Why does liberal Iceland want to ban online pornography?

[Elsa]

Source: http://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2013/04/economist-explains-why-iceland-ban-pornography?fb_ref=activity

http://cdn.static-economist.com/sites/default/files/imagecache/full-width/images/2013/04/blogs/economist-explains/20130420_ird001.jpg

ON THE face of it, Saudi Arabia and Iceland have little in common. In the World Economic Forum's 2012 Global Gender Gap report, which compares progress towards sexual equality in 135 countries, Saudi Arabia ranked 131st while Iceland, a country with 322,000 citizens, topped the list. And yet Iceland's proposal to outlaw online pornography places it in the company of Saudi Arabia, where women are not allowed to drive, to travel without a man's permission and have restricted rights to vote. Why does liberal Iceland want to ban online pornography?

Iceland's proposed ban can be seen as a continuation of earlier legislation to regulate the sex industry. In 2009 it introduced fines and prison terms for those who patronise prostitutes (though not the prostitutes themselves, which the law treats as victims). In 2010 it outlawed strip clubs. And distributing and selling pornography in Iceland has actually been illegal since 1869.

The main reason behind the proposed ban seems paradoxical: it is a result of Iceland being a highly liberal place. The country is run by the world's only openly lesbian prime minister, while 65% of Icelandic children are born outside marriage (more than any other country in the OECD). Children are given extensive sex education in schools. Mini-vibrators and condoms are sold at supermarket checkouts. Along with Norway and Sweden, Iceland has one of the highest rates of female enrolment in higher education (women outnumber men 3:2). Salary gaps between men and women are some of the lowest in the world and the rate of female participation in the labour force is one of the highest. Just after Finland, and at the same time as Denmark, Iceland was one of the earliest countries to grant women the vote in 1915. Iceland's powerful feminist movement is now championing the ban on online pornography, specifically that which is violent or degrading, mostly towards women.

Banning online pornography would be tricky. The definition of violent or degrading pornography would have to be clearly enshrined in law. Iceland would then have to police the internet, a difficult thing to do. When Denmark and Australia introduced online blacklists in an effort to block porn sites, some innocuous websites crept on to the lists by mistake. Offline, Iceland's previous efforts to clamp down on the sex industry have had mixed results: although all but two of the country's 15 strip clubs have closed, only 20 cases related to prostitution have gone to court, and the 1869 ban on selling pornography is not enforced, with magazines openly available in shops. If any country can pass legislation against pornography it is Iceland (though if the government loses a general election on April 27th, the plan may lose momentum). But implementing and enforcing such laws is likely to prove much more difficult.

[Oneeye]

WTF Iceland? 65% of your children are born outside of wedlock?

[Linebacker]

WTF Iceland? 65% of your children are born outside of wedlock?

Its cold there.People find all sorts of ways to warm up.

[Oneeye]

Its cold there.People find all sorts of ways to warm up.


Hilarious. Their rate of bastards is almost as high as aframs.

[wvwvw]

Hilarious. Their rate of bastards is almost as high as aframs.

Icelanders are not like the Aframs though. There are no bastard kids in their culture because the institution of marriage is weak there. But I think people are just more honest in their relationships and probably see no point in staying in a relationship just for the sake of marriage or kids. You can't compare them to aframs, because dads in Iceland play active role in the lives of their children even if they're no longer in a relationship with the mothers of their children. So children are taken care of, while most Afram fathers simply ditch their children, live themselves on welfare, or engange in criminal activities and their kids grow up in dysfunctional families as a result.

[Oneeye]

Icelanders are not like the Aframs though. There are no bastard kids in their culture because the institution of marriage is weak there. But I think people are just more honest in their relationships and probably see no point in staying in a relationship just for the sake of marriage or kids. You can't compare them to aframs, because dads in Iceland play active role in the lives of their children even if they're no longer in a relationship with the mothers of their children. So children are taken care of, while most Afram fathers simply ditch their children, live themselves on welfare, or engange in criminal activities and their kids grow up in dysfunctional families as a result.


