Tolerance limits:

...vioare shady and immoral activities, is argu- You may not agree that a chain of stores lence, however, show something of the ably of a different order...

...Another argument: morally equivalent...

...It is rather a things, where we try to make distinctions this sort of legislation seems to me a question of freedom of expression, and between good and bad taste, the legiti- decent one...

...The raphy to agree with them that its presence as pornography, and is part of the same tolerance of pornography can be de- is disturbing, and exploitive, and has ter- illusory, distorted way of seeing the fended on the same grounds as the toler- rible social effects...

...The other stuff is so all ideas equal, since everyone has a right society which has chosen pluralism over much a part of the air we breathe that we to have whatever ones he or she likes, the imposition of a uniform philosophy don't see it, even though we're dying of and your taste for Plato and your or religion, to speak not mainly of rights it...

...Laws against charges of censorship...

...I am not covets what Tom Wolfe has felicitously ways is...

...It certainly is, in should not stock Playboy or Penthouse...

...Like porn...

...For every (whichever side you are on) alt ignored, with another, and the most civil solution letter protesting porn, write one defendand it is easy to see why: those objections may be for me to allow a neighbor who ing it...

...women...

...women who participate voluntarily in its THIS is not just fuzzy thinking, though The question of pornography, however, production, but is a matter of taste., if it it is that...

...of a link between pornography and...

...their covers must themselves be sale of non-union table grapes This is where we look at and write about sexual covered...

...You don't have to agree with when these elements of dehumanization some bad things rather than fight them in some of the legal tactics suggested by are parts of our lives, we are in the presways which may come back to haunt us, those feminists who oppose pornog- ence of something which is as dangerous pornography is therefore harmless...

...influence, within which the persons with pornography is not degrading to those variously defined rights are sovereign...

...What ticular form of dehumanization causes so better, in a democracy, to take the risks happens as a result of our greyness here, much more of an uproar than the other involved in the free expression of even however, is not at all simple, because no forms of dehumanization all around us...

...A similar reduction fore you set out to ban it...

...it possible, in a argumentation...

...stores, just as you are free to patronize agreed upon for very good reasons, to Tolerance of diversity is essential to a stores which stock a product that the un- something which may truly be a social pluralistic society, but it is not at all clear ions claim is exploitive of workers...

...Too often into a store to buy a cup of coffee or the ship...

...Nor rights is important, but limited...

...it is another thing al- succeed...

...I have beneficial effects, that it is good for This is not to say that it always does...

...The the sale of drinks on the sabbath, on the How is this morally or legally different responses to the commission's assertion grounds that card playing and drinking from the boycott of California grapes...

...limitation of our society's ability to rea pluralistic society, where tolerance is a if so, you are free to patronize those spond, within limits which we have civic necessity, if not a civic virtue...

...or anybody else to look at them un- violent pornography and violence against The American impulse is to turn mor- willingly...

...But they also have by such obviously self-interested people there is also a much lower rate of violent to do with the maintenance of social or- as Hugh Hefner and Bob Guccione that crime, of a sexual or any other nature...

...Let the porn people the legitimate objections of the other side morning paper...

...general's commission on pornog- limit...

...It is cowardice...

...The concept of might have potentially damaging effects, way, and it is not a good thing...

...disgusting ideas than it is to try to censor one really does believe that all ideas are The erotic is transformed into the pornothem...

...or when a complex issue involvI would rather live in a society which no negative effect whatsoever to expose ing the lives of millions of people is detolerates pornographers, as well as fun- people to images of women being sub- liberately oversimplified so that someone damentalists, atheists, and flat-earthers...

...Art of parents for children or the loneliness of bunch of people from imposing its ideas - obviously defined broadly here - has the old is made part of a commercial pitch on the rest of us...

...tised on a television show which upset Of several minds: John Garvey fundamentalists...

...By the same token, people who have a strong moral objection to what a store sells or:a television show advertises have every-righk o make TOLERANCE LIMITS it clear, as forcefully as they like, to the owners of a chain of stores or a network PORNOGRAPHY & THE RISKS OF CENSORSHIP that they will not patronize those stores or that network's advertisers - as long as they do not interfere with the rights of THE RECENT report of the attorney the border of a neighbor's tolerance others to do so...

...when something as important as the love theory, anyway - it keeps any one You really can't have it both ways...

...the development of tyrannical which move the issue of dehumanization We can agree that pornography is outmonopolies, including that of state and exploitation beyond the area of por- rageous, or we can get defensive about it power itself...

...of Georgia O' Keeffe, but that it will have ployer...

...sure that anything said here will contri- called "one-hand magazines" to buy and Some of the messiness is revealed in bute to clarity, but there are some ques- read them at will, as long as he does' not the responses to one of the commission's tions surrounding the issue which aren't force me or the neighborhood kids assertions - that there is a link between raised often enough...

...A society satisfaction of male desire...

...Persuasion - even of world...

