> …to back up what I’ve consistently observed with my own eyes
People have observed everything UFOs and demons to ivermectin curing their COVID. None of it is real but yet people continue to swear up and down on these things gs.
> ...given the speed at which research sometimes move
Filling in knowledge gaps with imagination is not a substitute for actual data. Ever.
> and particularly since any concern over perceived “sexual liberation” attacks one of the sacred cows of progressivism
Hard disagree. You yourself can go study human psychology and sexuality then perform studies. If you can assemble real data the scientific community would be forever grateful for your contributions. The real barrier is not “liberals”, it’s that it takes years upon years of hard work to get there. Unlike your comment, which is backed up by “my own eyes”.
> I know the research is there and has been if you’re actually interested
Leading with “I don’t need citations”, then promising that they’re “totally there” at the bottom doesn’t really sit right with me.
Anyways, it’s not the role of the state to legislate morality. That always ends poorly. If porn is bad for kids, then parents need to step up. Maybe the state could offer resources for parents - I’m not opposed to that. If it’s bad for adults, they those with chronic habits should seek help.
Do you really think it's fair to compare a questionable UFO sighting to what I've learned from talking with and knowing people, seeing how this affects them? I don't think it is. Or talking with their girlfriends and hearing about this issue.
If you want good evidence that this is hard to study well, even if you maintain that political concerns are a non-issue, around 11% of men report some agreement with the statement, "I am addicted to pornography." https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7044607 Of course, another analysis found that just 51.7% of men used pornography, which seems optimistically low: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11234758/ See the concerns I mentioned around getting truthful data, which are also well-known within nutrition. 17.4% of those men were "problematic" pornography users.
I'm back on a laptop now so can pull this up a little easier, but I don't think you're defending this from the right angle. It's the same as when the marijuana legalization advocates say "it's basically medicine lol" or deny that addiction is possible and that it's known to somewhat increase risk of schizophrenia, because they are scared that admitting that something is bad means they are somehow supporting a ban on it. There are a lot of bad things people consume and I support banning very few of those. Pornography is not one. Please don't mistake my position.
I'll also point out that my original comment explicitly stated that I didn't see it as the role of the state but of parents. I'm not sure with whom you're arguing here about that.
> Do you really think it's fair to compare a questionable UFO sighting
Fair enough. I chose my example poorly. My point still stands: personal anecdotes are a terrible way of understanding most anything.
> It's the same as when the marijuana legalization advocates say "it's basically medicine lol" or deny that addiction is possible
100% feel you here. Even as a user.
> There are a lot of bad things people consume and I support banning very few of those. Pornography is not one. Please don't mistake my position.
I appreciate your clarity here and I apologize for being a bit of jerk. So often it feels like people choose views purely on their own internal personal morality. Not a larger live-and-let-live attitude. Which kinda ties into the cannabis legalization thing above imo. The truth was fudged to make the moral argument easier - because that convinces people.
So, again, apologies for jumping down your throat and I appreciate the links.
Yikes dude.
> …to back up what I’ve consistently observed with my own eyes
People have observed everything UFOs and demons to ivermectin curing their COVID. None of it is real but yet people continue to swear up and down on these things gs.
> ...given the speed at which research sometimes move
Filling in knowledge gaps with imagination is not a substitute for actual data. Ever.
> and particularly since any concern over perceived “sexual liberation” attacks one of the sacred cows of progressivism
Hard disagree. You yourself can go study human psychology and sexuality then perform studies. If you can assemble real data the scientific community would be forever grateful for your contributions. The real barrier is not “liberals”, it’s that it takes years upon years of hard work to get there. Unlike your comment, which is backed up by “my own eyes”.
> I know the research is there and has been if you’re actually interested
Leading with “I don’t need citations”, then promising that they’re “totally there” at the bottom doesn’t really sit right with me.
Anyways, it’s not the role of the state to legislate morality. That always ends poorly. If porn is bad for kids, then parents need to step up. Maybe the state could offer resources for parents - I’m not opposed to that. If it’s bad for adults, they those with chronic habits should seek help.