Jayb

Your concern for Huffnpuff is ill-informed and insensitive, I'm afraid.

The people who raped and abused children in institutions remain - almost all of them - free of any criminal charges to this day. The latest enquiry, the Mullighan Inquiry in SA, demonstrates the breadth and depth of the depravities imposed on hundreds of vulnerable children under the "care" of the State. (http://www.service.sa.gov.au/ContentPages/sagovt/mullighaninquiry.aspx)

The overwhelming majority of people who were raped and abused across Australia have not been able to gain redress; and governments around Australia do their worst to make it hard to seek redress.

It's crass of you to assert that "...99.9% of us were not abused... " (even if that statistic is right - which I doubt). Cold comfort to victims to know that others were not sexually exploited. Even more insensitive is your argument that "...about 250 people die on the roads every year, thats 250 too many. Do we stop driving our cars?"

The analogy is absurd. We spend millions on trying to prevent road accidents and we wouldn't tell the victims or their families that they should not be involved in campaigns to prevent road trauma, would we?

Your conclusion to Huffnpuff: "You have a "personal agenda" so you cannot look at this debate with an open mind" is as weird as me saying to you: "You weren't raped as a child so butt out of this debate on child sexual exploitation".

At the end of the day, there's a big difference between an open mind and an empty mind.

Col Rouge,

You caught me by surprise when you implied runner was female. Runner for the most part doesn't reval must about himself in his posts, but I had always assumed that anybody who spends most of their time throwing insults at all and sundry would be male. It turns out that is the case:

http://forum.onlineopinion.com.au/thread.asp?discussion=493#9676

Col Rouge

I never suggested you voted for Mr Rudd as many of your previous posts would indicate otherwise. CJ Morgan's blindness due to his hatred of Howard has been obvious. He is the master of double standards.

You have written in past posts your enjoyment of a little porn (albeit adults). At what age does staring at nude boys and girls arouse you? Is it art at the age of 13 but then porn at the age of 16?

It is obvious that porn appeals to the depraved part of human nature. That is exactly why 12 year old girls should not be photographed nude. It is child abuse at best. For even our socialist Prime Minister it is revolting. Why? Because even he knows that their is no excuse to display child porn and call it art. Unfortunately so many of our judges and people in high places in this country are so sexually depraved that they would not act on this abuse. If it was a catholic priest who took this photo he would be in gaol (and should be)

Alison, you're a hypocrite, you's censor your way out of anything, the same classification board, gave a free pass to a naked boy and a girl in a tub, Moet bottles, in a heap, so being being cleared by them is a bit like a reference from Larry Flynt.

"And the suggestion that paedophiles might use "art" to defend their crimes is laughable. Where child sexual abuse is concerned, the law is very clear."

Pedophiles are habitually involved in manipulation of child images and they very frequently argue that it is art. And that it is only laughable if one is Alison Croggon.

I don't think child pornography is funny at all.

Bill Henson's material is classified as child pornography in London, Australia needs to get some laws in place so people like Bill Henson can be prosecuted instead of the 'free pass' system one has for abusive images at the moment.

Homosexual intercourse is classified as illegal and criminal in Singapore and Iran, UNCRC. Do you think the UK is a 'free pass' system?

"Your conclusion to Huffnpuff: "You have a "personal agenda" so you cannot look at this debate with an open mind" is as weird as me saying to you: "You weren't raped as a child so butt out of this debate on child sexual exploitation".

At the end of the day, there's a big difference between an open mind and an empty mind."
Posted by Spikey, Wednesday, 11 June 2008 11:30:51 AM

ABSOLUTELY Spikey! I was stunned by this comment. I am even more stunned that huffnpuff's comment on this topic here and elsewhere have been largely ignored.

I've been wondering how you felt about this huffnpuff. Thank-you for posting.