country are trapping serious pedophiles and getting them off the virtual street by posing as pedophiles themselves. Warning, this is not light reading but it shows you the serious nature of the beast and gives you a greater appreciation of what it takes to stop these criminals.

Speaking of criminals we should note these folks who hopefully will not be posting anything on the Internet for the foreseeable future:

More positive news

Justin Hart — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 20:23:00 +0000

On Friday, the Supreme Court refused to hear the appeal of an adult bookstore case where the city council blocked adult businesses from building at the main traffic entrance to Kennedale, Texas.

All of these little moves provide further evidence that local communities are fed up about the adult entertainment industry flaunting their wares in the face of public decency.

Mom who sued motel over porn film wins $85,000

Justin Hart — Mon, 15 Oct 2007 17:26:00 +0000

We've been in close contact with the lawyers in this suit. All expectations were set for a defeat. Low and behold: decency and justice prevailed.

Here's the story in a nutshell:

In August 2006, Edwina McCombs of Nashville was visiting Southern California with her daughters, who were 8 and 9 at the tme.

The family stayed at Value Lodge at 11854 Artesia Blvd. McCombs went to take a bath while the girls were watching a children's TV show. Soon after, the girls somehow changed the channel to a porn film, said Eliot F. Krieger, McCombs' attorney.

"It was unclear how long they were exposed to it, but they knocked on the bathroom door and said, 'Mommy, something's wrong,' " Krieger said.

Yes, but now something wrong has been righted. Kudos to Mrs. McCombs, her daughters and their excellent legal team. This is a step in the right direction.

Petition Oprah

Justin Hart — Wed, 03 Oct 2007 14:33:00 +0000

On September 25, 2007 Oprah aired a show entitled "237 Reasons to have Sex" which featured "experts" who advocated casual sex with friends, pornography, and having affairs as ways to improve relationships and marriage.

Please sign the petition on the right voicing your disappointment and concerns about this episode and asking Oprah not to air these type of shows again.

The Dam Begins to Break

Justin Hart — Mon, 01 Oct 2007 16:47:00 +0000

The Ministry of Justice in Great Britain has just released a report on the effects of consuming EPM (Extreme Pornography Material).

The results:

The REA (Rapid Evidence Assessment) supports the existence of some harmful effects from extreme pornography on some who access it. These included increased risk of developing pro-rape attitudes, beliefs and behaviours, and committing sexual offences. Although this was also true of some pornography which did not meet the extreme pornography threshold, it showed that the effects of extreme pornography were more serious.
Men who are predisposed to aggression, or have a history of sexual and other aggression were more susceptible to the influence of extreme pornographic material. This was corroborated by a number of different studies using different methods and different samples.
The REA found no formal research studies of the effects on those who participate in making extreme pornography.

In short, the exponential growth and accessibility of obscene or "extreme" pornography is something we shouldn't take lightly. The study is dramatic evidence of the effects upon men especially those who have a history of aggression.

Oprah Show: Porn and Adultery Good for Your Marriage

Justin Hart — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 22:47:00 +0000

Oprah is a talented woman who has tackled innumerable topics but nothing like this has crossed her couches before. The show that aired Tuesday, September 25, 2007 was entitled: “237 Reasons to Have Sex” and featured numerous “experts” on intimacy and marriage.

First to the defense of aberrant behavior was Dr. Pepper Schwartz who took it upon herself to fly across the world experiencing one-night stands and writing a book about her adventures. Among other things Dr. Schwatz advocated to Oprah the notion of “friends with benefits” … read, casual sex:

"We get together, we have a great time," said Dr. Schwartz "We adore each other, we respect each other, we have great sex, and that's it. It stays in that little category and it doesn't get out of it."

Of course Oprah conducted a poll of her own audience bringing to light several choice examples of the slippery slope that families face in our culture. Take Winnie, for example, who says she saw a gorgeous home, and she told her husband of 44 years about it that night. "He hawed about it and I said, 'I'll give you the best sex tonight you have ever had. I don't care if it's all night,'" she says. "And so we did and I got the house the next day."

Next, Oprah talks to Janee who owns a small collection of pornography, or, eh, “erotica” – as she prefers to call it. "I think with respect to my mother's generation, her mother's generation, you know, exploring the adult entertainment industry was just unheard of. It probably wasn't even an option for them,"

Another expert, Dr. Saltz, chimes in advocating pornography to women for overcoming their concerns about the addiction that their spouses indulge. To her credit, Dr. Saltz notes: “The problem is, it can be a double-edged sword in that anything really pleasurable can become kind of addictive.”

