The Death of Porn…in Utah
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. Used under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.
Christian Segers, Opinion Editor
Recently, Gov. Gary Herbert (Rep.) of Utah signed legislation declaring pornography a “public health crisis,” as the epidemic of pornography has become increasingly apparent in a digitally inclined and motivated 21st century.
“The problem is rampant, yet it thrives in secrecy and silence. Today’s bills will start an open discussion, bringing its very real dangers to light.” Herbert said.
Critics of Herbert’s rising concerns are quick to make mention of the First Amendment’s provision for free speech which technically covers the filming and viewing of pornographic images and/or videos as the right of American citizens 18 years and older (adults).
Porn sites account for roughly 30 percent of Internet bandwidth and eclipse the traffic annually of Amazon, Netflix and Twitter…combined. Studies show that an ever-increasing number of America’s youth are viewing and becoming addicted to this adult form of “protected speech.”
One such study conducted by Bitdefender (an antivirus company), claims that children have attempted to view or have viewed adult material on various devices by the age of six. The new legislation passed in the state of Utah seeks to curb the access children, such as these, have to websites that distribute sexually explicit material.
Herbert said, “Some schools in Utah have already chosen to host assemblies to teach youth about the addictive nature of pornography, similar to the way they are instructed about the harms of abusing drugs and alcohol. The governor commended these schools for taking action to educate and protect Utah children.”
The official blog for the governor states that he, “…hopes that S.C.R. 9 will encourage parents to have conversations with their children about the harmful effects of pornography and increase awareness of the health risks associated with this rampant problem.”
Some believe partaking in pornographic visualization is akin to partaking in harmful drugs such as cocaine. According to Covenant Eyes, a website known for its push towards Internet accountability, the hormones generated by pornography usage create an excessive amount of dopamine. Dopamine is a hormone responsible for memory, attention, mood and pleasure. When the hormone becomes overly sensationalized, the brain unconsciously activates at various times of the day (or night), creating a vicious cycle of necessity that becomes extremely difficult to overcome.
Additionally, Covenant Eyes reports that, “The constant surge to bring pleasure disrupts the normal action of the central nervous system wherein pleasure is reduced so that a simple sexual act is no longer satisfying.”
Simply put, the extensive use of porn creates a “chemical bath” that surpasses the traditional method in which a man or woman should experience sexual pleasure. Fight the New Drug (a non-profit organization committed to educating people on porn and its effects) reports that 62 percent of family lawyer’s divorce clientele go through their divorce process due to pornography use by one or both of the partners involved.
Joshua Heatherly, a campus chaplain at North Greenville University was asked whether or not he believes that the bill will keep minors from accessing adult-related content online.
Heatherly said, “Even Twitter has pornography on it and children are going to be on Twitter. Children are going to be on Snapchat. Children are going to be on these various social media apps, which all basically have a way to access porn. So for them [Utah’s government] to be able to stop the children from doing it, they are going to have to stop the children from using social media.”
At this time, it is unclear whether or not Utah’s new bill will place restrictions on social media usage; however, Herbert remains hopeful that his bill will remain effective. He said he intends to take back the state he governs from the destruction of porn and hopes that corporations and businesses that offer free wireless connection to customers, will consider adopting software that will block access to sexually explicit content.
“The fight is one we can win, but it begins with turning the light on the unsavory reality, which is what today’s bills will do.” Herbert said.
