s considered a form of speech. Although it is not words, the message is being conveyed through pictures. MacKinnon argues that this speech is causing many women to be discriminated against and degraded, not just the ones in the pictures but all women. “Words and images are how people are placed in hierarchies, how social stratification is made to seem inevitable and right, how feelings of inferiority and superiority are engendered, and how indifference to violence against those on the bottom is rationalized and normalized” (MacKinnon 31). Men view images of women performing degrading acts in order to gain pleasure. They will then act on these sexual desires with their partners. In other words, men begin to look at women purely as sex objects and less like people. This will cause more instances of rape and harassment in our society which, without a doubt, is not going to bring us closer to equality.I don’t think this is new news to many folks, but I think now with the Internet more people becoming alarmed because pornographic material is becoming so widespread. 10 years ago pornographic material was confined to the walls and magazine racks in adult stores. If you looked young, the clerk would check your I.D to make sure you were over the age of 18. If they failed to do this then the business would be held accountable and took the risk of being forced to shut its doors to the public. However, with the Internet, the porn industry is slowly easing away of having to face any kind of accountability. Right now, all a webmaster has to do is put a 25-word disclaimer on his home page and he is legally released from the liability of minors viewing material on his site. Is this right? Further more, making a porn site is not rocket science and being Internet driven it has a low cost entry. So, if you want to make some money and have low morals why not make a porn site? Thinking along these lines, the founder of “thewet...
