Military Porn Ban Not Such a Good Idea

There are three things that keep morale up in the military; mail from home, liberty near a few good bars and naked women. At the risk of sounding sexist, I didn't serve with women so I don't know what three things increase their morale.

Anyway, Congress is in the midst of passing a new anti-porn bill and that will not make the troops very happy:

GRAFENWOHR, Germany -- Legislation that would restrict the sale of certain men's magazines on U.S. military bases around the world would be bad for morale, according to soldiers at Grafenwöhr.

U.S. Rep. Paul Broun, R-Ga., has introduced legislation that would close a loophole in the current law that allows the sale of some sexually explicit material on military bases by lowering the threshold required to deem material "sexually explicit."

A Department of Defense committee that reviews materials sold on bases ruled last year that magazines such as Playboy and Penthouse are not pornographic. But Broun's Military Honor and Decency Act includes language that could make those magazines eligible for the ban.

Rep. Broun is a vet and as such should realize that some of these Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Marines are on their fourth or fifth tour in Iraq or Afghanistan and he should spend more time passing bills that increase their pay and benefits and less time writing legislation that deprives them of looking at hot chicks naked--probably the only thing they get to do that makes them feel somewhat normal and connected. Our troops have made it through numerous wars with pin-ups of beautiful women such as Betty Grable shown at right, why take away a great tradition?

Broun appears to be a religious zealot in the same vein as Huckabee and his inane bill will do nothing to make the military more righteous, moral or tougher. I suggest the good congressman keep his nose out of the business of our fighting forces reading Playboy and use his energy for something more important like reducing earmarks, spending and taxes.

Update: Well, at least the military brass has a better idea of how to keep our troops happy:

JALALABAD, Afghanistan -- Single soldiers and civilians working for the U.S. military in Afghanistan can now have sex legally. Sort of.

A new order signed by Maj. Gen. Jeffrey Schloesser, commander of Combined Joint Task Force-101, has lifted a ban on sexual relations between unmarried men and women in the combat zone.