WAR-LINE.NET

10 Myths of the Porn Industry

1. Porn has a first amendment right.

While federal courts have ruled adult material is covered by the first amendment, these same courts have also ruled Sexually Oriented Businesses (SOB's) cannot locate anywhere they want nor sell everything they want. They always bring overwhelming "secondary effects" such as rising crime rate, increased police calls, rise in sexual assault around SOB's, lower property values and attraction of dangerous people. Federal courts have ruled local government has the right to zone SOB's away from residential, churches, parks, government buildings and playgrounds. Local communities also have the right to regulate hours of SOB's. The only requirement is for the local government to zone enough potential locations for SOB's. These can be anywhere. They do not have to be prime locations.

2. Leave them alone - they leave you alone

This never happens. SOB's have a bully nature. A 40 year history shows SOB's always push the envelope of the law and just as often break the local laws. History also shows once a SOB is established they always expand in the area and move to other areas in the community. Anyone living or operating in the area, such as churches, will face extreme intimidation often violence as the SOB works to rid any potential opposition from the area.

Prostitution and drug activity immediately increase in the area. This also feeds the growing violence.
Customers coming to the SOB will perform unsocial activity they would not do elsewhere in the community. They will show body parts, use extreme language, even around children, aim their cars as residents, throw sex toys in yards or at residents, including at children. The general term for this situation is called WAR ZONE. Once a WAR ZONE is established, It becomes so dangerous, even police will not actively patrol the area. Local government backs further away, leaving the residents to fend for themselves as best they can.

This is not theory. There is a 40 year track record with statistics and records so compelling, the federal courts now accept it as legal fact.

3. It's just fantasy. Porn can actually prevent sexual assault.

Statistics (police records) show a 77 percent increase in sexual assault within a one mile radius of a SOB. Sexual offenders going through treatment programs witness porn played a major role in their crimes. The connection is so compelling, all states require a sex offender released on parole not to go to any SOB or it will violate their parole and they immediately go back to prison.

Statistics also clearly show there is a dramatic increase in crime around SOB's and dramatic decrease in property values (30-50 percent) within a two mile radius of SOB's. A very telling proof of this is no owner of SOB's ever live near their sex business. It's too dangerous and they do not want declining values on their own homes or property.

4. You got statistics - they got statistics. Both can argue.

SOB's usually quote statistics from survey's they personally commission to bring a pre-determined result. The statistics we quote are from actual public records collected over 40 years used by the federal courts as being unbiased and accurate. SOB's can no longer challenge these statistics in court.

5. If the local people don't visit the adult store, it will close for lack of business.

Less than 10 percent of the customer base of SOB's are from the local community. The overwhelming majority base of SOB's are from people 50 miles or more. An example is the Lion's Den in Uniontown, Indiana. Protesters keep records of license plates of the customers. Their records show less than 7 percent are from the local area. A high percentage of the customers are from Michigan, Kentucky and Ohio with a large mix of people from Illinois, Missouri, Iowa and Florida. The vast majority of porn customers do not want their neighbors, friends, family or pastor to see them or their vehicle at a SOB, so they travel 50 or more miles, sometimes hundreds of miles, to avoid detection.

6. You can't dictate what people can buy in porn. We have a first amendment.

Sounds All American but this just isn't so and never has been. The first amendment is not a blank check to say, do or see anything that's out there. For example, you can't yell "FIRE" in a crowded theater for the fun of it. Anything in public, such as signs, TV, radio must comply to regulations limiting what they can write, talk or show in the general public. For example, CBS Network was heavily fined for Janet Jackson's "wardrobe malfunction" during broadcast of the Superbowl halftime show. The network did not plan the incident, but they were still held accountable.

The Supreme Court has also ruled local communities have the right to determine obscenity based on "community standards" and has a simple legal process to allow communities to determine and define obscenity based on these standards.

7. You can't beat them. Just accept it.

This is one of the biggest lies perpetrated by the porn industry. The fact is communities all across the country are ridding their communities of SOB's. When residents, government and churches work together, victory is virtually assured. Large cities such as Cincinnati, Ohio, Newport Kentucky, San Antonio, Texas and Oklahoma City, Oklahoma have virtually rid their area of SOB's. The key is to apply proper and legal regulation to SOB's and enforce it. SOB's cannot exist operating legitimately like other businesses. They need the illegal activity to boost profits. Work to prevent or cut out the ongoing illegal activity and most SOB's cannot make a profit. Hundreds of SOB's are closing each year due to public pressure and government enacting and enforcing laws that all other businesses have been complying from the beginning.

