Utah’s Anti-Porn Law is Pure Pseudoscience
Utah lawmakers think porn is an ‘epidemic’ and a ‘public health crisis.’
04.22.16 1:45 PM ET
Samantha Allen
As promised, Utah Gov. Gary Herbert signed a resolution on Tuesday declaring pornography to be a “public health hazard leading to a broad spectrum of individual and public health impacts and societal harms,” alongside a child pornography measure.
“Pornography is a public health crisis,” Herbert announced. “Today I signed two bills that will bring its dangers to light.”
The “public health hazard” resolution, SCR9, is a master class in peddling anti-porn pseudoscience. And although the law, sponsored by state Sen. Todd Weiler, contains no mechanism for enforcement, it encourages Gov. Herbert and the Utah state legislature to “address the pornography epidemic that is harming the people of our state and nation” with “education, prevention, research, and policy change.”
If Utah legislators were to change public policy based on this resolution, they would be doing so based on unsubstantiated claims about the dangers of pornography and the legitimacy of “porn addiction.” In fact, almost every line of the law is inaccurate or misleading.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2016/04/22/utah-s-anti-porn-law-is-pure-pseudoscience.html
