Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site bbncca.ARPA Path: utzoo!linus!bbncca!msimpson From: msimpson@bbncca.ARPA (Mike Simpson) Newsgroups: net.women,net.singles,net.motss Subject: Re: Miss America Message-ID: <867@bbncca.ARPA> Date: Mon, 30-Jul-84 12:39:41 EDT Article-I.D.: bbncca.867 Posted: Mon Jul 30 12:39:41 1984 Date-Received: Tue, 31-Jul-84 01:54:39 EDT References: <2826@ut-sally.UUCP> Organization: Bolt, Beranek and Newman, Cambridge, Ma. Lines: 57 *** 30 July 1984. This may be construed as stretching the point a bit, but here goes nothing. Last week (I think it was Tuesday, 7/23) Cable News Network's CROSSFIRE program had on a female vice-president of Penthouse and a spokeswoman from NOW, debating the whole Vanessa Williams affair. I was horrified by two things: 1) The speed with which the confrontation (if you watched it, you'd agree with me that it was hardly a 'discussion') shifted from 'was it right for Miss Williams to give up her crown' to an argument over the magazine's First Amendment rights to publish the pictures. COMPLETELY IRRELEVANT! 2) The intense 'power trips' that both women were on. To the NOW speaker, all pornography was an expression of this society's violence against women, and the obvious solution was to pass laws against it. Wasn't this once the land of the free? Whatever happened to the pressures of the marketplace -- i.e., don't legislate against sales of porn, rather educate people not to buy pornography that in your opinion degrades women? (Side note -- I have heard few, if any, women talk about gay pornography. Why?) The Penthouse representative stoutly maintained that Penthouse did not discriminate against women, that many of the positions of power in Penthouse were filled by women, and that the magazine was willing to defend Miss Williams against the pageant's decision and to offer her a job promoting the magazine. Of course, right after that came Guccione's remark about Williams being a 'shameful, deceitful little girl' who was now paying the price for 'trying to put one over on the pageant' and who 'denied another, possibly more worthy girl' of winning the title -- a remark that speaks volumes. (But I digress.) Each speaker ran roughshod over the other, and over 'moderators' Tom Braden and Pat Buchanan. Each one was more certain of the 'wrongness' of her adversary's position that of the 'rightness' of her own. Fortunately, perhaps, the speakers were not physically on the same set -- a very undignified battle wouldn't have been out of the question. Did anyone else see that CROSSFIRE show, and care to comment on it? Mail responses, or post them. -- Mike Simpson, msimpson@bbncca.{arpa,uucp} -- -- your obedient servant, Mike Simpson, BBN msimpson@bbn-unix (ARPA) {decvax,ihnp4,ima,linus,wjh12}!bbncca!msimpson (Usenet) 617-497-2819 (Ma Bell)