Do Dead Iraqis Have “Literary, Scientific or Artistic Value?”
(posted by Mona)
In 2005, the Christian right demanded that the Bush Administration crack down on the obscene death and maiming occurring in Iraq adult pr0n. And so it is according to the LAT, that a jury has been empanelled in a California federal district court to watch six hours of “fetish pornography” that includes acts of defecation, as well as man and/or woman on dog/snake/turtle etc. The producer of the films, Ira Isaacs, insists that he is an artist and his films works of art. But he concedes:
“All they’re going to do is turn on a DVD machine and hope the jury is going to be so shocked and disgusted and offended that they’re going to throw me in prison,” said Isaacs, 57, a native of the Bronx. He said he hopes that jurors will be shocked — he’s a self-described “shock artist” — but also that they will see artistic value in the work.
[...]
He is now facing charges related to the importation, transportation and distribution of obscene material in connection with four videos he was selling over the Internet, including the one he produced. Isaacs admits to producing that film and to distributing all four.
But he denies that they’re obscene.
“That’s for the jury to decide,” he said.
He said that prosecutors have made several overtures inviting him to take a plea in the case, but that he has refused every time.
Pleading guilty would be admitting that he was just another pornographer, he said.
“If I get convicted and go to prison now,” Isaacs said, “I go as an artist.”
Yes, well, whether Isaacs is an artist or not, that’s just where our national energies ought to be directed. Locking guys in a cage for producing adult fetish films. It is not as if
anything truly obscene and disgusting is going on anywhere.
June 9th, 2008 at 2:53 pm
Bah. The commander-in-chief forever part of the religious right is too busy accusing anyone who criticizes the Iraq war of treason and lack of sufficient nationalism or some other bogus charge.
Quite a good point you make, Mona. Thanks for noticing their rancid hypocrisy.
And consensual pornography — no matter how gross — should not be a concern of the state! Here, I thought I was living in a free country. I guess it’s partially a theocracy.
June 10th, 2008 at 4:50 am
Just another day in Bizarro World, where evil is good and thank heavens we have “Dancing with the Stars” to sedate us.
June 11th, 2008 at 4:15 pm
Crikey, it gets even MORE ridiculous:
9th Circuit’s chief judge posted sexually explicit matter on his website
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-kozinski12-2008jun12,0,6220192.story