Porn Bailout for the Sake of America’s Health

The porn industry is seeking a bailout. But the interesting thing is that it’s not because porn is suffering from the economic downturn. It’s because America NEEDS MORE PORN to help us through these tough times.

Flynt and Francis concede the industry itself is in no financial danger — DVD sales have slipped over the past year, but Web traffic has continued to grow.

But the industry leaders said the issue is a nation in need. “People are too depressed to be sexually active,” Flynt said in the statement. “This is very unhealthy as a nation. Americans can do without cars and such but they cannot do without sex.”

“With all this economic misery and people losing all that money, sex is the farthest thing from their mind. It’s time for congress to rejuvenate the sexual appetite of America. The only way they can do this is by supporting the adult industry and doing it quickly.”

Gotta give them credit for originality.

Isn’t that cute?

Little kiddies taking the  slightly bigger sister with them as they elope to Africa to get married and sit in the sun.  Ages?  5, 6 and 7.  Two things stuck me about the story:

1.  The whole narrative is permeated by adult perspectives which the children have somewhat assimilated.  And to a worrying extent.  Thus the Guardian says:

It is a dream that has been shared by lovers across the centuries – the chance to elope to exotic lands. But few would have been as bold and spontaneous as six-year-old Mika and his five-year-old sweetheart Anna-Bell who, after mulling over their options in secret, packed their suitcases on New Year’s Eve and set off from the German city of Hanover to tie the knot under the heat of the African sun.

 

 

 

2.  The stunning lack of knowledge the kids have.  If you are working on concepts, it’s an interesting example of how our ascription of language can outstrip what we might count as understanding.

Of course, there is also the pink, with trim, etc.  Not a chance the little child in funereal clothing is one of the  girls.

The Atheist Bus

Jender (originally from the US, but now living in the UK) is having a culture-shock moment, thanks to lp, who has just told her about The Atheist Bus campaign.

AtheistCampaign.org began when comedy writer Ariane Sherine saw an advert on a London bus featuring the Bible quote, “When the Son of Man comes, will He find Faith on this Earth?” [sic]. A website URL ran underneath the quote, and when Sherine visited the site she learned that, as a non-believer, she would be “condemned to everlasting separation from God and then spend all eternity in torment in hell”.
Unsettled that religious groups were allowed to advertise websites which warned that the non-religious would face torture at the end of their lives, Sherine pitched and began to write a comment piece for The Guardian’s Cif (Comment is free) website, called Atheists – Gimme Five. As part of her research for the piece, she called the Advertising Standards Authority, but was told that the website advertised wasn’t part of their remit. At the end of her article, keen to suggest a solution, she proposed:
[if all atheists reading this] contribute £5, it’s possible that we can fund a much-needed atheist London bus ad with the slogan: “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and [enjoy] your life.”

I like it, though I do wonder if the text might be more appropriate for an Agnostic Bus campaign. To read more, go here.