TexProdigy

Ben Shapiro: Wanker

World O’Crap has a pretty good takedown of Ben Shapiro’s (VBen) newest Townwall.com column,”The case for policing pornography.”

Here is my critique of VBen’s column. First, VBen cites a Washington Post article, but does not provide a link to it. VBen does not even give the name of the article. Talk about hack journalism.

If this column was in a newspaper, I could understand not providing a link – but it is online. Either VBen is too lazy to insert the link or he is being disingenuous and not including the link so his readers will not have an easy way to refer back to the original article and make up their own minds. Since VBen does not provide the link, I will.

Barton Gellman’s article is called, “Recruits Sought for Porn Squad.” Now you can look at all three links and make up your mind.

VBen says:

Of course, it is pure malarkey for FBI agents to complain that policing porn takes valuable resources from the war on terrorism.

Now, the Washington Post article is not about the FBI policing child pornography, snuff films, rape pornography, etc. This article is about the FBI policing pornography that depicts consenting adults having sex and that is marketed to adults.

The FBI agent interviewed sarcastically said, "I guess this means we've won the war on terror." I agree. When was the last time that a Jenna Jameson, Blake Harper, or Falcon video flew into a building and knocked it down?

Then VBen conflates fighting criminal pornography (child pornography, snuff films, etc.) with non-criminal pornography by saying:

In the FBI context, every agent who polices public corruption or civil rights violation is an agent not working on terrorism.

No, no, no, VBen. Public Corruption and Civil Rights violations are criminal conduct. Producing, marketing, and selling pornography to adults is not (in may states). Plus, VBen obviously did not read the Wahshington Post article which says:

Public corruption, officially, is fourth on the FBI's priority list, after protecting the United States from terrorist attack, foreign espionage and cyber-based attacks. Just below those priorities are civil rights, organized crime, white-collar crime and "significant violent crime." The guidance from headquarters does not mention where pornography fits in.

Then VBen just goes off the precipice:

In a broader governmental context, the same could be said of welfare, health care and federal aid to the Katrina victims, to take some random examples. Every dollar spent by the federal government on causes other than terrorism takes a dollar away from fighting terrorism. Before we discuss cutting police power with regard to pornography, perhaps we should re-evaluate dedicating millions of federal dollars to building new bridges named after Robert Byrd.

Oi! I guess VBen has never heard of a budget. The Federal government, like many American households, allocates money to certain items (defence, healthcare, welfare, transportation, etc.). Just as with American households, the Federal government does not spend all the money it collect on one item – fighting terrorism. Maybe VBen needs to go back and revisit some of his undergraduate classes like U.S. Government.

Then VBen says:

They find the anti-pornography crowd disturbing because they believe that policing pornography violates fundamental rights. This has become the dominant view in our society: As long as what I do doesn't harm you personally, I have a right to do it. It's a silly view and a view rejected by law enforcement policies all over the country.

I guess VBen just missed one Supreme Court case that refutes that: Lawrence v. Texas.

VBen sadly continues:

Were we to truly recognize such a philosophy, we would have to legalize prostitution, drugs and suicide -- as well as the murder of homeless drifters with no family or friends.

VBen obviously ignores the example of Europe where prostitution is legal in many countries. In Holland, a small amount of marijuana is fine for personal use. Last time I checked, people do not get thrown in prison for attempting suicide.

The last snippet of VBen’s comment is just plain, batshit stupid – murder of homeless drifter is illegal because it does harm someone – the homeless drifter. He or she has the inalienable right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, whether he has family or friends or not.

If porn stars consent to having sex, who is harmed? Are the porn stars? Are the adults who purchase the porn harmed? I am certain I can find multiple studies that argue that both parties are harmed. I can also find an equal amount of studies that show no one is hurt by porn.

I know VBen is making a rhetorical argument:

No, you can't punch me in the nose, but if you choose to perpetrate genocide, and if none of my friends or family members is thrown into a mass grave, what business of mine is it?

However, to equate punching someone and committing genocide with pornography is a straw man argument. Since VBen is studying to be a lawyer (at Harvard, no less), he needs to do better than making logical fallacies like that or he will be trounced in court by those who will punch so many holes in his arguments that the Hindenburg disaster will look like a mere balloon popping.

Further, VBen ignores facts:

But then again, perhaps we have not reached the point where pornography is as legitimate as any other business.

However, according to the Washington Post article, “Recruits Sought for Porn Squad,” VBen refused to link to:

Explicit sexual entertainment is a profit center for companies including General Motors Corp. and Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. [which also owns Fox News!] (the two major owners of DirecTV), Time Warner Inc. and the Sheraton, Hilton, Marriott and Hyatt hotel chains.

VBen, and those like him, want to impose their view of what people can and cannot do in their homes on everyone else. A few weeks ago, on the Michelangelo Signorile Show, VBen claimed he was still a virgin and never even masturbated. A friend of mine, Gabe, said "There are two types of guys in the world: masturbators and liars." World O’Crap, TBogg, and I have all caught VBen not telling the truth (aka, lying). Hmm…I guess he masturbates.