Amazon published a book today called “Pedophiles Guide To Love and Pleasure” by Phillip Greaves
The internet was AGHAST.
How could Amazon have done such a horrific thing?
Protests were made. Complaints were made. Phone calls were made.
Until, it seemed Amazon had no choice and they took down the book from their site. Temporarily.
Yay, right? No more guidebook for Pedophiles. (It’s back up now, however)
I mean, what kind of monster would write such a disgusting book anyways?
I agree that this book is nothing but vile. And repulsive. And should, most likely, never have been written.
But?
It’s a free country still. For now. Last time I checked.
The author had every right to pen that book, whether we agree with it or not.
This is coming from someone who WAS MOLESTED.
The 1st and 14th amendments state that we the people have the “right to express information, ideas, and opinions free of government restrictions based on content”.
That means that book was allowed to be written, published and put into the marketplace to sell.
Regardless of whether or not we agree with it. Let me reiterate, I don’t agree with that book and its subject matter.
I know I won’t buy the book. And you can exercise your freedom of choice too.
What I worry about is, if Amazon takes that book down from their site, a precedent of ginormous proportions is being set.
Our freedom of speech is potentially at risk here with that one potential action.
And I think that our freedom of speech is WAY MORE IMPORTANT than a book that, will most likely, not sell a single copy and will end up being pulled from the site due to being stale.
p.s. yes, I do realize that there is a very thin line between the actual business of selling and the freedom of speech in this instance. But still, it IS a very thin, precarious line. And I would hate for it to someday be used against us Americans or to be misinterpreted or misrepresented in any way. The U.S is already having enough issues to deal with.
p.p.s I did NOT link to that book for a reason. obviously.
Here’s the thing- while allowing the book to be published (and written, in the first place) falls under freedom of speech, the choice of a business to sell a product is simply a business– rather than a constitutional rights– decision. I think that line keeps getting blurred here. Most people aren’t freaking out about it being printed, but rather the fact that Amazon is selling it. There’s plenty of subjectivity in what companies can choose to sell- but censorship/freedom of speech is really an issue when the government tries to control speech, not when a company decides what they will and won’t sell.
Did that make sense?
We are fortunate that we live in a country that does protect our Freedom of Speech and Press, but even within that constitutional protections, legal exceptions to that rule exist: causing panic, treason, slander, incitement to violence and obscenity are a few.
A manual promoting and encouraging pedophilia, in my opinion, would fall within inciting violence and obscenity, and depending on what graphics were used to illustrate, also child pornography. None of which is, nor should be, a protected form of speech/press.
There will always be ways to get this sort of book published, but like Lindsay pointed out, retailers have broad discretion on whether they provide these books to the public.
It’s not a matter of censorship, or denying constitutional freedoms, it’s a matter of common decency.
Tara R.´s last blog post ..Veterans Day
I agree with Lindsey. Amazon is not the press, they are a business. And in my opinion, this was a bad business decision.
Jennifer´s last blog post ..The Wedding Reception
I agree with what you have said, and I agree with what the other comments have added. But I also want to add one thing to all the people who are up in arms over this self published, only available digitally (and there is where Amazon dropped the ball IMO, allowing it to be used on their proprietary software), book: Until this craziness started, it had never sold a single copy. it has now sold over 100,000 copies because of curiosity and outrage. By all means, bring attention to issues you feel warrant it. By all means, protest and petition and complain when you think a company has made a mistake. Just keep in mind that the more you preach your disbelief and offense and demand for change and boycotts and removal from websites, the more people hear about the book. If you really want something to disappear and fade into the background, stop shining a light on it.
And yes, I realize that only applies to actually killing the book itself and not to asking Amazon to stop selling it, but I still think that it’s pretty sad that mommyblogger outrage is putting money in this guy’s pockets.
Good for you for not linking to the book!
lonek8´s last blog post ..House Of Cards
Although I was horrified that the book had been written, I did feel uneasy about the precedent. I guess I just think it’s a slippery slope.
Zoey @ Good Goog´s last blog post ..106-365 Hello- Little Person
Here’s the thing – it is not simply about taste – how to cheat on your wife or something like that. Molestation is a crime. If this book helps even one more person in committing such a crime – then that is aiding and abetting a crime, right?
Freedom of speech is important – so is freedom of speech from those who disagree – Amazon’s decision to keep the book can be a business one. I think all the hoopla makes it easy for companies to know that this makes more business sense. Also Amazon has been pretty shameful in the way they are responding.I for one am surprised.
I am glad this opened up conversation with companies though – I think the “anything goes” will be looked at again.
niri´s last blog post ..Neighborhood Toy Store Day!
The book can really have a huge market for sure! However, do we actually need to publish this kind of book? I can’t never think of how the author of the book managed to create this one. Unless, he also considers himself as one of the Pedophiles. We need to be thankful that amazon did the right action for this one.
Lynn Waits´s last blog post ..Suede Fringe Camera Boot By Jessica Simpson