USSC will not see case involving Alabama Sex Toy ban.

[halfprep455]

I know this is fairly old news, but as some of you know, the supreme court will not hear the case involving the ban on the sale or possession of sex toys in Alabama. First off, why the is there like a law like this in the first place? This sets a new low for even Alabama. Why are those backwards southerners more worried about what people do in their bedroom then real criminals such as murders, rapists, and theives. There was also a poll done by PEW in Alabama that says that 91% of the states population thinks the ban is redicolus. Why would a state try to uphold such an unpopular law. Also how could they possibly arrest people who use toys in their own house. Next thing you know, there going to take search and seizure rights away. I swear the Christian Right in this country is trying to take all of our rights away and turn this nation into a police state. This is more work by the Pat Robertsons and Jerry Falwells of this world!

[dukebound85]

Why are those backwards southerners more worried about what people do in their bedroom then real criminals such as murders, rapists, and theives.

um im from the south...you callin me backwards? lol

[halfprep455]

Im from the south too. I probably should have worded what I said better. No pun intended to all southerners. There are open minded well educated people down south. I am mostly talking about the ultra religious, redneck, close minded group of people in the South. I know people like that exist all across the nation but it is more concentrated in the South.

[Swarmlord]

I know this is fairly old news, but as some of you know, the supreme court will not hear the case involving the ban on the sale or possession of sex toys in Alabama. First off, why the is there like a law like this in the first place? This sets a new low for even Alabama. Why are those backwards southerners more worried about what people do in their bedroom then real criminals such as murders, rapists, and theives. There was also a poll done by PEW in Alabama that says that 91% of the states population thinks the ban is redicolus. Why would a state try to uphold such an unpopular law. Also how could they possibly arrest people who use toys in their own house. Next thing you know, there going to take search and seizure rights away. I swear the Christian Right in this country is trying to take all of our rights away and turn this nation into a police state. This is more work by the Pat Robertsons and Jerry Falwells of this world!

If it's so unpopular, why isn't it put on a ballot and voted away? Problem solved.

[MacNut]

Id love to see the cops try to make an arrest, Ok put down the sex toys we know what you are doing in there.
I see you already have the handcuffs on so just come out of the bedroom.:p

How does one even go about reporting such a thing.:p

[someguy]

Does this mean it's illegal to put your cell phone on vibrate in Alabama, or does that only apply if the phone is in your pocket?

[MacNut]

Does this mean it's illegal to put your cell phone on vibrate in Alabama, or does that only apply if the phone is in your pocket?

Or are phones there simply sold without the feature?They use those down there.:D How many cell phones are sold in AL.

[someguy]

I see you already have the handcuffs on so just come out of the bedroom.:p
:eek: :D

They use those down there.:D How many cell phones are sold in AL.
They are Southern, not Amish!

[halfprep455]

The ultra right minority in this country really piss me off. They try to forcibly impose their views on us Americans. Next thing you know were going to live in a Christian theocracy! say good by to our constution. If someone like Pat Robertson did come to power in this country, in moving to Canada!

[dornoforpyros]

The ultra right minority in this country really piss me off. They try to forcibly impose their views on us Americans. Next thing you know were going to live in a Christian theocracy! say good by to our constution. If someone like Pat Robertson did come to power in this country, in moving to Canada!

Sweet! Let me be the first to say welcome! we've got "semi" legal pot and gay marriage! Plus no one gives a damn what two consenting adults do in the bedroom.

[Thomas Veil]

Glad to see Alabama is protecting its citizens.

Because you never know when your kid could be walking to school and be attacked by a large, vibrating dildo.

[halfprep455]

I think people should go down to Alabama sell sex toys in the streets, opelny possess them in public until theree are hundredes of thousands of people arrested for this. Then Alabama's economy will completly collapse and their state will be completly bankrupt. they will have no money for anything else and their state will be one huge prison. It is really nice to see that Alabama is so concerned about real criminals such as Murders and rapists. it is also good to see that Alabama is so concerned that their schoold are the 2nd worst in the entire nation. Its good to see that their so concerned that they have one of the highest rates of poverty in the country. They really have their priorities right!

Imagine going to prison for something like this.

1st inmate: "Im doing 30 years for stabbing my wife."

2nd inmate: "Im doing life for robbing a bank and shooting the teller."

3rd inmate: "Im in for 20 years for armed robbery."

4th inmate: "Im doing 1-2 years for possession of a dildo!"

