arfink Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 Good news: the porn industry is collapsing. Bad news: something much worse is replacing it. From this article: (note, it's not particularly graphic, but the content matter may prove troubling to some people) http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2012/jun/05/how-internet-killed-porn Basically, the pornography industry is imploding because they can't compete with the Internet. Users won't pay for it when you can either 1) get it for free legally or 2) get it for free via piracy. (quick tip, some of the biggest copyright lawsuits have been over the piracy not of mainstream movies, but of porn DVDs) Piracy is killing porn as an industry. But now "amateur pornographers" are the name of the game. Self production. This is a problem perhaps bigger than the original problem. Thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaPetiteSoeur Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 Pornography is symptomatic of many other problems in society: 1. A lack of respect for women, and their objectification solely for pleasure 2. A lack of education on morality 3. A lack of respect for the human body and human sexuality Banning pornography will not make it disappear, but teaching people about the harm to women could help end it a bit. Everyone has mothers, some people have sisters and wives and girlfriends; if everyone realized how much they would dislike it if someone was watching their mother/sister/wife/girlfriend in a porn dvd, then it would certainly get people thinking. But pornography is an addiction, but one that is not talked about. There are several Catholic groups that help men and women "get clean" from the grip of porn, and support of those programs is necessary. So long as there are people addicted to it and watching it, self-producers will continue to flourish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arfink Posted June 6, 2012 Author Share Posted June 6, 2012 [quote name='LaPetiteSoeur' timestamp='1339006837' post='2441829'] Everyone has mothers, some people have sisters and wives and girlfriends; if everyone realized how much they would dislike it if someone was watching their mother/sister/wife/girlfriend in a porn dvd, then it would certainly get people thinking. But pornography is an addiction, but one that is not talked about. There are several Catholic groups that help men and women "get clean" from the grip of porn, and support of those programs is necessary. So long as there are people addicted to it and watching it, self-producers will continue to flourish. [/quote] That argument is one of the oldest ones, and it doesn't work for one simple reason: nearly all "porn stars" do this stuff on purpose, intentionally, and willingly. They want to be watched, so there isn't a real comparison to women who (presumably) do not want that. I have talked to one too many men who wished that their girlfriends wanted to be watched like that. It's creepy to think about, but that's a very prevalent view. We can't be using that argument anymore. Also, I should have clarified about self-producing: that means the "porn star" films him/herself. Just so that you know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Papist Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 We have known for years that porn is destructive to marriages, families, individuals, and society. It is also addictive, even more so than crack or heroine. This is a recent find. Science is just now finding out just how destructive it is to the brain. Using pornography radically changes the neuro-pathways in the brain by causing the body to inject strong neuro-stimulants directly into the pleasure center of the brain. Repeatedly doing this means the structure of the brain itself is altered and the effects are devastating. I am trying to find the study I read about this. If I so, I will post it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LaPetiteSoeur Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 The OSV had a great series of articles on pornography and addiction, but I can't find the copy my parents have (I think they recently threw out all old newspapers/magazines), and you have to be a subscriber for OSV to read it online. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brother Adam Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 If anyone has any recommendations for DVDs for a parish library, or perhaps work books, please let me know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ice_nine Posted June 7, 2012 Share Posted June 7, 2012 (edited) Yeah that "imagine your sister/mother/daughter" thing doesn't work because a) we've convinced ourselves we can compartmentalize consumption of violent and sexual media from our everyday lives and b) misogyny (not to mention racism and homophobia [gay males are often emasculated by straight alpha males in pornographic films) can often run deeper than familial ties. Sad but true. As an armchair psychologist this is of great interest to me, but more at the clinical side (dealing with the victims of abuse and addicts and such) more so than the research part. AFAIK there's some good, solid research out there generally against pornography (I remember being fairly surprised as psychology is not a field to pander to religious sensibilities), but we're always great at rationalizing things. I need to read up more though. Edited June 7, 2012 by Ice_nine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maximillion Posted June 7, 2012 Share Posted June 7, 2012 I was reading about this only yesterday....... It worries me much more when things are less out in the open. Porn is never good but private porn swapped between people, done over the net in closed insular groups is pretty terrifying. Praying about it............. