Let me get this straight, sexual pleasure is more of a threat to the citizens of Mississippi than a weapon designed to kill?

I don't have anything against gun ownership but Jebus, that makes not a damn bit of sense. Do they really fear sexuality, and let's be straight about this, FEMALE sexuality and FEMALE pleasure, as such a threat? What do they expect to happen?

Can someone tell me what the legal justification for that was and if it was ever enforced?

If Texas wanted to put a stop to masturbation, they should have banned the Victoria's Secret catalog and selling hand lotion to minors.

Anyway: G-0-D-I-L-D-O-E-S!

*to the tune of that planters' peanuts commercial: s-a-t-u-r-d-a-y*

"As if someone could, in a fit of rage, purchase a vibrator and really do some damage?"

That gave me a rather amusing mental image of someone being chased by an assailant waving a vibrating dildo.

Happy vagina fact: Last night I went to the Vagina Monologues for the first time, and I learned that it was illegal in Texas from that. A day afterward, it's not. Time to update. :D

I *heart* dildo diaries! Now I feel like I own a collector's item. Hurray for Texas for finally entering the 20th century (yes, I'm aware that we are currently in the 21st century)

Now if a fetilized egg is granted personhood from the moment of conception, and the woman uses a sex toy, isn't that sort of exposing her 'unborn child' to explicit sexual activity?

I've lived in Texas all my life and never heard of that law.

I love the video, "It's now illegal for a prick to touch an asshole in this states." Hilarious.

ha! i finally made an account to comment! I've lived in Texas nearly my whole life and never heard of that. I also never would have imagined, mostly because every single sex shop or erotic-type place sells sex toys. Er, thanks for overturning, I guess?

Wow, that video was hilarious and disturbing. Having lived in Texas my whole life, I have to say I'm very proud to be Texan, but our legislature can definately be fucked up.

Also,while I've never bought a dildo, I've been in sex shops, and they've treated it as a dont-ask-dont-tell kind of policy; I was only vaguely aware of a law about homosexual sex, but not about dildos! What's next, banning vibrating toothbrushes or detachable shower heads?

Very glad they over turned this law. Why would they ever think it was their business anyway?

I don't think it was enforced very much, but there was at least one case of a woman being charged for selling dildo's at a tupperware style party.

Good thing they overturned this law, because it outlawed a whole lot more than just sex toys.

Now, we need to get rid of the anti-free expression laws currently on the books in Georgia, Alabama, Canada, Australia and the UK.

We will have to update our "outrageous vagina fact" for our Vagina Monologues performance tomorrow. And actually I think that picture is kind funny since in the piece the line goes, "We have yet to hear of a mass murder committed with a vibrator."

I miss the damn hell outta Molly Ivins. RIP, milady.

Also, just to correct the record: there was one instance when a neon green dildo came alive, fed on sexual pleasure, then grew into a 50-foot monster. It went on a rampage, shooting rays out of its eye, until stopped in its tracks by the Karate-Christ power of Norris-Huckabee.

At least I'm pretty sure that's how it went; I was tripping at the time.

Aren't the photo and caption the WP's way of mocking the Texas law?

They can't say how retarded the law is while being objective, so they show how with the photo.

It was enforced all the time. The stores here got raided on occasion.

let me tell you, this texas gal is shoutin' hallelujah! this is one of the most ridiculous laws we've ever had on the books.

guns+story about dildos = mental association of guns with penises.

NOT what I needed on V-day, just gotta say.

Thanks WP!

P.S. Said it over on Feministe and I'll say it again: I watch that Dildo Diaries once every couple of months, just to keep myself sane and laughing. There's a longer version (about 11 minutes) as well, which has some crazy-ass shit from the Texas Legislator hearings. I just love listening to politicians try to talk about sex.

Dildo diaries is an hour in entirety. I have it on DVD. The youtube video's are pretty good highlights though.

The chilling part is the state stance: "The state argued that it had a moral basis for maintaining the law, "discouraging prurient interests in autonomous sex and the pursuit of sexual gratification unrelated to procreation."

I hate to break it to these guys, but arguably 99.9 percent of all sex, even between husband and wife, is gratification unrelated to procreation. Given sex once a week or more over a fifty year marriage (hey, I can dream, can't I?) that's 2600 occasions of sexual intercourse, of which exactly 2, count 'em, two, resulted in conception. You do the math.