Next, Oprah trots out the best of the breed Greg and Hollie, married with two children enjoying all the normal things that families do… and, oh yeah, practicing “open marriages”, read adultery. As Oprah recounts the story:

During a long car trip Gregg asked Hollie—who says she had never had sex with anyone besides Gregg—if she was curious about being with someone else. "And I said, 'Well, nothing's missing. I don't need it. I don't really think about it,'" Hollie says. "But sure, I mean, if you're curious, if you've only had one partner your whole life, I mean, sure, you'd wonder what it would be like with somebody else."
…

Eventually Hollie started dating and eventually sleeping with one of their mutual friends. Gregg says he's flirted with other women but hasn't started an outside relationship of his own.
"She just has more love in her life," Gregg says. "It doesn't take anything away from what the two of us have."

As we pointed out previously Oprah has aired numerous shows delving into the topic of pornography addiction. These included the sad tale of woman who killed her husband in self defense after he went on a porn-induced rage and a former gospel singer whose life was shattered by the addiction. Why Oprah, whose influence is unmistakable, would backtrack to advocate pornography and adultery is beyond us.

237 Reasons to Call Oprah on the Carpet

Justin Hart — Tue, 25 Sep 2007 15:12:00 +0000

Today on her show Oprah will be featuring "237 Reasons to Have Sex", a tantalizing subject no doubt, but one which has some unexpected consequences as far as I can tell.

Last week we noted the email of a supporter who attended the Oprah show and was shocked by the topic at hand. Hey - we all understand the natural desires of romance, love and sex... but the approach and recommendations that Oprah is putting out there have serious ramifications.

We'll hold our tongue until we see the show today... but the lead in stories about the show sure don't give me any confidence.

Luv ya Oprah... but what?!

Justin Hart — Fri, 21 Sep 2007 18:01:00 +0000

Oprah is a force to be reckoned with. Her career is stunning and admirable. She's done lots and lots of excellent shows on the effects of pornography and addiction and even put up a site tracking sexual predators. Bravo! So... what's next?

Well, she could call attention to recent peer reviewed studies showing the emotional damage of using pornography within a marriage, or how people who view porn are three times more likely to use paid prostitutes, or how 66% of kids reported unwanted exposure to pornography on the Internet.

Nope. Instead I get this email from a friend of the Lighted Candle Society:

As I am usually a big fan, I flew to Chicago to attend a taping of Oprah's show with a few girl friends. Initially it was very exciting and fun, but once they announced the topic (you never know beforehand) that excitement turned to disappointment and embarrassment. The topic was "How to Spice up Your Sex Life".

Oprah started by promoting a book By Dr. Pepper Schwartz called "Prime" which deals with her sexual adventures as a 60 year woman on countless one night stands around the world. http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/books/324356_pepper20.html . She advocates adding sexual adventures (one night stands, anonymous partners, etc) to your life for women over age 50 whether or not they are married.

The show went from bad to worse as Oprah posited that Erotica and Pornography could be acceptable and her guest encouraged people to use porn (movies, magazines, affairs) to enhance their relationships.

She then interviewed a couple who was advocating and practicing an "open marriage". Oprah's panel of experts that offer advice for relationships said that they regularly prescribe pornography to couples as a positive means to spice up their sex life and intimacy.

At no time, did the panel discuss or did Oprah argue about problems or devastation that these ill-conceived ideas can have on a marriage.

I'm writing in hopes that I can convince each of you to help get the word to Oprah that this topic is exactly the thing that is destroying families and individuals in America. We must protect our families from the pornography and filth that is so prevalent today. We have to take a stand and convince her producers that this show should not be shown.

We'll have some updates this weekend and into next week.

When Ads Attack

Justin Hart — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 11:42:00 +0000

Bill O'Reilley has an interesting discussion last week on this offensive ad from Hardee's.

2 Weeks in September

Justin Hart — Wed, 19 Sep 2007 12:09:00 +0000

by Justin Hart

Last week we noted a certain project that we've undertaken: logging crimes related to pornography across North America.

When I show people this map, the reaction is usually: is that all? Then I point out the hidden fact here: this map represents crimes that have made the news only in the last two weeks.

see the list here as well
From the Montana woman, 22, facing 10 years in prison for child pornography charges (and for stealing some 2000+ pairs of girls underwear for her husband) to the federal prosecutor who flew to Detroit to have paid sex with a woman's 5-year-old daughter (an undercover cop)... the crimes are both disturbing and unrelenting.

The purpose of this list is not to overwhelm but rather to point out that we may have a serious problem here in the United States when it comes to pornography. IMHO - it's time to talk.