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spem in alium Posted June 7, 2012 Share Posted June 7, 2012 Pornography is disgusting. So much dignity is lost through being involved in or watching it. It demeans everyone it touches.The sooner there's more of a crackdown on producers and "stars", the better...and it is definitely horrifying to think that people are self-producing. To think that children can be involved is just sick. These days there seem to be more and more stories emerging of people getting caught funding or being involved in pornography rings. I hope and pray that more people realise that porn is a problem that desperately needs to be addressed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Papist Posted June 7, 2012 Share Posted June 7, 2012 (edited) [quote name='Papist' timestamp='1339010824' post='2441862'] We have known for years that porn is destructive to marriages, families, individuals, and society. It is also addictive, even more so than crack or heroine. This is a recent find. Science is just now finding out just how destructive it is to the brain. Using pornography radically changes the neuro-pathways in the brain by causing the body to inject strong neuro-stimulants directly into the pleasure center of the brain. Repeatedly doing this means the structure of the brain itself is altered and the effects are devastating. I am trying to find the study I read about this. If I so, I will post it. [/quote] Here is the article I was referring to, [url="http://www.drjudithreisman.com/archives/2011/05/can_pornography.html"]http://www.drjudithr...ornography.html[/url] [quote] In summary, in the last 10 years the evidence is now firmly supportive of the addictive nature of natural rewards. Drs. Malenka and Kauer, in their landmark paper on the mechanism of the chemical changes which occur in the brain cells of addicted individuals state, "addiction represents a pathological, yet powerful form of learning and memory."[20] We now call these changes in brain cells "long term potentiation" and "long term depression," and speak of the brain as being plastic, or subject to change and re-wiring. Dr. Norman Doidge, a neurologist at Columbia, in his book The Brain That Changes Itself describes how pornography causes re-wiring of the neural circuits. He notes a study on men viewing Internet pornography in which they looked "uncannily" like rats pushing the lever to receive cocaine in the experimental Skinner boxes. Like the addicted rat, they are desperately seeking the next fix, clicking the mouse just as the rat pushes the lever. Pornography addiction is franticlearning, and perhaps this is why many who have struggled with multiple addictions report that it was the hardest addiction for them to overcome. Drug addictions, while powerful, are more passive in a "thinking" kind of way, whereas pornography viewing, especially on the Internet, is a much more active process neurologically. The constant searching and evaluating each image or video clip produced for potency and effect is an exercise in neuronal learning and rewiring. Human sexual climax utilizes the same reward pathways as those mobilized during a heroin rush.[21] If we fail to understand the implications of pornography's ability to re-program the brain structurally, neurochemically, and metabolically, we doom ourselves to continue to fail in treating this formidable disease. However, if we accord this powerful natural reward the appropriate focus and emphasis we can help many now trapped in addiction and despair find peace and hope. [/quote] Edited June 7, 2012 by Papist Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arfink Posted June 7, 2012 Author Share Posted June 7, 2012 [quote name='Spem in alium' timestamp='1339064514' post='2442123'] Pornography is disgusting. So much dignity is lost through being involved in or watching it. It demeans everyone it touches.The sooner there's more of a crackdown on producers and "stars", the better...and it is definitely horrifying to think that people are self-producing. To think that children can be involved is just sick. These days there seem to be more and more stories emerging of people getting caught funding or being involved in pornography rings. I hope and pray that more people realise that porn is a problem that desperately needs to be addressed. [/quote] You realize there won't be any kind of "crackdown" in our lifetime, right? Perhaps another solution needs to come to the fore... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhuturePriest Posted June 7, 2012 Share Posted June 7, 2012 From someone that has watched quite a bit of pornography I can tell you it messes up just about everything. Matthew Fradd is a wonderful apologist that specializes in pornography. I recommend watching them to understand the struggle men go through: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9RzJGuUdOE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AeMjPgyFPSw&feature=relmfu Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r2Dtoo Posted June 7, 2012 Share Posted June 7, 2012 I love this topic. You people are hilarious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesus_lol Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 [quote name='maximillion' timestamp='1339059213' post='2442120'] I was reading about this only yesterday....... It worries me much more when things are less out in the open. Porn is never good but private porn swapped between people, done over the net in closed insular groups is pretty terrifying. Praying about it............. [/quote] that is not really how amateur porn works. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
r2Dtoo Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 (edited) [quote name='Jesus_lol' timestamp='1339117847' post='2442359'] that is not really how amateur porn works. [/quote] That's a good point actually. Usually it's simply uploaded on video sites (think youtube only all porn), and people download them for free. My opinion: some are pretty good actually, but I don't see the industry collapsing anytime soon. Granted, some of industry's movies pop on those sites too, but only partials. One thing porn industry can do that amateurs still can't: DVDs. Edited June 8, 2012 by r2Dtoo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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