Amazon.com pulls "pedophile guide" from store after strong criticism

[News_Editor]

Amazon.com pulls "pedophile guide" from store after strong criticism

2010-11-11 20:46:13 GMT+7 (ICT)

SEATTLE, WASHINGTON (BNO NEWS) -- Internet commerce giant Amazon.com Inc. on Thursday pulled a "pedophile guide" that was being sold as an e-book, and caused an uncomfortable stir around the nation.

The book is titled "The Pedophile's Guide to Love and Pleasure, A Child Lover's Code of Conduct." After clicking on the book, Amazon.com now informs the users that the page is no longer functioning.

The Internet community was agitated at the possibility of buying the book, which had a shocking product description that read, "this is my attempt to make pedophile situations safer … with hope that their doing so will result in less hatred and perhaps lighter sentences should they ever be caught."

With over 3,000 views and an overall one-star rating, some comments described the book as "disgusting" or "despicable," criticizing Amazon. Some went on to propose a boycott until its removal.

"It is ILLEGAL to molest children, and for Amazon to promote such is insane. I'm an abuse survivor, and am OUTRAGED Amazon would choose to promote this nonsense. I will not be purchasing anything from your website until this is removed," one user wrote in the comment section.

"There is no excuse for Amazon to be offering this product," one visitor writes. "I've removed my Amazon shop from my website and won't be doing any Christmas or household shopping through Amazon.com until this product is GONE," another user said.

In midst of heavy criticism, Amazon - which allows authors and publishers to sell their books with a shared revenue deal - explained that it could not violate freedom of expression, stating that it "believes it is censorship not to sell certain titles simply because we or others believe their message is objectionable."

One user's comment seconded this point of view. "While I deplore the agenda of this book, I defend the author's right to say what he wants and the readers' rights to read what they wish as long as it doesn't escalate into something more than speech," the user wrote.

The book was self-published by Phillip R. Greaves II, from Pueblo, Colorado. The author explained his position, saying that "every time you see [pedophiles] on television they're either murderers, rapists, or kidnappers. And you know, that's just not an accurate presentation of the, that particular sexuality

The book was being sold for $4.75.

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