by Lina Bryce

Utah Gov. Gary R. Herbert believes that porn creates a “sexually toxic environment” and has signed two pieces of legislation on Tuesday deeming pornography a “health hazard.”

One of them is a resolution which cites numerous detrimental effects of porn, including the treatment of “women as objects and commodities for the viewer’s use.” It also states that pornography “equates violence toward women and children with sex and pain with pleasure, which increases the demand for sex trafficking, prostitution, child sexual abuse images, and child pornography.”

While the resolution does not specifically ban pornography in the state, spokesman for the governor Jon Cox was stated that the point of the resolution was to raise awareness and education.

“We want Utah youths to understand the addictive habits” of porn that are “harmful to our society.”

Full resolution can be read here.

The other legislation, H.B. 155 relates to child pornography. It modifies an existing law by being specific, and requires computer technicians who find child pornography during work to report it to law enforcement officials. Failure to do so would be considered a class B misdemeanor, “the willful failure to report the child pornography.” The bill also specifies that internet service providers are not liable if the provider “reports child pornography in compliance with specified federal law.”

CNN reported in a video interview on the Salt Lake Tribune’s website in February, that State Sen. Todd Weiler, who was a chief sponsor of the state’s resolution making porn a health crisis, had stated that, “Pornography today is like tobacco was 70 years ago.”

In addition to the raising concerns of young children being exposed to sexual content “due to the advances in technology,” the resolution goes on to suggest that “pornography use is linked to lessening desire in young men to marry, a dissatisfaction in marriage, and infidelity…causing detrimental effect on the family unit…”

Gov. Herbert boasted on Facebook that by signing the resolution into law, it would make Utah the first state in the nation to declare pornography a public health crisis. However, many followers were not impressed.

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“Once again showing us in Utah how stupid our representatives are. They are more of a health crisis than porn. Thanks idiots for wasting my money. Burn in hell,” one poster wrote.

“Are we ready to have people supported by the state for disability claims related to porn addiction?” another commented.

“The stigma on sex and nudity in the state are a major part of the problem. Guns and violence are glorified and encouraged in our culture, but show a nipple and everyone looses their minds,” one poster wrote on seeming contradiction of the GOP platform.