Amazon removing gay ebooks from their catalog again

[cfrizz]

Ding, ding, ding!

There are thousands of outdated laws on the books here in the states that are simply not enforced because enforcement officials realize that they have more important laws to enforce.

It is also true that while so many people preach about the moral majority, there is a large segment of the moral majority who are doing the very same things they are moralizing against behind closed doors, as headlines pop up seemingly every other day seem to suggest.

If people could just live & let live, the world would be a much better place.

Originally Posted by carld

Pornography is not illegal. And, thank God we have the rule of law to protect the minority from the tyranny of the majority.

btw: Internet pornography is more popular in states that have legislated against things like gay marriage.

[ps249]

Originally Posted by ardeegee

Yep, that's a pretty good bet.

2,988 posts on this forum and the moderators still allow you to post? Just goes to show you can get away with anything here.

[Kenneth_irl]

Originally Posted by ps249

2,988 posts on this forum and the moderators still allow you to post? Just goes to show you can get away with anything here.

I agree that his statement was a bit heated? (it can happen during a heated discussion), but your statement is still pretty ridiculous. Mobileread is a well moderated and adult forum in my experience.

[carld]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

Carl, I don't know where you're from, but it is in America, which is where Amazon is located.

I'm in Ohio. I can drive a few miles and buy all the naughty books, DVDs, and assorted accessories I can carry home. Pornography is not illegal. Where do you live that it's illegal to do the same?

[Worldwalker]

Originally Posted by carld

I'm in Ohio. I can drive a few miles and buy all the naughty books, DVDs, and assorted accessories I can carry home. Pornography is not illegal. Where do you live that it's illegal to do the same?

Texas, maybe? I believe I recall reading that toys were illegal there. Um, "those" toys, I mean.

Aside from a few places, pornography is widely available, at least if you know where to look. Near truck stops and major highway off-ramps would be a good bet -- just look for the stores with the whited-out windows and the big sign saying "Adult Store". I haven't been in Cambridge in a long time, but there used to be a very comprehensive toy store in the Parking Garage (a shopping complex converted from a former garage, for those who're scratching their heads). They even had classes. In terms of printed matter, it ranges from plain brown wrappers to anything goes. I haven't been to a computer show in ages (why bother, when you can get parts from NewEgg in a day or two instead of waiting a week or a month for a nearby show?) but there used to be tables with bins full of X-rated (add as many X's as you like) DVDs for sale, if that's your thing.

Thankfully, while some segments of the US population want to be homegrown Taliban, they haven't succeeded as well as they've hoped. The only reason they haven't is the outspokenness of other people who are vigilant for this sort of thing, and that must be continued.

And ardeegee's right. There are a disturbing number of totally, utterly, absolutely ignorant people around. What's so bad isn't that they're ignorant in the first place --after all, everyone is ignorant when it comes to something or other -- but that they're proud of being ignorant and want to stay that way. That's just scary.

The right to please the majority needs no protection; it's the right to be different that must be defended at all costs. Anyone who has the power -- or the willingness, in this case -- to keep other people from buying things you don't want to read has the power to keep you from buying things other people don't want to read.

And we, as buyers, have not only the right but the obligation to spend our money with companies that do things we consider to be positive, not negative, and to tell them -- and tell other people -- why we're doing it.

[GA Russell]

Carl, I'm in North Carolina. I'm not in the market for porn, and I can't say how strictly the laws are enforced here. But I am not aware of any adult bookstores in this area.

[GA Russell]

Originally Posted by HansTWN

It doesn't matter if it is a majority or minority -- what matters is that some people are trying to tell other people how to live their lives...

And studies have shown that homosexuals usually make up around 15% of people everywhere...

Some people telling other people how to live their lives is what laws are all about. I am sympathetic toward the legalization of vice, though probably less so than I was in the past. My point is that the condemnation of porn is the norm in the US, not the fringe.

Here in the US, the accepted estimate of gays is 5% of the population, though just a couple of weeks ago I read an estimate by a gay rights advocate that the number is probably 2-3%.

[Nyssa]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

Carl, I'm in North Carolina. I'm not in the market for porn, and I can't say how strictly the laws are enforced here. But I am not aware of any adult bookstores in this area.

One does not need to be in the market for something to know where they can find it. There are at least 3 in Raleigh and 10 in the surrounding areas, although I have no idea about distances (as I've never been to North Carolina). I love

[Kenneth_irl]

Originally Posted by Worldwalker

Texas, maybe? I believe I recall reading that toys were illegal there. Um, "those" toys, I mean.

Aside from a few places, pornography is widely available, at least if you know where to look. Near truck stops and major highway off-ramps would be a good bet -- just look for the stores with the whited-out windows and the big sign saying "Adult Store". I haven't been in Cambridge in a long time, but there used to be a very comprehensive toy store in the Parking Garage (a shopping complex converted from a former garage, for those who're scratching their heads). They even had classes. In terms of printed matter, it ranges from plain brown wrappers to anything goes. I haven't been to a computer show in ages (why bother, when you can get parts from NewEgg in a day or two instead of waiting a week or a month for a nearby show?) but there used to be tables with bins full of X-rated (add as many X's as you like) DVDs for sale, if that's your thing.

Thankfully, while some segments of the US population want to be homegrown Taliban, they haven't succeeded as well as they've hoped. The only reason they haven't is the outspokenness of other people who are vigilant for this sort of thing, and that must be continued.

And ardeegee's right. There are a disturbing number of totally, utterly, absolutely ignorant people around. What's so bad isn't that they're ignorant in the first place --after all, everyone is ignorant when it comes to something or other -- but that they're proud of being ignorant and want to stay that way. That's just scary.

The right to please the majority needs no protection; it's the right to be different that must be defended at all costs. Anyone who has the power -- or the willingness, in this case -- to keep other people from buying things you don't want to read has the power to keep you from buying things other people don't want to read.

And we, as buyers, have not only the right but the obligation to spend our money with companies that do things we consider to be positive, not negative, and to tell them -- and tell other people -- why we're doing it.

Well said

+ 1

[ardeegee]

Originally Posted by ps249

2,988 posts on this forum and the moderators still allow you to post? Just goes to show you can get away with anything here.

Not really-- judging from your posts so far, I'd say that there is very little chance you'll reach even 298 posts before you are banned.

[ardeegee]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

Carl, I'm in North Carolina. I'm not in the market for porn, and I can't say how strictly the laws are enforced here. But I am not aware of any adult bookstores in this area.

According to Citysearch.com, there are three adult bookstores in Raleigh.

Also one in Greensboro, two in Charlotte, one in Gastonia, one in Wilmington, and one in Winston-Salem.

Also around 10 escort services listed for Raleigh...

[GA Russell]

Originally Posted by Iphinome

Maybe I misunderstood, you're not saying that pornography is illegal are you?

Of course. It seems like I read in the paper about people getting arrested for having pornography on their computers all the time.

[Nyssa]

Originally Posted by GA Russell

Of course. It seems like I read in the paper about people getting arrested for having pornography on their computers all the time.

Child pornography! Which is illegal in every state in the United States of America.

[RainingLemur]

Originally Posted by Nyssa

Child pornography! Which is illegal in every state in the United States of America.

D'oh.

[Rizla]

Does Amazon stock hetero-sexual manga porn? If so, then I call bigot. If not, then that's fair enough. Even Max on TMZ thinks manga porn is weird...