2/3 of children are to single parents there. Even with fathers remaining in their children's lives, they are at best there for them part time. Unless the parents simply live together without taking vows.

[wvwvw]

WTF Iceland? 65% of your children are born outside of wedlock?

Is it uncommon to have children outside of wedlock in USA?

[Oneeye]

Is it uncommon to have children outside of wedlock in USA?

About 25% of white children have single parents:

http://datacenter.kidscount.org/data/tables/107-children-in-single-parent-families-by-race?loc=1#detailed/1/any/false/868,867,133,38,35/10,168,9,12,1,13,185/432,431


So, much less common than 65%

[Gustave H]

It's impossible to really ban something like online porn imo.

[Stefan_Dusan]

It's impossible to really ban something like online porn imo.

China does it, they use some kind of firewall. Think of it like a parental filter for an entire country.

[Longbowman]

2/3 of children are to single parents there. Even with fathers remaining in their children's lives, they are at best there for them part time. Unless the parents simply live together without taking vows.

No, Oneeye, that's not what being born outside of marriage means. I'm surprised at you.

(Hint: many Europeans are living in sin, and the concept of a commonlaw wife might not be something yon Icelanders acknowledge)

[Dombra]

I am not against a ban on porn but I do not like that is the feminists idea

[TheBlondeSalad]

I thought internet censorship only happened in Communist countries and Islamic Republics. Whatever happened to "if you don't like something, don't view it"?. No one is forcing people to view "Internet porn". I pity Icelanders, who are trading their freedom for the false security of politically correct censorship.

[Longbowman]

I thought internet censorship only happened in Communist countries and Islamic Republics. Whatever happened to "if you don't like something, don't view it"?. No one is forcing people to view "Internet porn". I pity Icelanders, who are trading their freedom for the false security of politically correct censorship.

Eh, I don't think that's true, at all. It's not freedom of expression, because pornography isn't saying anything per se. We ban hate speech, etc; pornography is a damaging advent and I genuinely think children need to be protected.

[Oneeye]

No, Oneeye, that's not what being born outside of marriage means. I'm surprised at you.

(Hint: many Europeans are living in sin, and the concept of a commonlaw wife might not be something yon Icelanders acknowledge)

Apparently you have me mistaken as tolerant.

[Leto]

Hilarious. Their rate of bastards is almost as high as aframs.
Yeah, the black family is almost ruined. 71% of black women have children out of wedlock. It's more than 2/3.

[KawaiiKawaii]

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/12/Non_marital_by_countries.gif

For Icelanders, official marriage has never meant a lot.

[KawaiiKawaii]

:D

[Longbowman]

Apparently you have me mistaken as tolerant.

Regardless you are wrong in assuming being born outside wedlock means being born to one parent. Badly wrong.

[Oneeye]

Regardless you are wrong in assuming being born outside wedlock means being born to one parent. Badly wrong.

Unless they are cohabitating, then it is single parent. Furthermore, parents living together without being married shows a lack of commitment to each other. Both parents are still technically "single". The binds are not there.

[Longbowman]

Unless they are cohabitating, then it is single parent. Furthermore, parents living together without being married shows a lack of commitment to each other. Both parents are still technically "single". The binds are not there.

They usually are. That's my point. I'm surprised you hadn't gotten it.

[KawaiiKawaii]

They usually are. That's my point. I'm surprised you hadn't gotten it.

You could even say that they are married, but it's just not official.
In Switzerland, married couples are penalized when it comes to taxes, so some couples choose not to get married. They are still a couple.

[Oneeye]

They usually are. That's my point. I'm surprised you hadn't gotten it.

Is this statement based on anecdotal tales or are there stats showing this?

[Longbowman]

Is this statement based on anecdotal tales or are there stats showing this?

It's based on living in Europe. If you can find me stats showing it isn't I'll listen.

[Oneeye]

You could even say that they are married, but it's just not official.
In Switzerland, married couples are penalized when it comes to taxes, so some couples choose not to get married. They are still a couple.

