visionary Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Recruits Sought for Porn Squad By Barton Gellman Washington Post Staff Writer Tuesday, September 20, 2005; A21 The FBI is joining the Bush administration's War on Porn. And it's looking for a few good agents. Early last month, the bureau's Washington Field Office began recruiting for a new anti-obscenity squad. Attached to the job posting was a July 29 Electronic Communication from FBI headquarters to all 56 field offices, describing the initiative as "one of the top priorities" of Attorney General Alberto R. Gonzales and, by extension, of "the Director." That would be FBI Director Robert S. Mueller III. Mischievous commentary began propagating around the water coolers at 601 Fourth St. NW and its satellites, where the FBI's second-largest field office concentrates on national security, high-technology crimes and public corruption. The new squad will divert eight agents, a supervisor and assorted support staff to gather evidence against "manufacturers and purveyors" of pornography -- not the kind exploiting children, but the kind that depicts, and is marketed to, consenting adults. "I guess this means we've won the war on terror," said one exasperated FBI agent, speaking on the condition of anonymity because poking fun at headquarters is not regarded as career-enhancing. "We must not need any more resources for espionage." Among friends and trusted colleagues, an experienced national security analyst said, "it's a running joke for us." A few of the printable samples: "Things I Don't Want On My Resume, Volume Four." "I already gave at home." "Honestly, most of the guys would have to recuse themselves." Federal obscenity prosecutions, which have been out of style since Attorney General Edwin Meese III in the Reagan administration made pornography a signature issue in the 1980s, do "encounter many legal issues, including First Amendment claims," the FBI headquarters memo noted. Applicants for the porn squad should therefore have a stomach for the kind of material that tends to be most offensive to local juries. Community standards -- along with a prurient purpose and absence of artistic merit -- define criminal obscenity under current Supreme Court doctrine. "Based on a review of past successful cases in a variety of jurisdictions," the memo said, the best odds of conviction come with pornography that "includes bestiality, urination, defecation, as well as sadistic and masochistic behavior." No word on the universe of other kinks that helps make porn a multibillion-dollar industry. Popular acceptance of hard-core pornography has come a long way, with some of its stars becoming mainstream celebrities and their products -- once confined to seedy shops and theaters -- being "purveyed" by upscale hotels and most home cable and satellite television systems. Explicit sexual entertainment is a profit center for companies including General Motors Corp. and Rupert Murdoch's News Corp. (the two major owners of DirecTV), Time Warner Inc. and the Sheraton, Hilton, Marriott and Hyatt hotel chains. But Gonzales endorses the rationale of predecessor Meese: that adult pornography is a threat to families and children. Christian conservatives, long skeptical of Gonzales, greeted the pornography initiative with what the Family Research Council called "a growing sense of confidence in our new attorney general." Congress began funding the obscenity initiative in fiscal 2005 and specified that the FBI must devote 10 agents to adult pornography. The bureau decided to create a dedicated squad only in the Washington Field Office. "All other field offices may investigate obscenity cases pursuant to this initiative if resources are available," the directive from headquarters said. "Field offices should not, however, divert resources from higher priority matters, such as public corruption." Public corruption, officially, is fourth on the FBI's priority list, after protecting the United States from terrorist attack, foreign espionage and cyber-based attacks. Just below those priorities are civil rights, organized crime, white-collar crime and "significant violent crime." The guidance from headquarters does not mention where pornography fits in. "The Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation's top priority remains fighting the war on terrorism," said Justice Department press secretary Brian Roehrkasse. "However, it is not our sole priority. In fact, Congress has directed the department to focus on other priorities, such as obscenity." At the FBI's field office, spokeswoman Debra Weierman expressed disappointment that some of her colleagues find grist for humor in the new campaign. "The adult obscenity squad . . . stems from an attorney general mandate, funded by Congress," she said. "The personnel assigned to this initiative take the responsibility of this assignment very seriously and are dedicated to the success of this program." © 2005 The Washington Post Company http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/19/AR2005091901570.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chomerics Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 I actually thought this was an onion article. This isnt true. . . is it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamingwolf Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 if they are gonna shut down porn, they better provide all of us with mistresses! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
visionary Posted September 21, 2005 Author Share Posted September 21, 2005 I think it is, it was in the politics section... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaceman Spiff Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 this is true? Alright, I admit, i voted for bush. I stood in support of him in 9/11 and how he handled it. i thought the election last year was a total debacle on both sides, it was nothing but tearing the opposition down...he didn't win many points with me then. he lost a lot in the past few weeks after the katrina crisis. but this is rediculous, what the hell man? people are still displaced from katrina, we're about to get slammed with another hurricane. And he's worried about this? Look, porn is the least of our worries. I'd be much more relieved to find a few hustlers under my kids bed rather than a bag of coke or a handgun. At least I wouldn't have to worry what team he's playing for. You know, when people crack down on something they draw a lot of attention to it. There's a higher demand for it. Look at what happened with prohabition, that went over real well, right? That, and if people want to get something thats illegal or hard to get, they'll find a way. If kids really want to go into a school and blow away some people, they'll find a way to get guns. If kids really want to smoke a joint or do a line after school, they'll find a way. If kids want to find a way to cheat on a test, they will. Same with porn. But I really can't believe that the government is spending money on this. Did the reporter not get his facts correct cause this must be about kiddie porn. How much longer until 2008? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