So now the state of Texas thinks it has the right to discourage my once a week with my wife? Unless perhaps she consents to forgo contraception? Can you say "brood mare?"

I am very happy about this! I never, ever understood why they were banned, but in Houston, the law was barely ever enforced. They all had little stickers on them saying "to promote safe sex or medically necessary" or something stupid like that.

the ban was repealed on the same day I broke up with my boyfriend. I think this is a coincidence made in heaven.

hmm... i live in the heart of texas. (waco... it wasnt my choice and its a long story.) anyways. im a frequent sex shop visitor (there are two within an hour of me) and my boyfriend and i own several vibrators, cocks rings, anal lube, and dildos (although we got those from babeland.com). while its true that they dont really sell plain old dildos here, nobody pretends that they dont know what my boyfriend and i are going to do with the anal lube we buy. so.. anal lube and cock rings are ok but a dildo isnt. or wasnt until now. its so strange how the government decides where to draw the line. the fuckers should just stay out of our bedrooms...

My interpretation of the picture and caption might not represent the actual intention of it, but to me it says, "Isn't it ridiculous to allow guns and not dildos?"

To me, that definitely reveals hypocritical ideas of morals and purity. A symbol of violence more acceptible than something that represents natural sexual desire? Buh hum bug!

It's disgusting how law makers think they can tell us not to do something so simple as cum. Fuck them.

Destra, I agree wholeheartedly. Anything that can help women AND men sexually -- from strap-ons to porn DVDs -- shouldn't be legislated by lawmakers under any circumstances. The law was around since somewhere between 1970-1979.

Message to lawmakers: LEAVE OUR PORNOS AND SEX TOYS ALONE!!!

I am so surprised that no one has yet to comment on the AA batteries! Shit, go for the high powered plug ins! You never need to worry about the battery dying when you are close to the edge!

Don't miss the Savage Love column on the repeal of the ban: http://thestranger.com/savage
- complete with a suggestion for how to dispose of old toys by mailing them to a Mississippi TV reporter who is apparently in favor of such bans. Good fun!

The thing about guns being less dangerous than sex toys and vibrators being used as weapons reminds me of George Carlin's old routine on maniacs vs. crazy people. A maniac will beat someone to death with a steel dildo. So will a crazy person, but he'll be wearing a giant bunny suit at the time.

And assuming one has the disposable income, I have heard nothing but good about the sybian. And, as SassyGirl pointed out, it's a plug-in. No worries about batteries! Though maybe, from what I understand, you would want to keep an eye on the breaker...

I'm in the DFW area and this law has not been enforced in this area for at least the last 10 years, and probably before that as well. You can't drive on a major highway without seeing sex shops, and they sell everything from DVDs to toys of all types. The toys all have disclaimer stickers about the devices being a novelty only, which I would assume can now be left off without trouble.

Now, if only they could change Colorados sex toy laws.

I think "should buying sex toys be as easy as buying guns" is a hilariously perfect caption with a great photo of a scary dude with a scary gun.

I think it was clearly meant to suggest that Mississippi's laws were crazy, since the answer any non-deranged person would give is obviously "no", sex toys should be vastly *easier* to buy then guns.

Aren't the photo and caption the WP's way of mocking the Texas law?

They can't say how retarded the law is while being objective, so they show how with the photo.

That's what I think too.

Hooray for Texas! Now, can someone convince the Alabama legistature to get out of its citizens' bedrooms? Sex toys sold in Alabama have to be for "educational, law enforcement, etc. purposes." I just don't understand what interest the state has in regulating what goes on between consenting adults in the privacy of their own homes.

I lived in Austin for two years, and have been to the sex shop featured in Molly Ivan's video a handful of times. I never knew that I could have had such an awesomely absurd conversation with the salespeople, due to this amazingly archaic law. Of course, I applaud the Federal Court's decision, but I must fess up to a tinge of regret for never having had my own uber serious conversation about, "educational models."

I lived in Austin for two years, and have been to the sex shop featured in Molly Ivan's video a handful of times. I never knew that I could have had such an awesomely absurd conversation with the salespeople, due to this amazingly archaic law. Of course, I applaud the Federal Court's decision, but I must fess up to a tinge of regret for never having had my own uber serious conversation about, "educational models."