Livingston County has more self-appointed community censors

One thing there is no shortage of in Livingston County is self-appointed community censors, and the latest are Oceola Township resident Mary Pruneau and Iosco Township resident Marta Soto.

The two are urging a boycott of the recently opened Family Video store in Howell after discovering they apparently have a small room in the back where you can rent X-rated videos. Apparently, deciding not to rent one is not enough for the pair, and they want to tell you want you can and can’t rent, too.

The pair wrote letters to the Livingston County Daily Press & Argus, and because it apparently was a slow news day they picked up on it. Livingston County has a history of such self-appointed censors, like the group that tried to censor mannequins at Victoria’s Secret.

A group of parishioners at Green Oak Township's Holy Spirit Catholic Church launched a letter writing campaign against the Victoria’s Secret store in the then new Green Oak Village Place in the fall of 2006 because they were dressed in lingerie. A few days later the group also targeted a new adult video, lingerie and novelties store in Brighton.

At about the same time that group was in full swing, the anti-gay hate group called LOVE - (Livingston Organization for Values in Education) launched its book-banning quest; first with the book “The Freedom Writers Diary: How a Teacher and 150 Teens Used Writing to Change Themselves and the World Around Them” and then it went after Nobel Prize winning author Toni Morrison's first novel, "The Bluest Eye," and an acclaimed memoir written by Richard Wright in 1945, "Black Boy, " as well as the classic Kurt Vonnegut novel "Slaughterhouse Five.”

Like many people, I was surprised the store had an x-rated section. The Family Video store opened just a month or so ago, and I joined shortly after that. I like the inexpensive prices, including free kid’s movies. Since joining I have rented at least a couple of movies every week,

The newspaper helpfully listed the titles of some of the adult titles available, such as Blondage," “Girls Behind Bars,” “Bad Wives" and "Girls Get Hot." After renting movies there, I know anyone would invite the embarrassment of the clerk saying, “Terminator 2 is due back Wednesday and Girls Get Hot is due back Saturday.”

It’s great to see a new business thriving in the City of Howell. For a number of years the location was a sporting goods store, but it moved to a new location a few miles east down Grand River Avenue to a strip mall in Genoa Township. The single building housed a shoe store for a few months, but they left, too.

After sitting empty for some time, the company that owns Family Video gutted the building but for a few walls and developed a beautiful building. I’m not sure how many people it employees, but it would be a shame if a few small-mined people cost employees their jobs.

I have some simple advice for Ms. Pruneau Ms. Soto: don’t rent them. Better yet, go to Blockbuster, but stop the ridiculous boycott.

Pruneau makes the false claim that pornography “increases violence toward women.” That’s simply not true. The problem with that argument is that even though pornography is more widespread and available than ever online, violence against women is down. Since 1993, according to the FBI crime statistics, rape is down 72 percent and other sexual assaults have fallen by 68 percent. Even in the last two years, when the FBI reported up ticks in violent crime, the number of rapes continued to fall.

Livingston County Victoria’s Secret protest is part of a larger misguided protest

You just knew the small, self-appointed censors picketing the Victoria’s Secret store in the new Green Oak Village Place mall and the adult video and novelty store in Brighton could not have come up with that idea on their own, and it turns out they didn’t.

Thanks to a fellow progressive blogger, Media Mouse, it has come to my attention that the Victoria's Secret protest is really the brain child of another, larger group of self-appointed censors called the American Decency Association (ADA), located right here in Michigan on the north west side of the state in Freemont.

According to Media Mouse and ADA’s web site, the group “has launched a campaign targeting Michigan malls--including RiverTown Crossings in Grandville--according to research conducted by Media Mouse. The Fremont, Michigan-based ADA has undertaken a campaign targeting Victoria's Secret for what it terms "indecency at the local mall" arguing that the retail chain's window displays, in-store advertisements, and television advertisements are a "threat" to "public decency."”

Boy, does that ever sound like our intrepid group of protectors of our morals from Green Oak Township's Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Church led by church employee Patrick Flynn and Hamburg Township resident Robin Blaszak. What’s really surprising is they had the initiative to actually find the store in Brighton on their own.

But the really sad part is that the Associated Press, TV stations all over the state and even Faux News has picked up on this harebrained Victoria’s Secret protest. With the recent auction of KKK memorabilia last year, this ridiculous protest and the banning of a popular juvenile book last week at Howell High School I wonder what the rest of the civilized and tolerant world thinks of us? What I do know is this group’s 15 minutes of fame is long over.

Protest by small band of self-appointed community censors falls flat on its face

The good news is the protest against a recently opened adult video, lingerie and novelties store in Brighton on Friday by a small – and I mean very small – group of self-appointed community censors felt flat on its face.
Despite the good weather, only a handful of protestors, mostly from the congregation of Green Oak Township's Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Church, showed up, according to the Livingston County Daily Press & Argus, and the protest was led and organized by Patrick Flynn, an employee of the church and a former conservative Republican candidate for U.S. Congress for the 8th District. It makes you wonder if the IRS should be taking a look at the church’s charter for its illegal political campaigning.
The small turnout occurred despite the little band of censors getting a front-page preview by the local newspaper. I’m not saying its not news, but for that to make the front page it either had to be a slow news day or they had to reach into the bottom of the barrel because the Thanksgiving holiday left them without a lot of copy.

