Ned
08-23-2006, 07:04 AM
At first blush, I will admit it does seem crazy to put in an article about the conservatives in the US push to have the hotel industry investigated by the FBI on obscenity charges, due to the industry's pay-per-view porn offerings on TV in the rooms. But think about it for a moment, and I think you'll see my point.
The FBI is part of the Department of Homeland Security, you know, the folks in the Federal Government charged with finding those terrorist plots before they actually happen, to keep us safe. The FBI, in fact, is Homeland Security's number one domestic terrorism investigative organization, and oh yes, they do have some duties with respect to investigating actual crime and missing persons as well. Now tell me if I'm wrong, but I really don't count that famous vixen, "Debbie" as a terrorist, nor any of her friends.
What they (porn actors) do, and the films they make, may be in poor taste and/or worse, but do we want to waste our premier terrorism investigation units to look into porn in the hotel industry, which is not even available without paying extra for it, and which parents can have easily turned off in their kid's rooms, if so desired?
Once again these conservative bullies have their priorities all fouled up. They're more concerned with pornography, which only is seen by those who want it, and are willing to pay "obscene" prices for it, than to prevent another 9/11. Yes that is a simplistic statement, but I think it rings true. I know the FBI is a big organization, and can do many things at once, but this sounds like a big waste of precious resources to me.
I would submit, if the Family Research Council and Concerned Women for America were really concerned with "family values" they'd boycott the hotels (loss of income and a reduction of the bottom line is the most effective way to change the way businesses do business) rather than jeopardize national security by pulling agents away from terrorism and crime investigation. If the Family Research Council and Concerned Women for America were really concerned with "family values" they'd be out on the front lines on the issue of spousal abuse and child abuse, something these organizations ignore, rather than pornography. (Actually they do worry about child abuse when it does come from homosexuality or pornography, but not when it comes from mom and dad or another adult in the family household.)
I'm for keeping the FBI investigating terrorists and real crime, myself, what do you think?
Originally posted by AP via CNN.com
Conservatives ask FBI to investigate hotel porn
NEW YORK (AP) -- Pornographic movies now seem nearly as pervasive in America's hotel rooms as tiny shampoo bottles, and the lodging industry shows little concern as conservative activists rev up a protest campaign aimed at triggering a federal crackdown.
A coalition of 13 conservative groups -- including the Family Research Council and Concerned Women for America -- took out full-page ads in some editions of USA Today earlier this month urging the Justice Department and FBI to investigate whether some of the pay-per-view movies widely available in hotels violate federal and state obscenity laws.
The coalition also is trying to draw attention to CleanHotels.com, a directory of hotels and motels nationwide that pledge to exclude adult offerings from their in-room entertainment service.
Though porn is now cheaply and readily accessible on the Internet, and through many other outlets, the activists chose to target the hotel industry in part because of the well-known brands of corporations that cater to family vacationers as well as business travelers.
"These are places that you take your family -- these are respectable institutions," said Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council. "Anything that brings porn into the mainstream is a concern. It just desensitizes people."
Precise statistics on in-room adult entertainment are hard to come by. By some estimates, adult movies are available in roughly 40 percent of the nation's hotels, representing more than 1.5 million rooms. Industry analysts suggest that these adult offerings generate 60 to 80 percent of total in-room entertainment revenue -- several hundred million dollars a year.
The recent newspaper ad mentioned no hotel companies by name because of legal concerns, but it did target the two major suppliers of in-room adult movies -- South Dakota-based LodgeNet and Denver-based OnCommand, a subsidiary of Liberty Media Corp. The ad accused both companies of distributing hardcore pornography to their hotel clients, and it provided a link to a list of X-rated movie titles.
Spokesmen for OnCommand and Liberty Media declined to comment on the ad, and LodgeNet's spokeswoman did not return calls seeking comment. However, top spokespeople for two of the biggest hotel chains, Hilton and Marriott, defended the policies that make adult movies widely available at their affiliated hotels.
Both Kathy Shepard of Hilton and Roger Conner of Marriott said the bulk of their hotels are operated by franchise-holders who make their own decisions about in-room programming. They made clear, however, that their companies consider adult movies to be an acceptable option because they can be ignored or blocked out by guests not wishing to view them.
"Really ultraconservative groups try to target the hotels in their zest to eliminate porn," Shepard said. "In their zest to have their personal morals prevail, they're eliminating choice for others."
Conner said none of the programming offered by Marriott is illegal, and he depicted adult movies as a standard part of today's hotel business.
"In-room movies are a revenue stream," he said. "This is a business matter."
The leader of the campaign against in-room porn is Phil Burress, a self-described former porn addict who heads the Cincinnati-based Citizens for Community Values...
