A worldwide child porn investigation has resulted in 170 arrests, 61 of them in the United States.

Eleven girls were rescued during Operation Joint Hammer, ranging in age from three to 13 years old. According to news reports, dozens more were located in Europe, where Operation Koala eventually led authorities to producers, distributors, and customers in nearly 30 countries.

Pat Trueman, special counsel with the Alliance Defense Fund, is thankful and hopes the trend continues. "One hundred seventy people sounds like a lot, but in reality it's a drop in the bucket," he says.
 
The multibillion-dollar-a-year business is fueled by those who use it, and Trueman knows that experimentation with child porn increases the desire and the demand. "The more perverted you are, the more perverted you will become -- and your lust is never satisfied," he adds. The result, says the former federal porn prosecutor, is "an endless number of children who are molested" in order to meet the demand.
 
Trueman says there needs to be more prosecution. "What we need is more tools for the law-enforcement community," he contends. "Much of this material starts right here in the United States, and yet [we have] just a fraction of the resources, financial and otherwise, that we need to go after those trafficking in child pornography."
 
The multibillion-dollar pornography business represents thousands of abused children.

The U.S. government has completed 500 miles of fencing along the border with Mexico, which is just 170 miles short of its goal.  At this pace, the administration expects to have at least 600 miles complete by Jan. 20 when the Obama administration takes office, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said earlier this month. Last week, President-elect Barack Obama said he wants to evaluate what is working on the border as he considers whether to continue building the fence. But by Chertoff's estimation, there will not be much left to build.  Homeland Security officials earlier this year said the fence would not be completed by December 31, as planned. About 160 miles have been built since August, despite some groups' calls for a moratorium on construction. As of December 12, 500 miles had been completed, Customs and Border Protection spokesman Mike Friel said. The fence along the U.S.-Mexico border is not intended to stop illegal immigration altogether, but make it more difficult for people to get into the U.S. illegally, Bush administration officials say. It has been controversial and has faced several lawsuits, none of which have been successful so far. In 2005, Congress authorized the fence to help secure the border and slow illegal immigration, and then gave the homeland security secretary the power to waive the federal laws. Obama voted for the fence.   Read On

Children have fewer problems at school and home when they live with their biological parents and frequently attend religious services, according to a study released today by the Family Research Council's Mapping America Project. Drs. Nicholas Zill and Philip Fletcher analyzed data from the National Survey of Children's Health and found the benefits hold up even after controlling for family income and poverty, low parent education levels, and race and ethnicity. Among their findings: children in this group are five times less likely to repeat a grade, less likely to have behavior problems at home and school, and are more likely to be cooperative and understanding of others' feelings. Parents of these children report less stress, healthier parent-child relationships and fewer concerns about their children's achievement. "Social-science data continue to demonstrate overwhelmingly that the intact married family that worships weekly is the greatest generator of human goods and social benefits and is the core strength of the United

NAUGHTY OR NICE Many retailers learned the hard way last year that it just doesn't pay to mess with Christmas. Target, Wal-Mart, Macy's and Sears are among the stores that made a mid-season shift from the generic "Happy Holidays" to "Merry Christmas." Concerned Women for America's Naughty and Nice list kicks off the 2006 Christmas season with many stores - previously on the "Naughty list" or in the ambiguous middle - now squarely in the "Nice" category. "We learned our lesson from last year that the majority of people wanted to hear us say 'Christmas,' and we're saying 'Merry Christmas' this year, but not to the exclusion of the other holidays," Wal-Mart Senior Vice-President Julie Roehm told "NBC Nightly News." Last year, the retail giant's seasonal advertising lacked the mention of Christmas, and store employees were initially told not to say "Merry Christmas." This year, the chain is encouraging associates to greet shoppers with a collection of holiday recognitions including "Merry Christmas," "Happy Holidays," "Happy Hanukkah," "Feliz Navidad," and "Happy Kwanzaa." Target, which was hammered for two years for banning Salvation Army bell ringers from its stores, added insult to injury when its 2005 TV ads contained no mention of the word "Christmas." Disgruntled shoppers called and emailed the chain, causing the head office to place a quick re-order of some ads from the production company to include "Merry Christmas" below the Target brand emblem.   Read On

Opinions expressed in 'Perspectives' columns published by CentersForDecency.org are the sole responsibility of the article's author(s), or of the person(s) or organization(s) quoted therein, and do not necessarily represent those of the staff or management of, or advertisers who support the CfD.  If you wish to contact CfD - call 713-266-2715 or write: 1415 South Voss Road, #110-393, Houston, Texas 77057.  We also appreciate your Comments@CentersForDecency.Org.