I think of laws in a democracy as something intended to reflect a community's lowest common moral denominators. Well, not
lowest per se, but obviously it indicates the majority's threshhold of where something crosses the line from immoral to Just Plain Wrong. Case in point, in the county where I currently reside, it is unlawful to sell/purchase any alcohol on Sundays. Outside of deep Mormon country (help!), this wouldn't be the case, it is a horrifying, nasty law. But here it's the norm. Blah.
What I think is interesting is to explore why morals exist at all, and how they came to be. My take on it is that if you peel away the layers to any moral value deeply enough, you'll find our oft-present friend, self-preservation. From self-preservation naturally follows the do-unto-others credo, since the most effective way to avoid having unpleasantness done to oneself is to refrain from imparting unpleasantness upon others. Of course factors such as opinion and culture entangle themselves at this point and muck up what would otherwise make a nice, tidy flowchart.
But on the topic at hand... is pornography immoral (regardless of the medium in which it is procured)? Of course there is no Right Answer to this question, and circumstance plays a big part (married, single?), but ask yourself this... say an attractive, consenting adult of, er, your preferred gender (must... not... open... can of worms...) offered to let you look upon their naked body, in privacy, for the purposes of pleasure. Would it be immoral to accept? Is anyone harmed by this? And if it is wrong to look at pornography created by consenting adults, would that not indicate that it is also immoral to create the image of a nude person in one's mind, whether the imagined person really exists or not?
Personally, my only objection to pornography which is created and viewed by consenting adults is that it can tend to socially retard people. That's just a consequence. But as far as child pornography goes, I consider it unspeakably, unforgivably evil, because more than just socially retarding people, it can lead to actions which are wholly on the side of Wrong.
Wow, all that text and no real point. I need a drink.
Quote:
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Nobody is moral without having the option of immoral behavior
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Best. Point. Ever.
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