It appears that the Oregon Supreme Court has decided that it is legal for people to have sex in public. For that matter, according to this court, any law that prohibits sex in public would be unconstitutional according to the Oregon constitution.

The relevant passage (Article I, Section 8) of the Constitution reads:
The Oregon Supreme Court has decided that people deciding to have sex in public (either with or without pay) are expressing themselves and communicating and therefore any law prohibiting such action would be unconstitutional.

If two people decide to have sex in a city park, they can do so without any criminal reprisal (despite the fact that children are all around the area). They can do so on a street or even in a private business. This is because Oregon, nor its counties or cities can pass any law prohibiting such action. Think about this. If they cannot prohibit sex acts, then they cannot prohibit prostitution, brothels, etc. They also cannot prevent it on any public property (including schools).

Okay, is this a good thing? Do you see the benefit to society outweighing the possible damage to children and others?

-- Jeff

ps to see the link above, you'll need to enter a zipcode, a year of birth and gender.

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"Government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem." --Ronald Reagan

i'm sorry to say but geez what do the goverment smoke over there?

Where do they find them?

dumb US laws
Enjoy!

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Let this be the first of many times when I say... Oregon freaking rocks!!! crack rocks included...

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Wow Jeff.....I am kinda torn on this one.
1. Sex in public while people are around or young impressionable children could see, to me would be wrong.
2. I have no problem with prostitution and lean toward the side of making it legal so that the prostitutes would have to follow certain standards and medical check-ups so as not to pass along any diseases if one should requie thier services.
3. Sex in a public area when no one is around to see you or hear you would be fine in my books.

I mean, I myself would love to be able to have sex on a beach or in a park when there is nobody around to offend. I am sure I am not the only one that would enjoy that. You just have to make sure that you are being respectful to others.

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GIGGLES

you now unoffically get the [RESONABLE LIBERAL] stamp

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Don't mean to sound like an airhead....but what do you mean by that comment Punky??

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SEX IS NOT A SIN!
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GIGGLES

Realy enjoyed going through those laws mate, thanks alot !roflmao!

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Perfection is reached, not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery

Giggley,

Your first point is the one that bothers me. I'm a parent (as you are). We both know that protecting our children is extremely important. So important that I'd place it above public free expression (one's person's rights end where they impact another person).

**** NOTE This next paragraph is repulsive to me to write. Please feel free to stop reading now. You have been warned. ****

Here's the slippery slope. If sex in public is free expression, then so is sex in public (or private) with a goat (bestiality). So is sex in public/private with more than one person. So is sex in public/private with a child. Many groups exist that will tell you that sex with a child is simply an expression of love for a child. I mention this because the ACLU (who funded and argued this lawsuit) is currently representing NAMBLA, a group dedicated to sex between adult men and young (underage) boys, in a lawsuit.

**** End of repulsive paragraph ****

The applicable portion of the Oregon constitution appears to be clearly addressing a free press issue. Somehow free press has been extended to any expression or communication of any type.

As I've written before. Just because it is someone's "right" doesn't mean it is the "right" thing to do.

Believe it or not, I don't have a problem with legalized prostitution either (in fact, in Nevada, brothels are legal in counties with under 100,000 people). What i do have a problem with is prostitution in front of children.

As to your third point, let me ask this. Who should be responsible for ensuring that nobody else sees it? In other words. The problem with sex on a beach or in public is that you don't know (or can't guarantee) who's going to see. This means that while you might not mean to expose an underage child to something they are not ready to handle, you can't guarantee their protection in a public setting (which is why it isn't permitted in most communities). That should be the measure, shouldn't it?

-- Jeff

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"Government is not the solution to our problem, government is the problem." --Ronald Reagan

we aren't animals are we? i'm sure people have enough places to have sex in without having to do it in public.
I agree with you giggley girl, i don't think i'd be very kind with people having sex in front of my kid. That is just non-respect

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Perfection is reached, not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery

It was an airhead kinda comment, but it was my thumbs up to your general reponse

I wasn't aware that there were groups dedicated to pedophilia. You learn something new everyday. Love huh? I can totally see that going over well in the courtroom. Your honor, my client has expressed great love and admiration for his neighbors little boy and is now fighting for his constitutional right to sodomize him out of love. I can't wait til that petition comes around. ha ha ha NO.

Open-mindedly "love" between man & boy is just another harmless paraphilia.
But cynically someone needs to amputate the genitals of these individuals as castration isn't enough. which ofcoarse can lead to another paraphilia

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