GOP Presidential hopeful Rick Santorum has made it very clear that hardcore pornography is not something he will tolerate.  Santorum has gone as far as saying that hardcore pornography is causing pandemic harm to Americans and resulting in violence against women.  According to Santorum on his website, the Obama Administration favors pornographers over American families, but under a Santorum administration he would hire a new attorney general to enforce federal obscenity laws affecting distribution of hardcore porn.

Two men that obviously don't agree with Santorum are Hustler publisher Larry Flynt and founder of Vivid Entertainment Steven Hirsch.  Though despised by many, Flynt is very intelligent and an avid supporter of the First Amendment, having gone all the way to the Supreme Court to stand up for his right to free speech.  When asked about Santorum and his views on porn, Flynt countered by referencing a 1969 commission started by President Johnson.  The commission spent millions to examine the effects of hardcore pornography of those who viewed it, finding no evidence of harm.

"You have guys like Santorum come along and they bring out the bogeyman every chance they get.  You will be hard-pressed to find anyone that can point out to you a study that shows harm is caused to anyone exposed to porn materials."

Like Flynt, Hirsch is concerned by the movement of conservative lawmakers to limit/ban pornography, saying he sees some hypocrisy in the idea,

“I find it ironic that Republicans (like Santorum) are out there wanting less government and government intruding into our lives, but when it comes to moral issues they want government to legislate morality.  It doesn’t work. It will never work.”

“We’ve seen that before. John Ashcroft was that guy. Edwin Meese was that guy. They can prosecute but ultimately it’s juries that decide what is and isn’t obscene.  Over last 20 years there have been very, very few obscenity convictions.”

However, Hirsch is willing to reach a compromise with Santorum, offering a new plan,

“We will stay out of his church, and he will stay out of our bedrooms."

via MSNBC

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