If these redicolus sex laws (banning oral sex, banning certian positions, banning sex between two unmarried couples)were still being enforced,in their respective states, Im looking at a 250 year jail sentence and $300,000 in fines! I would be in trouble. lol.

[elfin buddy]

[... banning sex between two unmarried couples ...

A foursome? How kinky... ;)

[CorvusCamenarum]

I know this is fairly old news, but as some of you know, the supreme court will not hear the case involving the ban on the sale or possession of sex toys in Alabama. First off, why the is there like a law like this in the first place? This sets a new low for even Alabama. Why are those backwards southerners more worried about what people do in their bedroom then real criminals such as murders, rapists, and theives. There was also a poll done by PEW in Alabama that says that 91% of the states population thinks the ban is redicolus. Why would a state try to uphold such an unpopular law. Also how could they possibly arrest people who use toys in their own house. Next thing you know, there going to take search and seizure rights away. I swear the Christian Right in this country is trying to take all of our rights away and turn this nation into a police state. This is more work by the Pat Robertsons and Jerry Falwells of this world!

Wow. Did you bother to read up on this at all or just see a headline and start ranting half-cocked? I'm guessing you didn't because if you had, you might have taken notice of the following:

1) This particular law has been around for nearly 10 years, and has been contested for nearly as long.
2) Said law does not prohibit possession, only sale. Your example of the sex police peeking in bedroom windows is spurious at best.
3) The fact that the law is under injunction means that it is not being enforced, therefore you can keep on buying and selling dildos and vibrators and inflatable donkeys until the matter is resolved, which won't be anytime soon. No one has been put out of business.

In short, you're making something out of nothing just to take shots at people you don't think are sufficiently enlightened. Charming.

[j26]

...inflatable donkeys ...

And where might these be found? <shifty side glance>

[CorvusCamenarum]

And where might these be found? <shifty side glance>

Probably Fantasyland over in Columbus, MS. I hear they get a lot of business from us backwards Alabama types, except they make us brush the straw out of our overalls before they let us in the door.

[iSaint]

Probably Fantasyland over in Columbus, MS. I hear they get a lot of business from us backwards Alabama types, except they make us brush the straw out of our overalls before they let us in the door.

Hey, bud, there's a Fantasyland branch over in your parts as well! :p Just take a ride out 82 East!



Is that a hay bale in your pocket, or are you just glad to see me? :eek: :D

[CorvusCamenarum]

Hey, bud, there's a Fantasyland branch over in your parts as well! :p Just take a ride out 82 East!
I guess the Alabama dildo trade isn't nearly as precarious as the OP would want us to believe. ;)

Is that a hay bale in your pocket, or are you just glad to see me? :eek: :D
Nah, it's an inflatable donkey and a King James Bible. :D

[nbs2]

In short, you're making something out of nothing just to take shots at people you don't think are sufficiently enlightened. Charming.

I grew up in Gaithersburg. S/He will probably go to GHS in a year or two. With the way that the city is going down the craphole and the educaton that you get at the HS, you're probably seeing the most enlightened s/he can be.

[halfprep455]

I grew up in Gaithersburg. S/He will probably go to GHS in a year or two. With the way that the city is going down the craphole and the educaton that you get at the HS, you're probably seeing the most enlightened s/he can be.

I already go to GHS. I am graduating this year. GHS is not nearly as bad as a lot of people think it is. I will say that it is going down hill. However, I have never had any problems there.

[princealfie]

Im from the south too. I probably should have worded what I said better. No pun intended to all southerners. There are open minded well educated people down south. I am mostly talking about the ultra religious, redneck, close minded group of people in the South. I know people like that exist all across the nation but it is more concentrated in the South.

Wow, I lived in the South for 17 years and man, it was the land of Ku Klux Klan in many places. Scariest place is Texas. That's another country in itself.

Most of the well-educated people in the South (mostly at Emory, Duke or Vanderbilt) tend to be people who moved in from the North or West or foreign countries. That's about it however.

[Father Jack]

Im looking at a 250 year jail sentence and $300,000 in fines! I would be in trouble. lol.
Only a 250 year jail sentence, you must have been very good :cool:

FJ

[halfprep455]

I don't see how anyone who thinks logicaly can possibly give me one good reason why it should be the governments business what people do in there own bedrooms. I think these moralistic, ultra right, laws are getting really redicolus. And, if you don't want your kids to be exposed to what people do in their own privacy: pay attention to your kids! Im tired of the government taking away everyones freedom to be a dam* babysitter. If you don,t want your kids to look at obsene things in the media, if you don't want your kids to be exposed to what you think is sinful, then watch your kids for God's sake! Its your job not the governments.

