We all know that American congressmen and women don’t get much done, and the GOP’s push to label porn a public health crisis is just one more example that they are all dead inside. The push comes following Utah’s move to declare porn a public health crisis, because they say porn leads to addiction, where men and teenage boys just beat off to increasingly hardcore shit, which can lead to erectile dysfunction in men. Which is fine for fucking Utah — if they want to waste time and public health dollars fighting porn addiction, go right ahead.
But now, North Carolina delegate Mary Frances Forrester suggested a provision for the entire Republican party platform, which will be presented at the convention next week in Cleveland. Basically, they’re making porn as a public health issue part of their motto. The platform amendment says:
“Pornography, with its harmful effects, especially on children, has become a public health crisis that is destroying the life of millions. We encourage states to continue to fight this public menace and pledge our commitment to children’s safety and well-being. We applaud the social networking sites that bar sex offenders from participation. We urge energetic prosecution of child pornography which closely linked to human trafficking.”
The provision passed without anyone putting up much of a fight. Which means they don’t believe they can actually do anything to tame internet porn usage (which is probably true), or they really see no irony in worrying about porn addiction (which some believe to be fake) instead of much more imminent and dangerous public health threats. Because porn is not all bad, and it’s certainly not something that should be dealt with before all of this other shit.
Like The Zika Virus
We’re facing a public health emergency—but Republicans are about to leave for 7 wks w/o passing #Zika funding https://t.co/jg4Xr11rR7
— NARAL (@NARAL) July 12, 2016
Zika is a real public health crisis, and Republicans have held up the passing of an emergency relief fund bill because they don’t want to include money for Planned Parenthood or women’s reproductive health, even though the only people Zika dangerously affects are women and their babies. Oh, by the way, there are over 300 women pregnant women with Zika in the U.S. right now, so the clock is ticking, assholes.
Or HPV
If you have sex, you probably have HPV. And although there is no way to test for HPV in men (fuckers), HPV can either be pretty harmless (genital warts are rough, but not deadly) or lead to cervical cancer in women. We have a vaccine for HPV, called Gardisl, and we could vaccinate pre-teens before they start getting freaky and wipe HPV out of our population. The CDC says that would be a very good idea — because why not prevent cervical cancer if we can? Nope! Republicans, who embrace anti-vaxxers, do not like this idea. Remember Michelle Bachmann? She once suggested that HPV vaccines lead to “mental retardation.” So that’s cool.
So, keep being scared to talk to kids about sex, Repubs, and let HPV run rampant. A little porn should totally be dealt with first. Right.
Actually, Every Single STI
There are 37 states that require abstinence-only education in schools when it comes to talking about the birds and the bees. Instead, we could talk to kids realistically about sex — telling them what really happens, how to use condoms, and to not be scared to ask for STI tests, condoms, or Plan B. Just teaching kids that sex can lead to disease and that abstinence or “mental retardation” from HPV vaccines are their only options is not the most productive way to educate people on how to have safe (and good!) sex. It’s also a good way to get STI rates up.
Porn addiction may or may not be real, and while erectile dysfunction is difficult for men (and their partners) to deal with, it’s not deadly. It doesn’t lead to unwanted pregnancies or babies that might be sick. It doesn’t lead to HIV or cancer. There are real fucking public health crises that could be dealt with, if Republicans would get their heads out of their asses and stop being so prude.
Original by: Karen Fratti
