A TV station in Memphis was viewing with alarm an Internet flashing video that had been shot on a suburban playground. They showed it to carefully selected people, who appropriately clucked in outrage. A woman whose kids used the playground said she wouldn't let her kids use that slide any more. A Baptist minister who lives across the street from the park said, "I don't have the words."

It's all right that they didn't like it and it's unfortunate that they were offended. Some people just don't like porn and nobody should have to watch it if they don't want to. That's not important, moving on.

After that, the TV reporter went to a police captain, who said that the people making the video were probably violating public decency statutes — no argument there — and then added, "These days, who knows? She could be over 18, she could be under 18."

Say what?

A police captain does not know that there is a federal law requiring that adult producers verify the ages of everybody involved in the shoot, record the appropriate ID information, keep it in a street address accessible during business hours and declare that they have done so at the beginning and end of the production and on the packaging, complete with the street address and real name of the custodian of records?

A law that has been in place for almost 20 years?

And this person, who is charged with enforcing the law, just blows off on how old the girl is with a breezy "These days, who knows?"?

I know exactly how that Baptist minister felt. I don't have the words either.

The TV news report is available here if you want to check it out.