Bias & Discrimination

I fully submit that I am biased, and that I have had the opportunity to become accustomed to certain types of materials through years of regular exposure. But if it's a matter of perspective, then why shouldn't I argue the value of one perspective over another? It amazes me that companies (let alone our own government) - that ostensibly serve the public - feel justified in passing moral judgment on works of an erotic nature, and openly discriminate against those whose lifestyles or livelihoods revolve around physical and/or psychological stimulation of a more or less sexual nature. As if we were all still children - not responsible adults - incapable of wielding our own moral agency.

I get that some people - maybe even a lot of people - are offended or disgusted by the sight of these sorts of things, and that's why filters exist. Their utility (or necessity) in society is a separate discussion. But must we go one step further and punish those who engage in these pursuits to the extent that we can single them out? Is it really necessary to stand there and say, "you cannot point willing agents toward this material." Even if you warn them about what they are going to see, and rely on their free choice to click through (or not)? Do we not live in a free society?

Whose imperative is it to dictate the righteousness of asexuality, and under whose authority are they given the power to enforce the sexual purity of our culture? There is nothing evil about sex. It is not a corrupting influence, but a fundamental part of our existence. There are good and bad ways of approaching it (for which reason education is imperative), but it is not a character flaw or a moral weakness to engage in erotic media.

To experience sexual pleasure is healthy. To share it with others is a positive force for society. And there is no reason why profiting from this exchange should be viewed as any less moral than any other exchange of goods or services that our capitalist society wholeheartedly condones. I ask not for society to judge me, but if it insists on doing so, then I deserve an explanation for why getting turned on is equivalent to a vice - comparable to introducing poisonous chemicals into my body, or lying and cheating others, much less engaging in violence. Isn't it the society that does so - that deems pleasure a moral toxin - the one which is truly diseased?