Below are links to several documents such skeptics should look at.

EFF does not advocate the distribution of obscenity or child pornography, and neither does the rest of the free speech movement. The Comm. Decency Act is not about child porn, it is not about protecting children from online stalkers, and it is not about illegalizing online pornography. All of these are already illegal, online or offline.

The Comm Decency Act is a ban on "indecent" material online. "Indecency" is not obscenity (pornography). Indecency can most easily be described as what makes a PG-rated movie PG instead of G. Indecency is the word "piss" (which occurs at least 7 times in the King James Bible). Indecency is material that is protected under the First Amendment, even though some people find it offensive to one degree or another. Contrast this with obscenity, which has been ruled by the Supreme Court to not be protected expression at all. Again, obscenity (pornography) is and always has been illegal to post online. In a May 3, 1995 letter to Sen. Leahy, the Justice Department itself opposed the Comm. Decency Act, saying the CDA "would significantly thwart enforcement of existing laws regarding obscenity and child pornography, create several ways for distributors and packagers of obscenity and child pornography to avoid criminal liability, and threaten important First Amendment and privacy rights."

WE AGREE WITH YOU that child pornography is bad. We agree with you that children and adults should not have to be subjected to material that offends them. But the Comm. Decency Act does not address these problems at all, and actively hinders real solutions to them. For more information on real solutions, please see the EFF Online Filter & Ratings Archive (link below).

Remember: Support for the stated goals of an action (such as this legislation) does not require support for all bad ideas that pretend to acheive that goal (again, such as this legislation.) The Comm. Decency Act is a product of political gamesmanship. It is a sham, and it is unconstititional. You have been directly misled by the legislators and lobbyists who sponsored this bill - they do not care about actually protecting children, they care about money, press coverage, political power and votes. Please remember that you have to make up your own mind. Don't let lobbyists' press releases make it up for you. Check the facts below if you remain skeptical. Look it up, and find the truth about this terrible legislation.

More Information

• EFF Online Ratings/Filters/Labelling Archive - links to already available software and services that enable parents and teachers to prevent children's access to inappropriate materials. It's not science fiction, it's here now.
• Journalist Todd Lappin explains obscenity and indecency (and the differences between them) in lay terms.
• Attorney (and father) Mike Godwin explains the difference between "obscenity" and "indecency" in more precise terms
• CHILDREN, CHILD ABUSE, AND CYBERPORN: A Primer for Clear Thinkers, by Mike Godwin
• Mike Godwin, a parent, testifies before the U.S. Senate about Internet censorship legislation v. parental control technology.
• "Child Safety on the Information Highway" primer from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children and the Interactive Services Assoc.
• A Parent's Guide to Supervising a Child's Online and Internet Experience
  A short guide to how the Internet works and what parents can do to guide their childrens' online experiences. By Robert Cannon of the Washington, D.C. law firm Shack, Crawford & Cannon
• The Justice Department's May 3, 1995 letter to Sen. Leahy, in which the DoJ says the CDA would " would significantly thwart enforcement of existing laws regarding obscenity and child pornography"
• Apple Libarian Steve Cisler's review of the history of "Protection and the Internet"
• John Noring's exploration of the likely ill effects of the CDA on the development of online libraries. Not a pretty picture.
• The Morality Museum - (including such topics as: Pornography Vs. Erotica, Stop The Communications Decency Act, Computer Pornography Censorship of Obscenity, Laws On Child Pornography, Censorship and the Internet, Censorship of Cyberspace - A Personal Choice, Cyberporn & Bogus Research, Why Censoring Cyberspace is Dangerous & Futile, Headline: Cyberporn Protect Your Children From Internet Pedophiles, the Cyberporn Debate and Children Accessing Controversial Information.)
• People for the American Way's exposé of the fundmentalist fanatic groups behind the CDA and other dangerous legislation
• Attorney Mark Welch explores "What's Wrong With the Communications Decency Act?"
• Yahoo! & Surfwatch present "Staying Street Smart on the Web!", and "Rules for Online Child Safety"