Forgive the headline, but I just love feeding conservatives neo-cons their own feces.
Rep. Paul Broun, R-Ga., has proposed H.R. 5821, the so-called “Military Honor and Decency Act” to close a “loophole” in the law that allows nudie magazines to be sold on military bases. Irony alert! If it passes, the people who are fighting the taliban, allegedly to protect our freedom, will no longer have the freedom to buy the latest issue of Penthouse.
“Our troops should not see their honor sullied so that the moguls behind magazines like Playboy and Penthouse can profit,” said Rep. Paul Broun, R-Ga., unveiling his House bill April 16. (source)
Broun trotted out the typical anti-porn rhetoric, spouted from pulpits and womens’ studies departments nationwide.
“Allowing sale of pornography on military bases has harmed military men and women by escalating the number of violent, sexual crimes, feeding a base addiction, eroding the family as the primary building block of society, and denigrating the moral standing of our troops both here and abroad.” (source)
If our military members are so fragile that they can’t take the sight of a naked woman (or man) in a magazine without falling apart, we’re going to need to hire some mercenaries to handle our foreign expeditions. Anyone soft enough to lose it over Penthouse isn’t really fit to write traffic tickets, let alone tote an M-16.
The measure was specifically targeted at Playboy and Penthouse. Those two publications made it through an earlier, less restrictive, review process. The military censorship board decided that both Penthouse and Playboy had “enough nonsexual content to be acceptable.” (source)
One veteran made a particularly sharp point:
So what basis does this Paul Broun make on pornography being unsuitable for us to view? As a former paramedic was I able to view the human body injured, mishapen, diseased and traumatized for the good of the country, but unable to exercise individual responsibility by going to a strip club on a Friday night? (source)
Another military member had this to say:
Still, the irksome thing about the Christian Taliban trying to deny everyone else anything they don’t approve of is that it creates a more uptight and less “fun” military. Good thing the Recession arrived to ensure retention.
The Cold War USAF, for example, was a “work hard, play hard” environment. Now it’s a “one mistake Air Force” where it’s all work and boring wholesomeness (well, someone ELSES idea of wholesomeness) instead of real martial spirit. Now that we are gradually morphing into a drone deployment corporation this may not matter much…but consider the people who want to micromanage what you read are displaying UTTER contempt for YOU by restricting YOUR choices. (source)
Yet another made this point:
Bottom line, I’ve been to Iraq twice now and sacrificed for the country and its freedom. What the hell are these Republican fundamentalists to push their morality on us? (source)
Amen, brother.
Oh, I almost forgot the best part. Broun’s justification for this measure? He doesn’t want government funds to go toward procurement of pornographic materials. When he was informed that the PX doesn’t give the magazines away, and that the base exchanges are self-funded, a Broun spokesman responded with this zinger.
Broun’s spokesman John Kennedy contended that taxpayer dollars are involved — “used to pay military salaries, so taxpayer money is, in effect, being used to buy these materials,” he said.
A man in uniform replies:
If the senator thinks that taxpayer money is used to buy these items because our salary comes from taxes I feel that all government employees should be subjected to the same standards. This should not include just pornography, but also alcohol, tobacco, violent video games & movies, any clothing that is a color other than white or black(could over stimulate your senses otherwise), spending more than $10 on a haircut, or anything else someone can come up with that would make him have to give up something. We are paid for services rendered and we should be allowed to spend our money in a way we see fit. Last time I checked all mombers of the military are legally adults and therefore can make decisions for themselves. (source)
Paul Broun, you are the ass-hat of the week, and the first to bear the title “Ass hat who hates our freedom and hates our troops.”
Runners up for the ass-hat award are the 16 freedom and troop hating sleazes who co-sponsored the bill. Take a bow, y’all.
Rep. Paul Broun, R-Georgia
Rep. Todd Akin, R-Missouri
Rep. Steve Chabot, R-Ohio
Rep. Randy Forbes, R-Virginia
Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, R-Nebraska
Rep. Virgil Goode, R-Virginia
Rep. Marilyn Musgrave, R-Colorado
Rep. Joe Pitts, R-Pennsylvania
Rep. William Sali, R-Idaho
Rep. Mark Souder, R-Indiana
Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, R-Maryland
Rep. Peter Roskam, R-Illinois
Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa
Rep. Rob Bishop, R-Utah
Rep. Mike Pence, R-Indiana
Rep. Chris Smith, R-New Jersey
