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At Christmas time in 1994, Jim Exxon's grandchildren got brand new computers.

They started typing and clicking right away, while their parents lagged behind.

Exxon found that generation gap extremely worrisome.

He thought kids and computers were a dangerous mix, and he wanted to do something about it.

I'm up this morning to alert every member of the United States Senate, all 100 of us,

to this growing peril in America, something that is sweeping this country,

and that is pornography directed at children primarily

on the information superhighway generally called the Internet.

Exxon was a conservative Democrat from Nebraska.

As the state's governor in 1977,

he'd fought to keep sodomy laws on the books.

Eight years later, in the Senate, he questioned Frank Zappa at a hearing on rock lyrics.

I must confess that I've never heard any of your music to my novel.

I would be more than happy to recite my lyrics to you.

In 1994, Exxon tried to pass a bill that regulated obscenity on the radio and television.

That effort failed. But 1995 was a new year, the moment when the internet became mainstream.

I happen to believe the whole computer internet system is the most important, the most revolutionary development since the printing press.

With more Americans going online every day, the 74-year-old senator seized his opportunity.

Senator James Exxon has proposed a controversial law imposing a two-year-old senator seized his opportunity. Senator James Exxon has proposed a controversial law imposing a two-year prison term for anyone sending obscene messages down the Internet.

I'm mostly concerned about our children.

Exxon's bill was called the Communications Decency Act, and he had a bold strategy to get it passed. First,

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