...In some places laws have been A picket line protesting the presence of raphy caused a lot of shallow passed, and in many other places laws Playboy and Penthouse is not in and of commentary from liberals and conserva- have been suggested, which make it il- itself any more offensive to democratic tives, and made me think that in this area legal to display pornographic magazines ideals than a picket line protesting the of our shared life - the area, that is, openly...

...In Japan, for example, violent from one another's throats...

...der, as do laws against speeding and these boycotts pose a threat to all of our This fact, no doubt, has to do with drunk driving...

...You problem...

...And it is of people happens frequently in business, absolute ban, rather than a milder limita- obviously foolish to think that culture can in politics, and especially in advertising...

...Even then an timents will have no effect...

...or It is safer for all of us because - in tion or violence...

...The person who believes that the graphic by the process of dehumanizaIt is necessary, in a pluralist society, to depersonalized sex to be found in por- tion and anonymity, a reduction of somedemonstrate that something causes a nography can have no negative effect is thing human and complex into something fairly obvious social harm, one more or not likely to believe that violently anti- used for effect, something much less than less apparent to the mass of people, be- Semitic or anti-Black or anti-Asian sen- we are meant to be...

...This may be an aspect of A more complicated situation arises in evidence for this, and it comes from law our Puritan heritage, but I don't care cases where groups, often from fun- enforcement people' who find that sexual where it comes from - it is a stupid damentalist churches, threaten boycotts offenders are usually avid readers of response, except in extreme cases...

...It is one thing to say that a we must recognize that Hefner andGucmately erotic and the illegitimately por- person has a right to publish pornog- cione are as self-interested as the people nographic - few people have done a raphic material and that others have a who don't want farmworkers' unions to particularly good job of being clear about right to buy it...

...who tend to look shy when purchasing it as it should be, democracy can prevent But I have a couple of final questions and get embarrassed when caught with it...

...jected to various forms of sexual humilia- can gain power at the political level...

...JOHN GARVEY Commonweal: 488...

...Ad- (which is almost always the attempt to There is a long way, though, from this vertisers do not pay millions of dollars to create a desire where there was not one defense of democratic tolerance to the create series of images which have no before, the creation of a false need...

...tion of access, is a chilling possibility...

...It's messy, but a' free society alare themselves wrapped in fuzz...

...Although I am not pornography is a common and socially torture, rape, and murder have to do with happy with tactics which come close to accepted thing...

...Yet in Japanese society, do any of these things...

...When used than legislation...

...There is some circumstantial ality into law...

...A law which does not freedoms are very close to the tobacco complex cultural factors here and there allow me to play poker or which forbids lobby's similar concerns for democracy...

...It is much more prevalent morality, in the sense that it is immoral to being threats, I think the charges brought there than here...

...The point made by defenders of not to equate the two causes...

...Here one right collides mount their counter-campaign...

...But there is a form of toler- nography into a wider and more troubling - but that's all such easy, self-satisfying ance which comes close to proclaiming place...

...equal...

...Pornogtolerance is dangerous in a constitu- that makes Hefner and Guccione uncom- raphy is obvious...

...link between the desires it arouses and preferences may be reversed) become not The concept of rights is necessarily indithe damage done to women in subtle and only politically but in some vague way vidualistic and sets up separate spheres of overtly violent ways...

...It has the saving grace tional democracy...

...which no one understands very well...

...Maybe this pervasive dehumaniance of racist theories: the alternative to the sort, maybe especially of the sort, zation is even more dangerous...

...If a chain of stores caves in for a difficult but very important and obvi- together to force me to see it when I walk reasons of cowardice, that is not censorously very interesting subject...

...We of stores which sell such materials...

...unless those effects can be more clearly would it be a good thing if such a corn= The second question is why this pardemonstrated than they have been, it is mon culture were to be imposed...

...Ours is a society which can is one of those which involves not only has any effect at all, it is a good one: think only in political terms, in which all the right of women not to be looked at people unable to satisfy weird tastes but the political is subjective, personal, primarily as objects which exist for the through fantasy might take them out on and therefore a matter of taste...

...But am glad that this pragmatic approach is people to be exposed to Shakespeare and when a person becomes less compasconsidered necessary and that our in- Dante and George Eliot and the paintings sionate because it is expected by an emstincts tend to be against any censorship...

...Still another argument: which "has no common philosophical or do with the obligation of men not to reeven if pornography is degrading and moral or religious heritage will drift this gard women in this way...

...One of democracy's fortable - is probably the, better way of creating some guilt in a lot of its fans, greatest virtues is negative...

...The first is this: is...

...where one person's behavior moves over are also free to buy the products adver- One argument goes like this: pornog26 September 1986: 487 raphy is degrading, and there must be a neighbor's for porn (for all I know those but of our obligations to one another...

...it also has to women in fact...

...But there is also some counterdo in fact legislate those aspects of moral-, previously threatened boycotts of televi- evidence, and it leads to some interesting ity which are necessary for keeping us sion shows, this has brought forward questions...

...effects, both positive and negative...

...belief that, because it is good to tolerate effect...