(Since the outrage began, Amazon has now removed the book from their site..most likely just for now.)
Amazon should be shut down until they remove this nasty book. Any person or company that endorses or agrees to sell this type of material is basically saying there is nothing wrong with the content and that they’re actually promoting it.
I was shocked when I first saw this story on Anderson Cooper tonight. Unbelievable and it’s Disgusting and this should be a crime!!! BOYCOTT AMAZON!!
The people at Amazon who authorized this book are probably pedophiles themselves. Who in their right mind, let along the biggest online store sell this crap???
This isn’t the first time Amazon has sold material that promotes illegal activity. It is currently accepting pre-orders for the hardcover version of “I Am the Market: How to Smuggle Cocaine by the Ton, in Five Easy Lessons” by Luca Rastello.
Nor is it the first time Amazon has come under attack for selling objectionable content in its store. In 2002, the United States Justice Foundation, a conservative group, threatened to sue Amazon for selling Understanding Loved Boys and Boylovers. That title is still available through Amazon.
In 2009, Amazon stopped selling RapeLay, a first-person video game in which the protagonist stalks and then rapes a mother and her daughters, after it was widely condemned in the media and by various interest groups.
An e-book for sale on Amazon.com that appears to defend pedophilia has sparked hundreds of angry user comments and calls for a boycott of the online retailer unless it pulls the title.
The author of “The Pedophile’s Guide to Love and Pleasure: A Child-Lover’s Code of Conduct” described the self-published title 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,” according to the Amazon.com product description.
“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,” an author named Phillip R. Greaves II wrote in the Amazon.com listing.
As of 6:25 p.m. ET, there were 1,037 comments on the Amazon.com listing, and more were coming in by the minute. The lion’s share of the comments deplored the title’s publication and vowed to boycott Amazon until it removes the self-published title from the site.
“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 a comment echoed by others.
Others lamented they could not give the book less than “one star” in submitting their reviews, saying they would shop elsewhere during the holiday season.
“Cannot believe that Amazon is selling this. I was in the middle of placing my whole Christmas shopping order when I saw something about this. After reviewing it, I have canceled my order from Amazon and am encouraging all of my friends not to order from Amazon because they are choosing to sell this book. I will not be purchasing anything from Amazon until they agree to quit selling this book.
A scant few defended the author’s right to free speech, and a discussion on the site titled “Why Amazon is Right” delved into the constitutional implications of the controversy.
“While I think 99.9 percent of us object to pedophilia (even though I think this particular book was a publicity stunt/joke), I think we can all agree that we don’t want someone else censoring a subject matter that we may be interested in. Religion, atheism, homosexuality, etc. are some subjects that spring to mind … and they have been censored in the past until we realized that it’s best to let all information in (even if we don’t like some of it), rather than allow some authority or individual decide what we can and can’t know about based on their own opinions or motivations,” one user wrote.
Amazon did not immediately return a request for comment, but one user posted what it said was Amazon’s response to an e-mail the person had sent.
“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 author has three other titles on Amazon.com under his name. They are available on the e-reader, Kindle, and all were published within the last week.
Others considered the possibility of a conspiracy. Among the theories: a publicity stunt, a hoax, or perhaps, a law enforcement sting.
“People… Relax… This book is obviously promoted by Amazon per request of FBI in order to track down and catch pedophiles. This book is obviously a bait for the sickos that are lurking around out there trying to prey on our children.”
( I doubt that authorities can arrest someone just because they’re buying a sick ‘how-to’ book)
ThinkingOutLOUD 