And, once again, I am just about the only one (with one exception) who thinks this is a bad thing. No victim = no crime. It really is that simple.
Anyway, as I was responding to the coercion/theft fan club, one thing suddenly occurred to me, and I'll copy the relevant part of my comment here:
I've known several libertarians whose daughters had unlimited internet access from the time they were toddlers and could figure out how to operate a computer and not one fell victim to an online sexual predator. This seems to be strictly a statist/non-libertarian problem (if it really is a problem at all). Maybe some people need to better educate their kids about the real world instead of advocating doing evil things "for the children".
So, there you have it. Am I imagining this or have I hit on something?
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(The guy who has been entrapped is an army recruiter. And, if you know me, you know I have zero love for the military or those who entrap young people into signing up, so I could have just laughed that turnabout is fair play. But I don't operate that way. Wrong is wrong.)
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I attack the problem from the point of view of Law itself.
ReplyDeleteThe distinction is between the crown's law asking you to obey, as compared to the common law asking you to not hurt others.
I always like George Carlin's response to prostitution:
ReplyDelete"Another women's issue, prostitution. I do not understand why prostitution is illegal. Why should prostitution be illegal?
Selling is legal.
Fucking is legal.
Why isn't selling fucking legal?
You know, why should it be illegal to sell something that's perfectly legal to give away? I can't follow the logic on that at all. Of all the things you can do to a person, giving someone an orgasm is hardly the worst thing in the world. In the army they give you a medal for spraying napalm on people. Civilian life, you go to jail for giving someone an orgasm. Maybe I'm not supposed to understand it. "
Anonymous- I completely agree. Good thing I don't worry about what's "legal".
ReplyDeleteOf course, that's not exactly the issue addressed in the column I was discussing, but it does have some similarities. Legality has nothing to do with right or wrong anymore. No victim, no crime.
Oh, and wouldn't that be "selling someone an orgasm"?
ReplyDelete