You guys should follow Americans and give tax breaks to married couples.

[Oneeye]

It's based on living in Europe. If you can find me stats showing it isn't I'll listen.

Right, anecdotal.

[Longbowman]

Right, anecdotal.

God's wounds. I didn't expect this from you.

http://www.toptenz.net/top-10-policies-that-the-united-states-could-learn-from-iceland.php

Most Icelandic couples are 'officially cohabiting.' You could have looked it up yourself.

[Oneeye]

God's wounds. I didn't expect this from you.

http://www.toptenz.net/top-10-policies-that-the-united-states-could-learn-from-iceland.php

Most Icelandic couples are 'officially cohabiting.' You could have looked it up yourself.


Or you could of just given a source earlier... xD



Iceland has a division between ‘single’ and ‘married’ called ‘confirmed cohabitation’. Once a couple enters into an agreement of confirmed cohabitation, they are able to apply for taxes as a married couple and are afforded protection by law against the other party moving out or shirking obligations. A confirmed cohabitation can be annulled but the cohabitation would supercede any type of rental or mortgage agreement, In short, if you are living together you are obligated to that person financially whether you are married or not. Regardless of what you may think of the practice of cohabitation, there should at least be general agreement that one partner should not be able to simply leave a living agreement without some sort of penalty or ‘no strings attached.’ Confirmed cohabitation is an intermediate larval state between dating and marriage but it does afford protections to both partners.


FFS, this is marriage, just without the "m" word. It even has annulment. Silly Euros.

[KawaiiKawaii]

Right, anecdotal.

http://www.bfs.admin.ch/bfs/portal/fr/index/regionen/thematische_karten/gleichstellungsatlas/familien_und_haushaltsformen/einelternfamilien.html
In French. Stats from 2000, so not very up-to-date but the numbers must be similar (higher I assume now). Only 12% of all children live in monoparental families, it's not that much.

[Longbowman]

Or you could of just given a source earlier... xD

FFS, this is marriage, just without the "m" word. It even has annulment. Silly Euros.

Why? It's not information that matters to me. You could have searched for it before making assumptions.

It's slightly different, but yes. Anyhow assuming 2/3 of Icelandic children lived in monoparental families is not something I'd have expected someone of your intelligence to say.

[KawaiiKawaii]

You guys should follow Americans and give tax breaks to married couples.

They are trying to change the law, but they don't really know how. Tax money will be lost, so it has to be compensated. Anyway, it depends from canton to canton.

[KawaiiKawaii]

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/Bridging-Differences/bridging-differences-blog-chart-single-parent.jpg

http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2010/03/10/business/economy/stackliving.jpg

http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/statistics_explained/images/thumb/c/c0/Presence_of_parents_in_the_household,_2011_New.png/350px-Presence_of_parents_in_the_household,_2011_New.png

Monoparental families by country. No Iceland, but Sweden is present. I assume their numbers are similar.

[Oneeye]

Why? It's not information that matters to me. You could have searched for it before making assumptions.

It's slightly different, but yes. Anyhow assuming 2/3 of Icelandic children lived in monoparental families is not something I'd have expected someone of your intelligence to say.



You sure raised quite a fuss over it, and were insulting me in a passive aggressive way for not caring.

Single parent doesn't mean the father is completely gone. Just that the parents live separately... single. Cohabitation with laws is effectively marriage.

At least Iceland still goes by the old naming system with the father's name as the new surname.

[Longbowman]

You sure raised quite a fuss over it, and were insulting me in a passive aggressive way for not caring.

Single parent doesn't mean the father is completely gone. Just that the parents live separately... single. Cohabitation with laws is effectively marriage.

At least Iceland still goes by the old naming system with the father's name as the new surname.

Not for girls. Never has done, never will.

[KawaiiKawaii]

Not for girls. Never has done, never will.

For girls too actually. They just add dottir instead of son.

[Longbowman]

For girls too actually. They just add dottir instead of son.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Icelandic_name#Matronymic_naming_as_a_choice

You are right, I thought this^ was more common, but it's just a minority.