Playboy Reports Huge Loss

During a conference call today announcing Playboy’s fourth quarter and year-end 2008 financial results, interim chairman and CEO Jerome Kern was asked by an analyst if, now that longtime CEO Christie Hefner is no longer with the company, it will consider a sale and/or changes in the strategic direction of Playboy magazine.

“Yes, we’re open to discussions,” Kern said.

Playboy reported a year-end net loss of $156.1 million in 2008, compared to a net gain of $4.9 million during 2007. The majority of that loss came during the fourth quarter, which saw a profit loss of $145.7 million due, in part, to $157.2 million in impairment and restructuring charges. - Foliomag.com

Reason is kind of obvious: internet porn. This is the same reason why print journalism is becoming obsolete in general: people are turning to the internet.

Porn Bailout?

WASHINGTON (CNN) — Another major American industry is asking for assistance as the global financial crisis continues: Hustler publisher Larry Flynt and Girls Gone Wild CEO Joe Francis said Wednesday they will request that Congress allocate $5 billion for a bailout of the adult entertainment industry.

“The take here is that everyone and their mother want to be bailed out from the banks to the big three,” said Owen Moogan, spokesman for Larry Flynt. “The porn industry has been hurt by the downturn like everyone else and they are going to ask for the $5 billion. Is it the most serious thing in the world? Is it going to make the lives of Americans better if it happens? It is not for them to determine.”

Mr. Chomsky, do you want anything to do with a porn bailout?

Porn is humiliation and degradation of women. It’s a disgraceful activity. I don’t want to be associated with it. Just take a look at the pictures. I mean, women are degraded as vulgar sex objects. That’s not what human beings are. I mean, I don’t even see anything to discuss...As to the fact that it’s some people’s erotica, that’s their problem. That doesn’t mean I want to contribute to it. If they get enjoyment out of the humiliation of women, they have a problem. It’s nothing I want to contribute to.

Case Closed On Spyware

The case against Julie Amero is finally closed.

On Friday, prosecutors reached a plea agreement with the former Connecticut schoolteacher who at one time faced up to 40 years in prison after being convicted of endangering minors. The charges stemmed from a 2004 incident in which a computer loaded with spyware displayed pornography to her students.

State prosecutors dropped four felony charges of "risk of injury to a minor" against her, with Amero pleading guilty to a disorderly conduct misdemeanor, according to the Hartford Courant.

A jury convicted Amero of the felony charges in January 2007, but the presiding judge in the case, Hillary Strackbein, set aside that verdict five months later, essentially granting Amero a new trial. - New York Times

"Risk of injury to a minor" -- seriously?

Internet Explorer 8

Microsoft’s latest internet browser includes a piece of software that allows internet users to hide the audit trail of websites they have visited.

The InPrivate feature on Internet Explorer 8, nicknamed “porn mode”, allows users to conceal the sites they have viewed at the click of a button.

Once the setting is chosen, others using the same computer will not be able to see which sites have been accessed. Other browsers have similar functions, but this one is far more prominent. Although casual users cannot see the previous user’s search history, authorities such as the police will be able to access it if necessary. - Times Online

It is sad that this is what the Internet has come to.

Porno Rampant On Military Bases

Every day, young children and families are exposed to pornographic images in military exchanges around the world, despite a law restricting the Secretary of Defense from allowing the sale or rental of sexually explicit material on Department of Defense (DoD) property. The National Defense Authorization Act of 1997 contains a loophole which allows these materials to be sold or rented in exchanges under current DoD regulations. Congressman Paul C. Broun (R-Georgia), M.D., introduced the “Military Honor and Decency Act (H.R. 5821),” which closes that loophole so pornographic publications aren’t sold or subsidized by military exchanges. Legislation like H.R. 5821 would protect military families from the harmful effects of pornography and would encourage a family-friendly environment on military installations.

In a statement on his website, Rep. Broun states, “Allowing the sale of pornography on military bases has harmed military men and women by: escalating the number of violent, sexual crimes; feeding a base addiction; eroding the family as the primary building block of society; and denigrating the moral standing of our troops both here and abroad.” - Concerned Women for America

This reminds me of a certain video about the military.

My Own Musing: MTV Music Videos

I walked downstairs to see what was for dinner (just a few minutes ago) when I happened to notice soft core pornography on the T.V! I am not talking about Jenna Jameson and Briana Banks making out, not that, but instead a music video. I didn't pay attention to who was doing the hollering (I think they call it rapping nowadays); I noticed two girls next to a flashing wall with their roundish boobs on display. They weren't standing there innocently either -- they were doing dance moves akin to what you see in strip clubs (I wouldn't know, but I do). Now, let me just get this clear: If I want my daily fixing of pornography (I think Chris calls it "hamburgers"), I can just type in some obnoxious phrase in my little Google search bar, be it "woman and dog" or "tub girl". Since when did MTV Hits become Girls Gone Wild? What ever happened to real music videos? Occasionally, I will see The Verve's Bittersweet Symphony video (one of my favorites of all time) come on, but a couple of hours later I see scantily clad black girls. I fucking hate censorship, but they need to get this shit off the tube. The end.

I hate swearing like this too, but I'm sorry.