A few Q and A’s —

By: American Decency Staff

"… While we hope to get the attention of the Bush Administration, the primary goal of the May 19 event is to awaken the next President. …" [Robert Peters, President of Morality in Media] Question — What's with this event in Washington DC this coming Monday? I see that there is a prayer breakfast and a conference followed by a demonstration at the Justice Department. What's this all about? My answer: Pornography victimizes. Pornography destroys. Pornography addicts. Pornography implants into a person's thought life thoughts that if not curbed can lead a person to act out what they see (rape, incest, molestation, etc.) In the early 80s, there was a growing recognition by Christians, certain civic leaders, and government leaders, that pornography was pushing its way into mainstream America. On May 20, 1985, under the Reagan administration there was the instituting of the Attorney General's Commission on Pornography. It consisted of 12 commissioners including Dr. James Dobson, Founder of Focus on the Family. The commission met for 14 months. Dobson stated on his radio program at the time that those were perhaps the most difficult time of his life in ministry. Spiritual warfare was significant as you might expect on a governmental commission. There were many points of view and controversy. Yet out of that commission came 73 recommendations which were all implemented. One of the most significant implementations was the development of the Child Exploitation and Obscenity Enforcement Section (CEOS). First led by Robert Showers (a former Asst. Federal Prosecutor and later by Pat Trueman). Under their leadership, which began during the Reagan Administration and ran through the George H. Bush Administration, there was a vitality of purpose and an effectiveness in investigation and in prosecution. The effects upon the pornography industry were devastating. From dial a porn, to mail order pornography to the XXX-rated video industry – the pornography industry was back on its heels. In porn trade magazines such as Adult Video News and the Video Software Dealers Association, there were articles acknowledging that the pornography industry's prosperity was being significantly threatened. This kind of prosecutorial involvement began to work its way down to Federal Prosecutors (there are two in each state) and to local county prosecutors nationwide. Though a minority of local prosecutors were engaging in investigations and prosecutions, nonetheless there were those who were involving themselves in prosecuting purveyors of pornography. Even "mom and pop" stores were realizing that pornography was being targeted by law enforcement. Prosecuting obscenity was one of the leading law enforcement priorities in both the Reagan and George H. Bush administrations. When obscenity is a law enforcement priority, it even affects hotel and motel chains. Hotel/motel owners think twice before allowing pornographic movies in their hotel rooms. It was not terribly surprising under the Clinton administration that the prosecution of pornography (the legal word – obscenity) was largely non-existent. This was devastating when one considers the fact that the Internet emerged under the Clinton adminstration. Unfortunately, no effective legislation emerged curbing the flow of pornography over the Internet. As you know, there are millions of pornography sites. There was great hope within the decency organization ranks that we would see a return to aggressive prosecution of pornography under the current administration. Despite efforts by leaders from a core of national pro-decency organizations to persuade Bush law enforcement officials including Attorney Generals John Ashcroft and Alberto Gonzales, the lackluster, do nothingism has continued and the plague of pornography continues on and on and on with many victims being caught, sometimes innocently, in its wake. Therefore, on Monday, May 19 there will be demonstration at the Justice Department " … desperate times sometimes call for desperate but still lawful measures. We have tried every type of written persuasion possible to get the DOJ and FBI to vigorously enforce federal obscenity laws, but it has all fallen on deaf ears. …" [Taken from a comments from Robert Peters, President of Morality in Media] In conclusion, let me further share with you words from Bob Peters regarding this day of prayer, exhortation/education and demonstration: "… While we hope to get the attention of the Bush Administration, the primary goal of the May 19 event is to awaken the next President. According to a survey conducted by Harris Interactive in April 2008, were the next President to do all in his or her Constitutional power to ensure that federal obscenity laws are enforced vigorously, 75% of adults would support the President. We understand that there are many pressing issues facing our nation, but evidence abounds that pornography, among other things, erodes decency, undermines morality, debases women, ruins marriages, corrupts children, and contributes to sexual abuse of children and rape. We hope you agree that now is a time for action and will join us on May 19." Sincerely, Robert Peters President of Morality in Media (212) 870-3210 robert@moralityinmedia.org For more specifics regarding the event https://americandecency.org/main.php?f=updates_new/2008/May/05.12.08 ================================= Important request for prayer — Please pray that God will anoint this time with His presence and that He will be glorified. May it be that people – including future leaders – would step up and stand boldly against this filth that is destroying our national moral underpinnings. ====================================================== Onenewsnow.com – offers a radio report on this. http://www.onenewsnow.com/Politics/Default.aspx?id=112794 —————————– Thank you for helping us stay in the battle for Truth and decency. https://americandecency.org/folder.php?f=donate Bill Johnson, president ———-

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