Pornography and public officials

By: American Decency Staff

Personal note: Though it’s hard to believe today, as recently as the eighties and nineties there were proactive efforts to oppose pornography wherever it could be found. Pressure was placed upon many prosecutors to enforce existing laws against pornography. There were individuals like myself that reminded people that pornography does victimize – that pornography isn’t a victimless crime. Does pornography degrade, desensitize, destroy? It is doing great damage all across this country. You can help me by sending me the urls of any article(s) that you come across. We need to continue to remind others of the great damage that pornography is doing! We must not lose heart in well-doing, but continue to oppose pornography and advance our efforts against it wherever we can. Here’s an example from last night’s newspaper: Grand Rapids Press, February 14, 2007. Quoting a small portion from the article: [This is an article about local government entities finding that the Internet is being surfed for pornography from city offices and the problem it is presenting. Internet filtering is needed they say, but some don’t have it.] ” For five years, Cascade Township building inspector Gary Campbell pulled up Internet pornography in the privacy of his office. It wasn’t difficult, he said. Despite similar cases across West Michigan — from Wayland to Cutlerville to Belding — many smaller government offices are not set up to block porn images, experts said. But it’s not an issue unique to Cascade Township. … At the Cutlerville Fire Department, officials are limiting Internet access after somebody used computers, including one in a rescue vehicle, to view porn — perhaps thousands of pornographic images. However, the system has no filter — something that may change, officials said. Officials discovered the misuse in September and were trying to determine who was responsible. Nobody has been disciplined. After Belding City Manager Michael Woods resigned and was jailed for viewing child porn at work in 2004, the city responded by spending $5,000 on a Web filter. It spends $2,000 every two years to renew the system….” http://www.mlive.com/news/grpress/index.ssf?/base/news-34/1171468114201350.xml&coll=6 My comment. (1) Filtering needs to be installed. (2) Pornography is every man’s battle, but it can and must be fought. My own personal testimony is that the power of God through His Word, His grace, His Spirit can give any Christian man victory over it! It is far from hopeless! Important resource. Filtering. Why do so many Christian families still not have Internet filtering on their home computers? For further information: www.afo.net Another news report Detroit Free Press, February 15, 2007 5 held in sex with girl, 11, in Eastpointe “It was late on a June afternoon in Eastpointe when an 11-year-old girl bounded down Collinson Avenue, looking for her dog. Before she could find her pet, she came across a group of teenage boys who asked her to follow them into a nearby home. They didn’t bother to ask her age. According to police, over the next two hours, the five teens took turns having sex with the underage girl — with one suspect allegedly using a camera on a cell phone to record part of the incident….” http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070215/NEWS04/702150428&imw=Y Do you think just maybe that pornography is a part of the lives of these young men though it is not explicitly stated? Much could also be stated about news reports that make no connection between sex crimes and the fact that pornography was found at the scene of the crime. We’re talking about an eleven year old girl here. Yet the article implies that she didn’t fight against the boys raping her. Though the article does say she did “feel pressure to submit.” Give me a break. Five guys aged 19 to 15 engaging her in sex and one of the guys taking pictures of every detail. And she’s supposed to fight back? How? And one of the guys was found to have a concealed weapon. Prayer: Jesus may we not lose our sense of grieving and outrage over what we see happening. Help us to stand against pornography in our own lives and in our local shopping places and wherever it is found. In your name. Give us guts and backbone. In your name. Amen. ==================================== Let’s encourage one another and strengthen one another to be more like our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. American Decency Association Bill Johnson, President P.O. Box 202 Fremont, MI 49412 PH: 231-924-4050 www.americandecency.org

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