CRAIGforCONGRESS

Missouri's 7th District, U.S. House of Representatives

  
 

 

 

Congressional Issues 2010
MORALITY AND CULTURE
How to End Pornography Without Government Coercion



Many who consider themselves pro-life are actually pro-State: they want more power for the government to prosecute those who seek or provide pornography. Why would a Christian concerned for the spiritual state of a pornographer lock him in prison with a carjacker and a homosexual rapist? Given the fact that nearly 60% of all federal inmates are non-violent drug users, why should these losers be subjected to a new inmate who is a pornographer? Legal solutions to pornography (those involving State-imposed violence) are not the answer to the problem of pornography.

Because I am a libertarian and oppose laws against pornography, I have been called an "anarchist." Actually I believe in MORE government than those who support "the government." I believe in self-government.

The vast majority of Americans oppose the vast majority of pornography in America, according to all polls. This should be the source of social power needed to effectively end pornography without prisons.

If there are 150 million people who oppose pornography, and only a few thousand actively involved in production of pornography, then the odds are in favor of those who oppose pornography. Unfortunately, most of these 150 million to absolutely nothing to stop pornography. And the few who take steps to stop pornography usually do nothing more than ask the government to inflict violence on pornographers.

Here's how self-government works to eliminate pornography better than the federal government:

Even before pornography is published, self-government operates to cultivate a positive value for human life. If Americans had the liberty to put their money where their values are, schools would teach "the Laws of Nature and of Nature's God" and most pornography would never be published and would be instinctively opposed.

Families: Parents who are not victims of government schooling and who have been trained to appreciate America's pro-life values can pass these values on to their children. Constant reminders from the earliest ages that human beings are created by God with unalienable rights is the soil in which pornographic weeds are less likely to grow. Children steeped in pro-life views will inevitably pass these views onto their playmates, and should be encouraged to do so. American parents have always been careful to know who their children play with, and always make an effort to meet the parents of their children's playmates and invite them to learn more about our God-given rights.

Hitting the Escape Button
How to persuade your local library to eliminate internet pornography

Making Your Grocery Store Porn-Free

Employers should not hesitate to hire single mothers who struggle to make ends meet, take an interest in their private lives, and see that various forms of pornography don't offer a tempting substitute for gainful employment. Merchants must substitute generous pay for government welfare. Lunchtime Bible studies and employee training sessions can pass on America's pro-life values. Personal encouragement increases job performance better than an impersonal workplace, and may result in opportunities for interdicting the demand for pornography.

Landlords should use their relationship with tenants to cultivate respect for life through respect for property; the two are not unrelated. Weekend classes in property management, concern for the environment, and household budgeting can be required of tenants in rental agreements. These sessions provide opportunities to stress the importance of human beings created in the Image of God, and their role as stewards of the creation.

Teachers should pass on pro-life values to their students, even in classes that do not directly teach social and cultural subjects. Like the Apostles (Acts 5:29), teachers should defy court orders prohibiting a discussion of American values before and after school, and at lunch.

Media sources which propagate pro-death anti-family values should be boycotted. Americans should patronize movies, television, plays, concerts, and other events which transmit American values. Americans should invite neighbors to neighborhood reading circles in which great pro-life books are read and discussed.

Merchants and business owners can join all of the above in a more negative but essential social function: ostracization. Parents can disinherit, landlords can refuse to rent, teachers can expel, media sources can give unfavorable publicity, and merchants can refuse to sell to those who exploit women and children.

Professional organizations such as the AMA and the ABA should penalize members who have significant ties to the porn industry.

If 90% of all pornography is opposed by 90% of Americans, then the lives of these 90% are being controlled by pro-porn forces: the 90% have been subtly coerced into silence and inaction. Cultural transformation begins with self-government, not the federal government.


It is only because Americans are no longer self-governing that they appeal to "the government" to use armed force against those who publish or consume pornography. 


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