Background on Bob Barr and that heated crush fetish debate:
http://www.politechbot.com/p-00574.html
http://www.politechbot.com/p-00667.html
-Declan
>From: [JL]
>To: <declan_at_well.com>
>Subject: Would-be "Animal Pornography" Censors Attack Bill Barr
>Date: Sun, 22 Oct 2000 16:16:24 -0700
>
>Politics
>By Ben White
>
>Sunday , October 22, 2000 ; Page A18
>Drop in on most House races this year and you will encounter a familiar set
>of issues: prescription drugs, education, Social Security. But head down to
>Georgia's 7th District in suburban Atlanta, home to fiery Republican Rep.
>Robert L. Barr Jr., and you will find a far more unsettling matter under
>discussion: Internet animal pornography.
>The controversy began last October when Barr vocally opposed a federal ban
>on the sale of videos depicting animal cruelty. The measure, which passed
>overwhelmingly, was targeted at the online trade in "crush" videos, films
>depicting small animals stomped underfoot by women in high heels.
>Barr said such videos already are banned under state law and required no new
>federal regulation. Supporters of the bill said the videos are often sold on
>the Internet, to which state laws do not always apply.
>Last week, Humane USA, a political action committee affiliated with the
>Humane Society, bought $10,000 worth of time on Atlanta cable stations to
>air an ad criticizing Barr on the issue. The ad includes a snippet of a
>crush video in which a hamster nuzzles up against a woman's high heel.
>Atlanta cable stations refused to air the ad, saying viewers might find it
>offensive. At least one cable station also received a letter from National
>Republican Congressional Committee general counsel Donald F. McGahn that
>said running the ad might violate federal law. Which federal law exactly?
>The very one Barr opposed.
>"By continuing to air this ad, your network is placing footage of animal
>cruelty in interstate commerce, which appears to be illegal," the letter
>states. "As such, you may be held criminally liable."
>Reg Griffin, spokesman for AT&T Broadband, the largest cable provider in the
>district, said the ad was pulled for taste reasons, not because of the NRCC
>letter.
[snip]
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Received on Oct 24 2000
Intro
