Things That Make You Go Hmmm.

Stories like this seem to show up in the news on an almost daily basis now. According to the article in the Cincinnati Enquirer:

"Rodney McMillen, 36, of Norwood, broke into a Fort Mitchell apartment armed with a knife and wearing only a thong, set up a video camera, then jumped on a sleeping woman and attempted to rape her."

There are a couple of things that are disturbing about this story. First of all, if you're not familiar with Northern Kentucky, Fort Mitchell is a fairly upscale suburban neighborhood. There are some working class areas, but it's not like this is taking place in an inner city ghetto, or an area of decline like some areas in Cincinnati itself. Although I do have to note, the man was not from Ft. Mitchell, he lived in Norwood, which is one of the declining areas in Cincinnati.

The second interesting fact is that he set up a video camera before he attempted the crime. This is how they caught him of course, after the victim fought him off. Is this guy just a candidate for the Darwin Awards or is there deeper reason behind his actions?

Of course, I am speculating on this story, but I would not be surprised if Mr. McMillen was heavy pornography user. I don't think anyone can seriously deny the link between heavy pornography use and the escalation of sex crimes around the world. Although I don't agree with her politics, One Angry Girl has some excellent resources on her site regarding this issue. Porn causes it's consumers to objectify women. It is like any other addiction in that the addict needs more and more graphic material to get his fix. This results in an escalation into more "perverse" forms of pornography and possibly to an attempt to act out in the real world.

The article claims Mr. McMillen is mentally ill, and he very well may be, but that condition would have just made the escalation that much faster in him. The fact that he showed up wearing a thong and was prepared to video tape the act suggests that he harbored a fantasy that this was just a game, and that his victim would willingly go along with the act. Possibly just putting up a modest attempt to fight him off, but engoying it all along. Not coincidentally, this is how some rape scenes are glofified in pornography. Why else would he think he would have time to retrieve a camera after he was finished, and escape wearing only a thong.

I don't believe pornography should be protected as free speech. It should be outlawed whenever possible. At some point our society has to distinguish between things that are intrinsically immoral, and things that can lead to immoral behavior but are not immoral in and of themselves. Alcohol, for instance, is not intrinsically immoral. If used in moderation it can be safely consumed and add enjoyment to many social activities. If abused it can have serious consequences, but so can many things if they are used in excess.

Pornography on the other hand is immoral in and of itself. Many will claim it can also be used in moderation, but this disregards the effects on the participants in the production. As the Catechism of the Catholic Church states:

"It offends against chastity because it perverts the conjugal act, the intimate giving of spouses to each other. It does grave injury to the dignity of its participants (actors, vendors, the public), since each one becomes an object of base pleasure and illicit profit for others. It immerses all who are involved in the illusion of a fantasy world. It is a grave offense. Civil authorities should prevent the production and distribution of pornographic materials" (CCC 2354)

The bottom line is that pornography uses another human being as a means to our own end, in this case sexual pleasure, without regard to the effect it has on that person. Don't fool yourself, it has an effect. The internet is full of websites of people who used to be in the adult entertainment business who will attest to this fact. Not to mention the growing problem of human slavery, a lot of it dedicated to finding people to supply the sex industry. If your not familiar with this problem, here is an article I found in about ten seconds on google. One of thousands detailing this problem that is rarely discussed.

This kind of thing isn't talked about in daily conversation. It isn't polite, but look it up, it's a real problem, and we have responsibility to speak out.