Bangkok Bans Buddha-Porn
Buddhists are known for their open-mindedness, but apparently it doesn't extend to the marriage of faith and porn, at least not in Thailand, where the government of 55 million followers is up in arms over an American porn site that uses an image of "Lord Buddha" as its logo. Based out of Chicago, buddha-porn.com features explicit images under categories such as Buddha Galleries and Nirvana Galleries. It also has a disclaimer stating "NO ONE BUDDHA WAS SUFFERED FROM THIS SITE!!!" and dismisses its use of religious symbols as "just a joke." The world's third largest Buddhist nation isn't laughing and has blocked access to the site, urging followers from around the world to condemn it.
While few would argue that religions aren't entitled to respect, it seems like Thailand's boycott may not be the best way to get it. After all, the fastest way to push traffic to a Web site is to have a government outlaw it publicly. And given how easy it is to produce a site, there's bound to be an increase in Buddha-related URLs hoping to siphon that traffic by piggy-backing on the name through searches. But beyond the futility of their action, isn't it a little off-putting that a country known for sex tourism and under age prostitution is trying to shut down a Web site because of religious iconography?
Buddhists are known for their open-mindedness, but apparently it doesn't extend to the marriage of faith and porn, at least not in Thailand, where the government of 55 million followers is up in arms over an American porn site that uses an image of "Lord Buddha" as its logo. Based out of Chicago, buddha-porn.com features explicit images under categories such as Buddha Galleries and Nirvana Galleries. It also has a disclaimer stating "NO ONE BUDDHA WAS SUFFERED FROM THIS SITE!!!" and dismisses its use of religious symbols as "just a joke." The world's third largest Buddhist nation isn't laughing and has blocked access to the site, urging followers from around the world to condemn it.
While few would argue that religions aren't entitled to respect, it seems like Thailand's boycott may not be the best way to get it. After all, the fastest way to push traffic to a Web site is to have a government outlaw it publicly. And given how easy it is to produce a site, there's bound to be an increase in Buddha-related URLs hoping to siphon that traffic by piggy-backing on the name through searches. But beyond the futility of their action, isn't it a little off-putting that a country known for sex tourism and under age prostitution is trying to shut down a Web site because of religious iconography?
posted by Ven. Pragya Jyoti at 5:10 AM
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