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lt is unfortunate that the PMRC would rather dispense governmentally sanitized
Heavy Metal Music, than something more 'uplifting'. Is this an indication of
PMRC's personal taste, or just another manifestation of the low priority this
administration has placed on education for The Arts in America? The answer, of
course, is neither. You cannot distract people from thinking about an unfair tax by
talking about Music Appreciation. For that you need sex
Because of the subjective nature of the PMRC ratings, it is impossible to guarantee
that some sort of 'despised concept' won't sneak through, tucked away in new
slang or the overstressed pronounciation of an otherwise innocent word. If the goal
here is total verbal/moral safety, there is only one way to achieve it; watch no TV,
read no books, see no movies, listen to only instrumental music, or buy no music at
all.
The establishment of a rating system, voluntary or otherwise, opens the door to
an endless parade of Moral Quality Control Programs based on "Things Certain
Christians Don't Like". What if the next bunch of Washington Wives demands a
large yellow "J" on all material written or performed by Jews, in order to save
helpless children from exposure to 'concealed Zionist doctrine'?
Record ratings are frequently compared to film ratings. Apart from the quantitative
difference, there is another that is more important: People who act in films are
hired to 'pretend'. No matter how the film is rated, it won't hurt them personally.
Since many musicians write and perform their own material and stand by it as
their art (whether you like it or not), an imposed rating will stigmatize them as
individuals. How long before composers and performers are told to wear a festive little
PMRC arm band with their Scarlet Letter on it?
The PMRC rating system restrains trade in one specific musical field: Rock. No
ratings have been requested for Comedy records or Country Music. Is there anyone
in the PMRC who can differentiate infallibly between Rock and Country Music?
Artists in both fields cross stylistic lines. Some artists include comedy material. If
an album is part Rock, part Country, part Comedy, what sort of label would it get?
Shouldn't the ladies be warning everyone that inside those Country albums with the
American Flags, the big trucks, and the atomic pompadours there lurks a fascinating
variety of songs about sex, violence, alcohol, and the devil, recorded in a way
that lets you hear every word, sung for you by people who have been to prison and
are proud of it.
If enacted, the PMRC program would have the effect of protectionist legislation
for the Country Music Industry, providing more security for cowboys than it does
for children. One major retail outlet has already informed the Capitol Records sales
staff that it would not purchase or display an album with any kind of sticker on it.
Another chain with outlets in shopping malls has been told by the landlord that if
it racked "hard-rated albums" they would lose their lease. That opens up an awful
lot of shelf space for somebody. Could it be that a certain Senatorial husband and
wife team from Tennessee sees this as an 'affirmative action program' to benefit the
suffering multitudes in Nashville?
Is the PMRC attempting to save future generations from SEX ITSELF? The type,
the amount, and the timing of sexual information given to a child should be
determined by the parents, not by people who are involved in a tax scheme cover-up.
The PMRC has concocted a Mythical Beast, and compounds the chicanery by
demanding 'consumer guidelines' to keep it from inviting your children inside its
sugar walls. Is the next step the adoption of a "PMRC National Legal Age For
Comprehension of Vaginal Arousal". Many people in this room would gladly support
such legislation, but, before they start drafting their bill, I urge them to consider
these facts:
(1) There is no conclusive scientific evidence to support the claim that exposure to
any form of music will cause the listener to commit a crime or damn his soul to hell.
(2) Masturbation is not illegal. If it is not illegal to do it, why should it be illegal
to sing about it?
(3) No medical evidence of hairy palms, warts, or blindness has been linked to
masturbation or vaginal arousal, nor has it been proven that hearing references to
either topic automatically turns the listener into a social liability.
(4) Enforcement of anti-masturbatory legislation could prove costly and time
consuming.
(5) There is not enough prison space to hold all the children who do it.
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