Open Hatch

I learned about a legislative proposal (whose origin is a very good, innovative information technological idea) which would effectively restrict minors from access to innapropriate stuff on the internet (all current measures are quite innefective), and it raises no problems of free speech (but a nasty popup at an otherwise innocent web site available to minors, in my opinion, goes beyond free speech and is, bluntly, child abuse. Free speech is not a license to destroy the innocence of children. Free speech isn’t the issue there. Child abuse is).

I think the measure would work beautifully. I’m trying to think how to introduce it, but the site does a better job. I found out about this initiative from this documentary, which is a very effective, smart, and moving documentary (my only criticism ..

show

is that the narration is in the form of side shots of the documentarian hunched over and recording his voice in some dark, romantically lit studio, which is weird. With the other shots of subjects, it says, “Here am I also as a subject making this documentary. It’s important that I document that I am documenting things. Behold, I am a documentarian.” It makes it feel half like a “The Making of” promotional or fan film, which throws the sense of it out of context and is distracting, and could allude to a sense that the documentarian is a fan of himself, which is off-putting. The narrater shouldn’t draw attention to the fact that he is narrating. Blah blah blah, but I had to find a way to put into words exactly why it doesn’t work.. I’m a film maker )

Never minding my sole criticism of the film, among the interviewees are porn industry mavens and spokespersons who make spectacular advertisements for pure idiocy and obvious, stark (should I say naked?) lies.

Two examples of the astonishing fallacies put forward by interviewed porn mavens in this film:

• 1. kids interviewed on the street who estimate that 95 percent of their peers are into and/or creating pornography, vs. an industry maven who estimates that 5 percent of kids are into porn (can you be so naive, sir, or are you blatantly lying about what you know? It’s one or the other). Hello. Those figures are exactly inverse, and I think the kids whose peers are into it would know better.
• 2. Industry claims that they have no interest in marketing to or drawing kids vs. the fact of many porn stars hosting myspace web pages which display comments from visiting minors and adolescents - and, hello, these guys aren’t going to weep if they “accidentally” get some kids hooked to porn any more than tobbaco companies “care” about the health interests of consumers - young males (scads of them - and young women - crawl myspace) are an obvious, and the most vulnerable demographic for the porn industry’s shameless exploitations.

Also interviewed are ex-porn stars who describe the emotional horror they suffered in the porn industry and their miraculous escapes from the.. I’d have to say chains of hell. One of them was pulled out by a man I can only call a Saint. Whoever you are, sir, you are awesome.

The documentary convinced me. I can wholly support the Community Port 80 Initiative - it would be wonderfully liberating and fair to all parties - and I am writing to my Senators and Congresspersons to draw their attention to it. .. I’m writing the presidential candidate(s) who interest me too. I would persuade you to do the same if the concept sways you.

[I wrote this and asked many people if I should send it. Their answer was yes, though possibly not to this recipient.]

Dear Senator Hatch,

I’m not really sure if you’re in my district, or whatever, but sometimes I think I like you, so I’m writing you anyway. I might even write you if I don’t like you.

I’ve been thinking about house prices. It’s weighing heavily on my mind. Like so many mortgage payments. And I’m thinking, if I want to move into the Nevilleson’s mansion when they move out, how am I going to secure the right price? I’ve heard there are so many Californians moving into our state, right out of theirs - who said they could come here? They aren’t Pioneer stock! - and gobbling up all the expensive houses by selling their half-million dollar homes in the Bay area and driving out here. Right after they sell! And this drives prices up. I know I’ve heard that Utahns are stingy - I’m proud of it - but doesn’t that strike you as wrong? It feels like an invasion. My daddy worked hard in the soil all his life and his lot is now inherited by someone from L.A. It seems like the wrong kind of Eminent Domain, if you ask me. Where are the border patrols? I’m not sure how they even watch the border. I’m sure it must be a bigger problem than Mexico, with a flood of Californians like this! But then I got thinking about why they are buying those homes for such high prices, anyway. And I realized: it’s because the credit bureaus all report their revolving debt, right there on the credit report, which anyone can look at for even the most marginal reason, such as wanting to haggle me with mail solicitations by chopping up more of the trees in Panguitch! And Panguitch is my middle name, so I doubly resent that! And when they look at that credit report, with the revolving debt, they know just exactly how much they can extort from their buyer, no guesswork at all, no fudging and lowering of the price just in case they can’t pay that much - I mean, Supply and Demand never had less guesswork in the Red Scare! Talk about another invasion! Keep their eyes off how much I’m making! That’s private! Can you do anything about that? You’re a Senator, after all. This also got me thinking about taxes. It seems like a lot of people pay high taxes on homes and then businesses find ways out of paying more taxes. In fact it seems almost conspiring how much businesses get away with loops and multiple special exceptions in the tax system over consumers and general lay domestics. It’s as if they get to make more money just because they are smarter. What is right about that? Should someone get less tax just for buying a hummer? Or structuring their company one way vs. another? They seem like arbitrary concessions devised solely from politicians buckling to too much pressure from too many lobbyists who somehow have themselves convinced that they must be worthy of less taxation just because they are more special for doing something some way or owning some thing. Or some people. Like we thought blacks were a worthy tax exemption for a while. Like Communists owning peasants. But I think the tax should be completely flat, everywhere. Like Kansas. Then we would all lay up in store treasures as if from heaven, and the Mormons could stop being so frugal. Or stingy, I guess. Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

Someday, Senator, someday.

Floese Panguitch Louisa, Jr.