8. Adult stores and strip clubs bring in convention business; Help the local economy.

Check with any convention bureau that promotes their area to businesses/organizations planning conventions. Collectively they spend millions to attract conventions to their communities. Not a single one promotes the SOB's in their area. Businesses looking for convention sites do not consider SOB's as an attraction. For example, Louisville Kentucky is a major convention city attracting hundreds of conventions every year. A check with the top 50 conventions (Based on Business First Newspaper information) and NONE said SOB's are a factor in their decision. If fact more than half said SOB's are a negative factor. Louisville once hosted the FFA convention, one of the largest in the country, for 10 years. The FFA left Louisville in 2004 due to in part to the rise of SOB's in the area. Louisville passed a new adult ordinance in 2004. Over 50 SOB's have closed and more will close if the local government simply continues to enforce the law. The FFA has now put Louisville back on its list of future potential convention locations.

9. Many strippers are just college girls trying to earn money for tuition. Why put them out of work?

Every time the strip clubs come under attack, the strip club brings out a "stripper" who is a college girl just earning tuition money. The reality is quite different. Statistics (police reports) show over 80 percent of strippers are on drugs, often abused and intimidated to perform stripping. Virtually all strip clubs have been cited for prostitution and drug activity, some hundreds of times. The truth of the matter is the large majority of strippers are either desperate for drug money or forced into stripping and prostitution. Drugs and prostitution bring real danger to the surrounding community and strain the resources of government and law enforcement.

10. Adult stores/strip clubs are a legal business or else they would not be allowed to operate.

The fact a SOB is operating does not mean they are operating legally. In fact, We have yet to find a single SOB operating legally. Most are operating because either the local government is corrupt, or cowards or do not want to use resources to fight them. Here are some examples:

Uniontown, Indiana - The Lion's Den opened in violation of county ordinance, constructed their entrance over a county road without permission and is currently operating under a cease and desist order and operating extended hours not allowed by county ordinance. The building is also in probable violation of state fire codes. While Jackson County enacted an adult entertainment ordinance, the local government has yet to enforce its own ordinance nor spend any money at all to bring the Lion’s Den to court. Local residents and protesters have paid for a constitutional attorney to order the Lion's Den to obey the local laws. This case is pending and a ruling is expected this year. Jackson County government and law enforcement have done nothing. They are prime examples of cowardice and corruption in local government.

Louisville, Kentucky - for more than 30 years two dozen "massage spas" operated openly throughout the city. It was an open secret that prostitution was the primary activity in these locations. Yet the city did little to challenge them. In 2001 - Citizens groups investigated and discovered at a stakeout the spas smuggling girls inside furniture. This information was turned over to the FBI and the Commonwealth Attorney.

About 2 years later, with further investigation, it was proven the "massage spas" were actually part of the largest sex slave ring in the United States. Finally, the Commonwealth Attorney office raided the spas and closed them after operating without interference for almost 30 years.

A chain of strip clubs in Louisville has openly operated a large prostitution ring for years. Legal cases are on the books for 15 years and counting. None have come to court for ruling. All are just continued time after time with the help of corrupt judges.

At another strip club in Louisville, the owner boasts he has received over 500 citations for violations ranging from lewdness, prostitution, underage customers and other violations. The strip club owner openly brags he has never paid a single citation. The local government simply neglects to pursue them. Apparently local government officials feel the payment for violation citations is voluntary. Of course this is not the case with other people or businesses, just sex businesses.

Henry County Kentucky, Residents helped stage in an underage buy at a SOB named "Love Stuff" in 2007. It was an open secret this SOB was selling to underage customers for years and the local authorities knew it. The citizens turned over the evidence including surveillence tape to the County Attorney. The County Attorney simply buried case in the system. It's been almost a year and no action has been taken.

There are a large number of illegal activities ongoing at virtually all the SOB's, including drugs and “glory hole” activity. Undercover information has been provided that have forced the local governments to act that have severely impacted SOB's financially and forcing many to close.

In short, we have never found a SOB that has opened or operated within the law that all other businesses must comply. The federal courts have ruled local government has the right to enforce strict regulation of SOB's in the interest of public safety. Most local governments refuse and this is the main reason SOB’s remain open. In communities where local government simply enforces the law, SOB's close.