Just a week after the school shooting incident in Parkland, Florida, the Florida House of Representatives declined a gun control bill and instead declared pornography a public health risk.
Language was changed at the last minute to make it a public health risk instead of a public health crisis.
Public Health Risk
The shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School claimed the lives of 17 people, yet lawmakers decided that pornography was a more pressing issue over gun control. A resolution sponsored by Republican Rep. Ross Spano declares pornography a public health risk, stating that there is a need for education, research, and policy changes to protect the people of Florida from pornography.
Rep. Spano suggests that there is research that shows a link between pornography use and mental and physical illnesses, forming intimate relationships, and deviant sexual behavior. Ross says that this impacts teenagers the most.
Florida's resolution declares pornography a health risk but not in the ways that would be expected. Instead of dealing with the porn industry that is facing a mental health crisis of its own -- with an increasing number of actresses committing suicide -- it deals with porn use.
Studies have shown that there is no increase in deviant behavior in porn and may lead to healthier attitudes towards sex and the opposite gender.
Other studies, on the other hand, have found that watching porn may have negative effects on long-term relationships, especially those that are married.
Gun Violence
Florida lawmakers refused to vote on a bill that would ban assault weapons and large-capacity magazines. The motion was denied and the bill remained in committee. Sheryl Acquaroli, one of the victims from Stoneman Douglas, told CNN that the move was "almost heartless."
Despite what the Florida House thinks, research shows that gun control laws work. A research paper shows that strengthening background checks and purchase permits led to a decrease in homicide rates.
Another study that examined the effects of Florida's stand-your-ground law, which allows a person to use deadly force in case they believe they are in a life-threatening situation, shows that there was an increase in homicide cases since the law was passed in 2005.
The Centers for Disease Control is not allowed to do any research on gun violence by Congress. This was a backlash due to a 1993 study funded by the CDC that found that homicide risk increased significantly in homes that owned firearms. In 1996 Congress was able to prohibit the CDC from allocating funds "to advocate or promote gun control."
