Reply #182: Best reply of this thread.

[superduperfarleft]

Funny, you said almost exactly what I wanted to say as a response to this entire thread, and many other threads on DU regarding women's issues.

I'm kind of agnostic on the porn issue myself, leaning towards disliking it, but just because I don't have a ridiculously binary opinion of bad vs. good doesn't mean I can't understand why some people find it exploitative.

A major problem I have with these discussions is that someone always has to bring up mental illness, i.e. Dworkin has a "neurosis" or "issues." It's completely irrelevant, and considering how our culture tends to downplay the concerns of women as being "hysterical" etc., it makes the person making the accusations look like a dismissive jerk. People should argue the points being made as opposed to accusing the person that is anti-porn of being mentally ill.

To me, part of being "progressive" means that just because I don't necessarily agree or disagree with the sentiment being expressed, I can at least understand why a person would make certain claims. It's not justification, it's empathy.