Go to Conservatives ask FBI to investigate Hotel Porn (http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/08/22/hotel.porn.ap/index.html) to read the entire article.
The FBI is part of the Department of Homeland Security, you know, the folks in the Federal Government charged with finding those terrorist plots before they actually happen, to keep us safe. The FBI, in fact, is Homeland Security's number one domestic terrorism investigative organization, and oh yes, they do have some duties with respect to investigating actual crime and missing persons as well. Now tell me if I'm wrong, but I really don't count that famous vixen, "Debbie" as a terrorist, nor any of her friends.
What they (porn actors) do, and the films they make, may be in poor taste and/or worse, but do we want to waste our premier terrorism investigation units to look into porn in the hotel industry, which is not even available without paying extra for it, and which parents can have easily turned off in their kid's rooms, if so desired?
Once again these conservative bullies have their priorities all fouled up. They're more concerned with pornography, which only is seen by those who want it, and are willing to pay "obscene" prices for it, than to prevent another 9/11. Yes that is a simplistic statement, but I think it rings true. I know the FBI is a big organization, and can do many things at once, but this sounds like a big waste of precious resources to me.
I would submit, if the Family Research Council and Concerned Women for America were really concerned with "family values" they'd boycott the hotels (loss of income and a reduction of the bottom line is the most effective way to change the way businesses do business) rather than jeopardize national security by pulling agents away from terrorism and crime investigation. If the Family Research Council and Concerned Women for America were really concerned with "family values" they'd be out on the front lines on the issue of spousal abuse and child abuse, something these organizations ignore, rather than pornography. (Actually they do worry about child abuse when it does come from homosexuality or pornography, but not when it comes from mom and dad or another adult in the family household.)
I'm for keeping the FBI investigating terrorists and real crime, myself, what do you think?
Originally posted by AP via CNN.com
Conservatives ask FBI to investigate hotel porn
NEW YORK (AP) -- Pornographic movies now seem nearly as pervasive in America's hotel rooms as tiny shampoo bottles, and the lodging industry shows little concern as conservative activists rev up a protest campaign aimed at triggering a federal crackdown.
A coalition of 13 conservative groups -- including the Family Research Council and Concerned Women for America -- took out full-page ads in some editions of USA Today earlier this month urging the Justice Department and FBI to investigate whether some of the pay-per-view movies widely available in hotels violate federal and state obscenity laws.
The coalition also is trying to draw attention to CleanHotels.com, a directory of hotels and motels nationwide that pledge to exclude adult offerings from their in-room entertainment service.
Though porn is now cheaply and readily accessible on the Internet, and through many other outlets, the activists chose to target the hotel industry in part because of the well-known brands of corporations that cater to family vacationers as well as business travelers.
"These are places that you take your family -- these are respectable institutions," said Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council. "Anything that brings porn into the mainstream is a concern. It just desensitizes people."
Precise statistics on in-room adult entertainment are hard to come by. By some estimates, adult movies are available in roughly 40 percent of the nation's hotels, representing more than 1.5 million rooms. Industry analysts suggest that these adult offerings generate 60 to 80 percent of total in-room entertainment revenue -- several hundred million dollars a year.
The recent newspaper ad mentioned no hotel companies by name because of legal concerns, but it did target the two major suppliers of in-room adult movies -- South Dakota-based LodgeNet and Denver-based OnCommand, a subsidiary of Liberty Media Corp. The ad accused both companies of distributing hardcore pornography to their hotel clients, and it provided a link to a list of X-rated movie titles.
Spokesmen for OnCommand and Liberty Media declined to comment on the ad, and LodgeNet's spokeswoman did not return calls seeking comment. However, top spokespeople for two of the biggest hotel chains, Hilton and Marriott, defended the policies that make adult movies widely available at their affiliated hotels.
Both Kathy Shepard of Hilton and Roger Conner of Marriott said the bulk of their hotels are operated by franchise-holders who make their own decisions about in-room programming. They made clear, however, that their companies consider adult movies to be an acceptable option because they can be ignored or blocked out by guests not wishing to view them.
"Really ultraconservative groups try to target the hotels in their zest to eliminate porn," Shepard said. "In their zest to have their personal morals prevail, they're eliminating choice for others."
Conner said none of the programming offered by Marriott is illegal, and he depicted adult movies as a standard part of today's hotel business.
"In-room movies are a revenue stream," he said. "This is a business matter."
The leader of the campaign against in-room porn is Phil Burress, a self-described former porn addict who heads the Cincinnati-based Citizens for Community Values...
Go to Conservatives ask FBI to investigate Hotel Porn (http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/08/22/hotel.porn.ap/index.html) to read the entire article.