The Right still has its own brand of 'woke' TOM KNIGHTON JAN 24

When I was younger, I considered myself a Democrat. The reason was simple. I valued freedom and, by and large, Democrats were better on much of that at the time. This was when Republicans wanted to mandate prayer in school, ban burning the flag, and a host of other things that were terrible for the First Amendment. Upgrade to paid In recent years, though, it’s been the left looking to restrict free speech. Coupled with their gun control push that goes back to the dawn of gun control and it’s easy to think Republicans have become a more libertarian party. At least, it is if you don’t look too deep. The moral authoritarianism that once drove the GOP may not be as predominant was it once was, but it’s never completely gone away. That’s clear from a recent bill set to be filed in Oklahoma. An Oklahoma state senator has proposed a law that would make watching pornography a felony and ban sexting among people who are not married. The bill, set to be introduced next month by state Sen. Dusty Deevers (R-Elgin), would prohibit consuming or producing sexual content that “lacks serious literary, artistic, educational, political, or scientific purposes or value” in any medium. The measure defines “obscene material” as the depiction or description of any “acts of sexual intercourse,” including those that are “normal or perverted, actual or simulated.” Content depicting sodomy and masturbation would also be off the table, in addition to videos, movies, video games and text messages that involve “sadomasochistic abuse” and “acts of excretion in a sexual context.” Under the measure, pictures of human genitals or women’s breasts would also be banned as well as “lewd exhibition” of the “buttocks.” It would carry prison sentences of up to a year and $2,000 fines. Because of course he is. Now, understand that I’m not condoning porn. I’m not saying it should be just laying around for everyone to see anytime they want. What I am saying, though, is that I don’t need a state government telling me what I can and can’t watch in the privacy of my own home so long as all parties are consenting and of legal age to consent. Yes, porn can cause psychological damage to people, but so can a lot of other stuff we have on network television. We allow the sale of nicotine and alcohol, even if restricted, despite the known physical harm these products can cause, so why is this suddenly something no one should see? Because Deevers is a Baptist pastor who thinks his sense of morality should be universal. That’s the stuff that drove a lot of people leftward in the ‘80s and ‘90s. It’s the kind of stuff that pushed me toward Democrats in my youth. See, we have real problems in this country, and while adult entertainment may not be good for the soul, it’s also not the kind of issue a state government needs to insert itself in. (Did you see what I did there?) Oh, I may not be crazy about state laws that require adult sites to check IDs, but at least those can be billed as trying to keep kids from viewing the material. This is different because it’s meant to keep anyone from viewing it. And put people in prison if they do watch it, for crying out loud. What’s more, this is going to be largely unenforceable. Oh, the sexting ban might be a factor in divorce proceedings—and allow scorned parties to punish those they’re angry at—but most people are just going to use privacy mode on their browser and employ a VPN to hide their location. Congratulations, you’ve done nothing at all, Mr. Deevers. I swear, it’s bad enough when the left is trying to tell me what I can and can’t do but it’s even worse when I’m also seeing this from the other side. I honestly don’t care what consenting adults do. I don’t care if they send lewd messages to one another outside of the sanctimony of marriage or if they watch adult films or cam girls. What I care about are people who think they have the right or authority to dictate how anyone else is supposed to live their lives and want to punish anyone who disagrees. You're currently a free subscriber to Tilting At Windmills. For the full experience, upgrade your subscription. © 2024 Tom Knighton 548 Market Street PMB 72296, San Francisco, CA 94104