From: shea@ntmtv.UUCP (Ray Shea)
Subject: Re: Where's Frank Zappa?
Organization: Northern Telecom, Mountain View, CA
Date: Wed, 22 Jul 1992 19:27:05 GMT

In article <1992Jul21.004156.2780@chinet.chi.il.us>, katefans@chinet.chi.il.us (Chris'n'Vickie of Chicago) writes:
>I dislike the PMRC and I *hate* the idea of record labeling, but it's really
>not much different from films being rated in America. It's a guideline
>for parents. So, when's the last time you bombarded movie chains with
>protest letters and phone calls protesting the ratings system?

It's more effective to try to stop a policy *before* it's implemented,
than to try to change a now 20-year old policy.  For the record, I
don't like the MPAA rating system any more than I like record labelling.

Labelling and movie-ratings are a cop-out for parents who don't 
want to spend the effort to really find out what they're kids
are doing and watching and listening to.  I mean, any parent who
goes out and buys a Prince album for their child without realizing
that the album most likely contains "sexually explicit" references
is not paying enough attention to what their kids are up to.  (This
is Tipper did, by the way, and thus the PMRC was born...because 
Tipper was too lazy to do a little research before handing a record
over to her kids.)

>At least, Tipper comes off as a "Concerned Mom" misguided, but well-meaning.

Lord protect me from the hordes who want to protect "the children".
It's this kind of mom-&-apple-pie fascism posing as concern for
child welfare that's given us draconian drug laws, FCC bans on
"indecent" material, & (if you want to take it to an extreme) Operation
Rescue.

>The big problems come with record stores who refuse to carry labeled
>albums, but it's their right to carry and not carry what they please. 

Sure, but when the record industry implements a "voluntary" labelling 
system because they fear being forced to by law (and, incidentally,
because they need the Senators on their side to get their tape-tax
bill through committee), and when stores "voluntarilty" pull labelled
albums from the shelves because they fear being forced to by law, and because
they are being threatened economically by the far right, then are we
supposed to just like it, accept it and chalk it up to their "rights" 
as corporations?  This is just wrong.  And Tipper Gore was a catalyst
for the forces which brought about the situation we have today.

>Tipper can *not* be lumped in with someone like Jesse Helms, who is a
>fascistic Bible-Thumper.

Then why did the PMRC have connections with people like Reverend 
Wildmon, who sees heavy metal as a tool of Satan, and calls the 
Star of David an occult symbol?

>The following "you" is directed to anyone who would judge Al Gore by
>Tipper's actions. 

Remember Nancy Reagan.

>This is too stupid to believe. You're going to judge Albert Gore because
>of something his wife did? 

Lemme ask you this.  How did the Senate "porn-rock" hearings 
come about?  Last I heard Senator's wives weren't supposed
to have any clout when it came to scheduling Senate debates,
yet for *some* reason, Tipper's pet project was debated on
the floor of the highest legislative body in the land...thanks
to *her husband*, the Senator.  If you think Tipper's views are
going to have no effect on Gore if he gets in the White House,
you are deluding yourself.


-- 
Ray Shea			
DoD #0372, '88 Hawk NT650, 	...and a card carrying member of the ACLU...
founder, Team Twinkie	      		you got a problem with that?
ntmtv!shea@ames.arc.nasa.gov  
Newsgroups: rec.music.misc