With signs stating, "Pornography is an enemy of the family," they walked alongside a busy Grand River Avenue on one of the busiest shopping days of the year to alert residents about what they consider a destructive seed being planted in their community, the opening of Intimate Ideas. The store, located at the intersection of Cross Street and Grand River Avenue, opened last week.

I guess the fact there is absolutely no link between sexual assault and pornography is not going to stop then for distorting the truth. Besides, it makes for a good slogan on a sign.

Members of this grass-roots group said they fear this store would cause other stores that sell pornography to sprout up in the Brighton area.

They believe it will be the beginning of a “red-light district.” If so, it will be one of the few in the entire nation.

They’re back: Small-minded group aims to censor another Livingston County business

They’re back.

The same small-minded people who brought you the ridiculous protest against the Victoria’s Secret store are back with a new protest and picket. The intended victim this week is a new adult video, lingerie and novelties store that just opened last week in Brighton.

The grass-roots group plans to picket outside Intimate Ideas on Friday afternoon. The store, located in a small strip mall at Grand River Avenue and Cross Street, also sells adult toys.
"The bottom line is it's pornography," said Hamburg Township resident Robin Blaszak. "It's treating the body as merchandise, not as something to be respected."
Blaszak and Patrick Flynn, both members of Green Oak Township's Holy Spirit Roman Catholic Church, have sent out letters and e-mails to Brighton-area churches asking them to participate in the protest. In the letter, the group asks residents to join and "exercise our constitutional rights to publicly demonstrate our displeasure in the establishment and location of this business."

I just hope that every sane person who loves freedom and choice goes to the store and buys something and supports this storeowner against these small-minded people who want to tell you and I what we can and cannot see, hear and buy.

Flynn said there are studies that show pornography is detrimental to families and often a factor in cases involving abuse of women and children.
Flynn said he's worried about the cumulative effect of businesses like this moving into the community.
"Is this the beginning of a red-light district in Brighton?" he asked. "Some may say that's an extreme thing to say."
I challenge Mr. Flynn to produce one of the so-called studies he cites to support his ridiculous claim. There is absolutely no link between legal pornography and violence against women and children.

But the most outrageous claim Mr. Flynn makes is it will spur a “red light district.” I suggest Mr., Flynn get out more and actually visit some more diverse areas than Livingston County. He will find there simply is no such thing as a “red-light district” anymore. I have lived all over the country in some very urban areas, and there are simply none of these so-called “red light districts.” However, he is correct when he says it’s an “extreme thing to say,” but we are used to that kind of extreme thing from Mr. Flynn.

I have lived in San Diego, Norfolk, Charleston, SC. and Jacksonville, Fl., and none of these cities have a “red-light district.” These are Navy towns where literally thousands of young, single men live far from family and friends who might frequent a “red-light district” if there was such a ting. Maybe they can come to Brighton to frequent the one here.

I suggest Mr. Flynn and Ms. Blaszak find something constructive to do with the obvious free time they have on their hands.

Small vocal minority attempts to set community standards for all Livingston County residents

We have another case of a small, misguided minority appointing themselves as the community censor to decide what you and I can and cannot see. This time it’s the parishioners at Green Oak Township's Holy Spirit Catholic Church. The latest outrage you ask? Mannequins at Victoria’s Secret in the new Green Oak Village Place mall dressed in, Lingerie. Next, they will want to ban the Sears and JC Penny catalog because they display women in bras.

The story was splashed across the front page of today’s Daily Press & Argus. It makes you wonder if it’s sweeps week, but we know sex sells. Ask Victoria’s Secret. If the so-called protest and letter writing campaign is really as large and widespread as reported I have no problem with the newspaper writing about it. You can’t ignore stories. But sometimes small, vocal minorities get too much ink.

Hamburg Township resident Robin Blaszak, who is part of a grass-roots group writing letters to protest the store's window display, said she was offended by the scantily-clad mannequins when she recently went shopping at the mall.
Blaszak said this is a "family-friendly community."
"We don't want those things exposed to our children," she said.
When she first came across the window display, Blaszak became so upset that she went inside the store and talked with an assistant manager who, she said, expressed the view that the store glorifies women.
"I don't feel this is glorification for women. It's making women into sex objects," Glaszak said.
Blaszak said the group is concerned with the window displays, and if those items were moved inside the store, she wouldn't have an issue with the store. Blaszak said she wants to be able to walk through the mall "without fear of being assaulted by sexual imagery."
Several of the group members belong to Green Oak Township's Holy Spirit Catholic Church, whose parish council wrote a letter expressing its concerns with the window display.
"Our concern is that we want the window displays to basically reflect our community's values," Blaszak said.
And Ms. Blaszak is the one to decide the community’s values. Not for me, thank you.

Blaszak said she saw six mannequins dressed in panties and bras, but it appears that display has changed. Currently, there are only two mannequins and a larger-than-life photograph of a model dressed in underwear.
VS addressed the concerns, but this obviously will not be enough. We must hide the ugly human body.

Joe Tyree, who handles REDICO's retail operations, said this is the first time he's dealt with residents upset about a store's window display. He's been in the retail business for 25 years and runs malls all across the United States.
Apparently not in Livingston County.

Hamburg Township resident Patrick Flynn said he and other residents have a right not to have those images "in your face."
"This is not an unreasonable request," said Flynn, who is the business manager for Holy Spirit Catholic Church and unsuccessfully ran against U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Brighton, in the Aug. 8 Republican primary election.