Definitely worried
Oct. 10th, 2005 06:20 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
elfsThis story [Ads may be NSFW] tells of a sex story website operator whose home was invaded by the FBI and all of her files seized and taken away. The affadativit that led to the warrant assured the issuing judge that the website contained "obscene" materials.
Red-Rose-Stories.com was, by all accounts, a pretty nasty place, featuring child rape stories among other things. However, there can be no doubt that if it's merely the stories that the FBI was worried about than the prosecution is completely without merit. There hasn't been a successful obscenity prosecution in this country in nearly 50 years, but then that's never stopped the feds from scratching the itch to harass someone and make them burn all their assets defending their right to create fiction.
I'm just waiting for the Feds to go after Anne Rice. Beauty was, after all, fifteen when the series starts.
I'm not taking down anything in my stories, but damn, this is definitely a damnably worrying trend.
Red-Rose-Stories.com was, by all accounts, a pretty nasty place, featuring child rape stories among other things. However, there can be no doubt that if it's merely the stories that the FBI was worried about than the prosecution is completely without merit. There hasn't been a successful obscenity prosecution in this country in nearly 50 years, but then that's never stopped the feds from scratching the itch to harass someone and make them burn all their assets defending their right to create fiction.
I'm just waiting for the Feds to go after Anne Rice. Beauty was, after all, fifteen when the series starts.
I'm not taking down anything in my stories, but damn, this is definitely a damnably worrying trend.
no subject
Date: 2005-10-11 02:17 am (UTC)This is the second time I've seen this statement in posts about that site.
It's not true. In the mid-80s (a mere 20 years ago or less) the operators of the Califonia based Amateur Action BBS were tried and convicted on obscenity charges in a Tennessee court.
Now, it might be true that there hasn't been such a conviction for a *written* work as oppopsed to photos and videos since 1955. But I'd be rather surprised if even that is true.
no subject
Date: 2005-10-11 02:36 am (UTC)What's really scary about this is that I found the DOJ's latest internal newsletter crowing about their success using a "well-coordinated and well-executed strategy" to frighten people into "changing behavior." PDF copy (http://www.usdoj.gov/criminal/obs032604.pdf). It's a very frightening document because it's written from a point of view interested in appeasing the hard right.
no subject
Date: 2005-10-11 03:33 am (UTC)