[halfprep455]

I do think that gays deserve rights like the rest of us. I belive that their life style is wrong. However, just because I belive that their life style is wrong does not mean that they should have to shut the **** up about their life style. Gay people are a large part of our society and we have to accept that fact. We can not deny them rights b/c they are Gay. I personally do not like that idea of gay marriage but I am not offended or disgusted if gay people did get married or have a civil union together. I do not think it really hurts society if gay people did marry. I think that less then 1% of gay people choose to be gay. It is something that they can not help. No one is hurting society by being gay. There have been gay people sience the begining of history and there will always be gay people.

[eRondeau]

As a Canadian who visits the USA frequently, I must say that I am constantly shocked at how touchy everybody there is about sex. This is just one more example. Your Christian right is obviously in control of your politicians and your courts. Unbelievable!

[pseudobrit]

I belive that their life style is wrong.

What the hell is the "gay lifestyle"? Seriously, is there a camp they all go to once a month? They all eat the same food? Work the same jobs? Partake in the same hobbies? No? I didn't think so. No, they're just normal human beings with a sexuality that's different from the majority.

It's not a lifestyle, it's part of humanity. Bigotry grows where men cannot empathise.

[katie ta achoo]

Not that I've ever been in an establishment of that type, but I've noticed in Texas that a lot of the items have stickers on them saying that they're to be used for "bona fide medical, psychiatric, judicial, legislative or law enforcement purposes..."source (http://pandagon.net/2006/10/02/scotus-says-texas-sex-toy-ban-is-a-ok/) (I don't have that little sentence memorized. :eek: )

Why the government thinks it has a place in a bedroom? I don't know. I just watched a mini-documentary with the late, great Molly Ivins where (paraphrasing) the legislators vote to uphold these laws because they don't want to look like perverts. Rep Chisum (http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/dist88/chisum.htm)even wanted to make it a FELONY to do something that could be consensual or even ASKED for.
The mini-documentary is pretty much entirely NSFW (it features 'educational models' and the like in a shop in Austin) and I don't think I'm allowed to link to it, but if you google for what I've described about it, you could find it. It's funny at points and head-bangingly frustrating at others.

And remember kids, if you have 6 or more items in the state of texas, you're considered to have intent to sell! 5 or less and you're just a hobbyist!

looks like alabama (http://www.pamspaulding.com/weblog/2005/02/alabama-again-supreme-court-rejects.html) has the same "medically necessary" loophole, too. Good luck, Alabamians. :)

[devilot]

I think I'm missing the sex toys --> gays connection. Do some gays use toys? Sure. Do heteros? Sure.

If anything, this legislation is more sexist than it is discriminatory towards gays.

Having poked around a little on the subject of sex toys and state legislation (for a gender studies class), it seems that quite a few states with no-sex-toy-selling (and some even make possession illegal) define sex toy as also items that aid in sexual activities. It becomes quite the generalized and broad category.

And whaddya know, Playboy is still sold. I'm thinking quite a few men and young men use those magazines and others as sex aids. Yet those are still legal in many of those states.

On the other hand, I'd be willing to bet that quite a significant portion of the population that buys "sex toys"-- are women.

[pseudobrit]

I think I'm missing the sex toys --> gays connection.

One bigot opens his mouth...

[halfprep455]

As a Canadian who visits the USA frequently, I must say that I am constantly shocked at how touchy everybody there is about sex. This is just one more example. Your Christian right is obviously in control of your politicians and your courts. Unbelievable!

I know what you mean. Im tired of the Christian right in this county. If someone like Bush becomes president in 2008, I am seriously moving to Canada. Is it really hard to become a Canadian citizen?

[devilot]

One bigot opens his mouth...I realize that some posts might shift the conversation... but this legislation hurts everyone. Regardless of gender, orientation, or whether or not you'd ever purchase or use a "sex toy."

I just thought that the topic would be more about how much involvement the government has in our lives, and how much it should or shouldn't. :o

[DigitalAx]

Wow, I lived in the South for 17 years and man, it was the land of Ku Klux Klan in many places. Scariest place is Texas. That's another country in itself.

