More plentiful than hydrogen

Yesterday, the US Supreme Court upheld its ban on enforcing the so-called Child Online Protection Act (COPA), as they rightly should. (Their only mistake is in not just striking it down altogether.) See "Justices Oppose Internet Porn Law" for the full story.

But Justice Stephen G. Breyer, in his desenting opinion, makes the supremely stupid statement:

"The court's logic would unrealistically shift the burden of controlling children's access to pornography from the government to parents, Breyer argued, noting that filtering software is expensive and that many parents are not at home to supervise their children's computer use."

First off, protecting children from inappropriate material *is* the job of parents, not the government. It is this law that would shift the burden to where it doesn't belong.

Second, filtering software is not all that expensive, especially compared to the cost of a computer and Internet connection. Plus, many Web browsers have built-in content controls (that, for example, use the ICRA system, which this site conforms to), and Google has built-in filtering options for search results.

So Breyer is not just wrong, he's doubly wrong.

Where no Senator has gone before

I thought this sort of thing only happened in bad Internet sex stories.

In "Jeri Ryan Sex Scandal Rocks Illinois Senate Race", we learn that the Star Trek: Voyager star's ex-husband, a candidate for the U.S. Senate, apparently had a thing for taking her to underground sex clubs.

Fun Blog

Did you know that on this day in history:

• in 1989, George Harrison, former guitarist for Pete Best, produces an album for a new artist named Madonna Ciccone. The album, Living in the Material World, featuring the song Material Girl, is an international hit.

or that

• in 1935, Astrid Pflaume, leader of the Greater Zionist Resistance, is assassinated by her former allies, neo-Nazi time-travelers from the late 1960’s. In spite of the loss of one their greatest leaders, the GZR grows even stronger. The neo-Nazis at this point have little choice but to begin shuttling weapons of the future into the past.

No? Then you're not reading Today in Alternate History, a fun look back at a future that never was.

More Prom stuff

New York Times' reporters seem to have the high school prom on their minds.

Thanks to Erika Kinetz in her story "Hold On to Your Corsage. It's Dirty Dancing Time" we learn about the dancing habits of today's teens.

In my day, dancing like these kids do at a school dance would have gotten us at least kicked out of the dance, if not a suspension. I must be getting old :)

The changing face of the high school prom

This is another one of those "gee, I'm feeling old" things.

Elissa Gootman of the New York Times reports on the modern high school prom in "The Killer Gown Is Essential, but the Prom Date? Not So Much"

The biggest change? More and more kids these days choose to go stag.

Explosive


If you're into hot chicks playing classical string instruments over a dance beat (and really, who isn't?) you should check out Bond's video for their new single, Explosive.

Do You Like Horny Bunnies?

Here's one from last week that I meant to link to, but forgot: Sim Sex Not So Scintillating.

"...the games thoughtfully provide a hands-off function that allows the game to proceed automatically."

Recommended

feministing.com may sound slightly dirty, but it's actually a blog for issues of interest to young women. Their mission: "Young women are rarely given the opportunity to speak on their own behalf on issues that affect their lives and futures. Feministing provides a platform for us to comment, analyze and influence."

And from feministing.com I was led to a rather good article in the Chicago Sun Times about women in the videogame industry: "Women are players, too".

The Sex Lives of Teenagers

Here's one I missed while I was away, from last Sunday's NYT Magazine: "Friends, Friends With Benefits and the Benefits of the Local Mall".

Things sure have changed since I was in high school. I blame the Internet...

We're Back!

I was away from the blog for longer than I thought, but I'm back now and regular posting should resume this week.

I also started doing some writing again this past week, so things are looking good for there to be a new story in the not-too-distant future...