Tortureboy and the Pornographers

John Aravosis over on Americablog notes that Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez is directing his attention to obscenity, picking up where John Ashcroft left the issue when he realized that 9/11 illustrated a higher priority for government action than prosecuting smut peddlers.

But given Gonzalez' record, I must paraphrase Berthold Brecht and ask:

Is it a greater crime to be a pornographer, or to torture one?

Or is this just a way for Mr. Gonzalez to prevent anyone publishing any more of the Abu Ghraib sort of torture pictures? I mean, seeing a naked man threatened by a German Shephard may get him off, but that doesn't mean it appeals to most people's prurient interest. Still, if Gonzalez can twist U.S. law to permit torture, I'm sure he can twist it to make any picture embarassing to the administration into pornography. And if torture pics do turn him on, then I guess he's right, eh?

Oh, and by the way, Tortureboy and the Pornographers is the name of my new band.