Most of the well-educated people in the South (mostly at Emory, Duke or Vanderbilt) tend to be people who moved in from the North or West or foreign countries. That's about it however.

Granted, there are portions of deep southeast Texas that still hold on to some bigoted ways, but I should point out that Texas is...HUGE. How can you stereotype an entire state based on a few idiots? You can spend considerable time in Austin, Dallas, and Houston and never feel like you're "in Texas" based on the stereotypes.

There are places like what you're talking about all over the country. Hell, I had a distant relative who was a member of the KKK in RHODE ISLAND 60 years ago. Rhode Island!

I despise rednecks as much as the next person, but to say that there are no intelligent Texas natives is ridiculous.

[pseudobrit]

I realize that some posts might shift the conversation... but this legislation hurts everyone.

Especially those who enjoy being hurt!

[DigitalAx]

I know what you mean. Im tired of the Christian right in this county. If someone like Bush becomes president in 2008, I am seriously moving to Canada. Is it really hard to become a Canadian citizen?

Take comfort in the fact that there is no one "like Bush" that's a serious candidate for the 2008 election. The closest is McCain, and they are quite different. Truthfully, I don't see McCain winning the Republican ticket.

My prediction is that the General election will be Giuliani vs. Obama. I'm happy with either.

[halfprep455]

Bac to the subject, are these laws in Texas enforced regularly? Do they actually arrest people for having more then 5 sex toys? How can anyone enforce this law. Well then again, search and seizure laws are eroding away these days. I forgot that the Bill of Rights is invalid these days.

[eRondeau]

On the other hand, I'd be willing to bet that quite a significant portion of the population that buys "sex toys"-- are women.

Every summer either me or one of my friends hosts a "Fantasia Party" which is like a Tupperware party for, ahem, "the devices in question". They are co-ed parties but for some reason most men don't feel real comfortable attending. :cool: But the first time I hosted one, about five years ago, the hostess sold over $2000 worth of "items" to 25 people, mostly women. So the demand is definitely there!

But getting back to the topic at hand -- I believe it was Pierre Elliott Trudeau who famously said "The state has no place in the bedrooms of the nation." It's about time the rest of the world took heed. (Of course Mrs. Trudeau was sleeping with Mick Jagger at the time...)

[DigitalAx]

Bac to the subject, are these laws in Texas enforced regularly? Do they actually arrest people for having more then 5 sex toys? How can anyone enforce this law. Well then again, search and seizure laws are eroding away these days. I forgot that the Bill of Rights is invalid these days.

The article was about Alabama. I know of no such ban here. We can be as freaky as we want to be! :D

[zimv20]

Yes, we have universities here in Texas.

yeah, only 220 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_colleges_and_universities_in_Texas) of them. pffft.

:-)

[Father Jack]

Not just yet! You have to express your dominants!

72027
How did you get hold of this photo so fast (ha ha) :eek:

[halfprep455]

I have pretty much realized the hard way that this forum is probably the most harsh on MR. But its all kool. (:

[Doctor Q]

Note: A forum member with insufficient posts to use the "Politics, Religion, Social Issues" forum was somehow able to post here. This is a glitch in the forum system or settings and we will try to correct it.

It is not that member's fault that the forum software wasn't automatically enforcing the rule.

The posts by that member, and quotes and responses to those posts, have been removed from this thread.

[devilot]

I suspected as much. Thanks for clearing that up, Doctor Q.

[yg17]

Note: A forum member with insufficient posts to use the "Politics, Religion, Social Issues" forum was somehow able to post here. This is a glitch in the forum system or settings and we will try to correct it.

It is not that member's fault that the forum software wasn't automatically enforcing the rule.

The posts by that member, and quotes and responses to those posts, have been removed from this thread.

That's the weirdest damned thing I've ever seen. In my years of administering a couple vBulletin forums, I've never seen anyone get access to something they shouldn't.

[MacNut]

So it wasn't a new secret rule. Were more members currently getting past the filter or was this a glitch?

[Doctor Q]

So it wasn't a new secret rule. Were more members currently getting past the filter or was this a glitch?I don't know yet.

[solvs]

Especially those who enjoy being hurt!
Are you making fun of my lifestyle? :p It's not a choice you know! ;) TMI about Solvs...

Note: A forum member with insufficient posts to use the "Politics, Religion, Social Issues" forum was somehow able to post here.
Well, if it was going to happen somewhere, might as well be in a thread about sex toys.