Madam, - In response to Ted Mooney's letter of December 4th, I would like to remind readers that pornography is legal in Ireland. A relevant quotation from the Irish Film Censor's office: "There is a general recognition that, so long as it is within the law, adults should be entitled to decide for themselves what they would like to see."
It is understandable for credit card companies to allow for the complexities of international trade, particularly on items whose taxation varies so wildly as tobacco and alcohol. It is decidedly more authoritarian, however, to attempt to regulate a populations's personal morality. - Yours, etc,
GAVIN O'GORMAN, Rathasker Heights, Naas, Co Kildare.
Madam, - Ted Mooney advocates censorship of the Internet on the basis that "Google found no difficulty in limiting content for Chinese web users to that which was approved by their government". In fact, the way in which the Chinese state has silenced discussion of democracy, freedom of religion, and the plight of Tibet shows precisely why governments cannot be trusted with this power. - Yours, etc,
T.J. McIntyre, Chairman, Digital Rights Ireland, Faculty of Law, UCD, Dublin 4.