visionary Posted September 21, 2005 Author Share Posted September 21, 2005 Remember this was set into motion months ago though...and "Congress began funding the obscenity initiative in fiscal 2005 and specified that the FBI must devote 10 agents to adult pornography. The bureau decided to create a dedicated squad only in the Washington Field Office. "All other field offices may investigate obscenity cases pursuant to this initiative if resources are available," the directive from headquarters said. "Field offices should not, however, divert resources from higher priority matters, such as public corruption."" also "The new squad will divert eight agents, a supervisor and assorted support staff to gather evidence against "manufacturers and purveyors" of pornography -- not the kind exploiting children, but the kind that depicts, and is marketed to, consenting adults." it's not like this was done after Katrina, I mean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chomerics Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 WOW, this is true :doh: Man, WTF??? Even if it was before Katrina, we are wasting our tax money on LEGAL porn :doh: Hell, half the freakin congressmen are probably dressing up in leather, remember J Edgar Hoover and his fetishes??? God, I can not believe my country is wasting our money on this. :doh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaceman Spiff Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 WOW, this is true :doh:Man, WTF??? Even if it was before Katrina, we are wasting our tax money on LEGAL porn :doh: Hell, half the freakin congressmen are probably dressing up in leather, remember J Edgar Hoover and his fetishes??? God, I can not believe my country is wasting our money on this. :doh: I agree with chomerics...omg..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ignatius J. Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Way to go republicans! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Punani2 Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Let's wait until we find out exactly what they are targeting before people start freaking out. If they are going to target porn involving beastiality or rape I have no problem with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joe Sick Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Paging Ron Jeremy... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parlett316 Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 I agree with chomerics...omg..... When it comes to porn we all agree on something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Spaceman Spiff Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Let's wait until we find out exactly what they are targeting before people start freaking out.If they are going to target porn involving beastiality or rape I have no problem with it. The new squad will divert eight agents, a supervisor and assorted support staff to gather evidence against "manufacturers and purveyors" of pornography -- not the kind exploiting children, but the kind that depicts, and is marketed to, consenting adults. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 When it comes to porn we all agree on something. "Less filling!" "Tastes Great!" ----- Yes, it's real. (I'm amazed it took the GOP 6 years to get around to it.) No, this isn't the only front the government is fighting this war. I think a bill has passed the Senate that will apply RICO rules to any company involved in making material that's not only limited to porn, but which is simply "indecent". Under the new law, for example, if MGM makes an R-rated movie (say, "Passion of the Christ"), then all of the assets of the company could be siezed. They say they're doing it to protect children. (What a shock.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chomerics Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Let's wait until we find out exactly what they are targeting before people start freaking out.If they are going to target porn involving beastiality or rape I have no problem with it. They are targeting LEGAL porn Johnny. http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1125318960389 When FBI supervisors in Miami met with new interim U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta last month, they wondered what the top enforcement priority for Acosta and Attorney General Alberto Gonzales would be.Would it be terrorism? Organized crime? Narcotics trafficking? Immigration? Or maybe public corruption? The agents were stunned to learn that a top prosecutorial priority of Acosta and the Department of Justice was none of the above. Instead, Acosta told them, it's obscenity. Not pornography involving children, but pornographic material featuring consenting adults. Man, I actually thought this was an onion article when I read it yesterday :doh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
manichispanic Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 But how will they shut down the internet? Seriously though, they shut down Vivid and stuff, then a big amature black market will arise within seconds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Funkyalligator Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 This is truely pathetic and an excellent example of how special interest groups use their money and political access to put forth worthless agendas that waste tax payer money.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
codeorama Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 This is truely pathetic and an excellent example of how special interest groups use their money and political access to put forth worthless agendas that waste tax payer money.... Yep, what a waste. Damn conservatives. :doh: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Y'know, I've been geting a ton of "You can be a cop" spam, lately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bird_1972 Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 This administration seems to be good at one thing, consistently shooting itself in the foot. What a waste of money. The religious right has this president in thier back pocket. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinsNut73 Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 Awww damn....I thought 'FBI Looking For Porn Squad Recruits' meant they wanted to hire undercover agents to infiltrate the industry...what a bummer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Predicto Posted September 21, 2005 Share Posted September 21, 2005 I guarante you they will not be going after some small time guy who had a clip on the internet of a Tiajuana donkey show. They are going to go after the big companies in L.A. like Vivid and Evil Angel. They are going to bring obscenity actions in Cincinnati or Tennesee, somewhere where they can get a very conservative jury pool, one that will find that oral, anal and group sex is patently obscene in their community. All it takes is one felony conviction and jail sentence to have the "chilling effect" on the industry that they are looking for. This has been brewing for a long time. It is payback to the voter base. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RabidFan Posted September 22, 2005 Share Posted September 22, 2005 And people thought Tipper Gore was bad labeling CDs....this is a sin in my book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qcraftsman Posted September 22, 2005 Share Posted September 22, 2005 If anything is a sin it is the porn business. You know there is some pretty sick stuff out there and these people have to be held accountable. Specially kiddy porn!!! Thats what it all leads up to anyway when people get addicted to this stuff. Then if you really get addicted you start hearing those kidnapping stories. Sick!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chomerics Posted September 22, 2005 Share Posted September 22, 2005 If anything is a sin it is the porn business. You know there is some pretty sick stuff out there and these people have to be held accountable. Specially kiddy porn!!! Thats what it all leads up to anyway when people get addicted to this stuff. Then if you really get addicted you start hearing those kidnapping stories. Sick!!! Legal pornography does not lead to kiddy porn :doh: I would venture 99.9% of the people on this board have ventured a peek at a pornographic picture on the internet, but maybe 0.0001% of the people here have looked at a picture of kiddy porn. You think pornography is the reason for child molestation, kidnapping and murder? :doh: You need to get laid more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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