Public Outrage Prompts Amazon to Pull Pedophile Guide
Amazon has stopped selling an e-book that defends pedophilia after a couple thousand people protested on the online bookseller's website and threats of a boycott surfaced.
The self-published book, called "The Pedophile's Guide to Love and Pleasure: A Child-Lover's Code of Conduct," sparked outrage shortly after it became available for sale on Kindle e-reader devices on Oct. 28.
In the Amazon.com product description, the book's author, Phillip R. Greaves II, stated the purpose of the book as "my attempt to make pedophile situations safer for those juveniles that find themselves involved in them, by establishing certian [sic] rules for these adults to follow. I hope to achieve this by appealing to the better nature of pedosexuals, with hope that their doing so will result in less hatred and perhaps liter [sic] sentences should they ever be caught," according CNN.
The banning of the book raises free speech concerns , and some commentators have pointed out – albeit reluctantly – that no matter how inflammatory information might be, it should remain available.
Amazon has not made an official statement on the brouhaha, but an email posted online purportedly from a representative at the company said: "Let me assure you that Amazon.com does not support or promote hatred or criminal acts; we do support the right of every individual to make their own purchasing decisions . . . Amazon.com believes it is censorship not to sell certain titles because we believe their message is objectionable."
The company maintains content guidelines for self-published titles sold online via its Digital Text Platform, and at its discretion "reserves the right to make judgments about whether or not content is appropriate."
Pornography, offensive material, illegal items and stolen goods are among the categories of content listed as prohibited.
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