2/22/2005 12:34:00 AM|||Jonthon|||

I went to a presentation titled the Power of Pron this evening. Yesterday, I participated in a video interview on Kuhlman court which was used in a video montage during the presentation. The speaker was a reformed sex offender, who had sexual encounters with his sister and eventaully tried to rape someone. Since reforming, he has become a national speaker discussing the role of porn in our society while simultaneously helping women get back on their feet and financial capable of getting out of the sex industry. He has helped over 100 women get their lives back on track. His core message was that he took full responsibility for his actions and his failures, but that porn was still a contributing factor. He showed *plenty* of examples of highly sexualized, violent, and chauvinistic material that exists in mainstream culture. He believes that porn is considered so taboo that it is virtually never discussed, which allows it to thrive and fester in the black market of abusers who need continually more explicit material to get the same serotonin rush (the idea of black market support and it's interplay with mainstream culture is a point discussed at length in Eric Schlosser's book, Reefer Madness - a must-read). I found this presentation to be incredibly worthwhile.
Big Props to Campus Crusade, no less, for bringing the speaker. I was especially impressed that the religious aspects of this man's life were kept out of the main discussion. After his 75 minute presentation, he requested feedback and noted that there were index cards and pencils underneath our seats. He then announced that faith was a part of his journey as well, and that anyone who wanted to discuss that or anything else could stay around for a further discussion on the topic. I thought this was tasteful and a genuine display of respect and consideration of other points. Way to go, Campus Crusade (didn't think I'd ever say that!).

|||110999205328564982|||Behold...the Power of Porn