We’ve all seen the seen warning labels on certain consumer products which cause us to shake our heads—“Do not iron clothes on body” and “Do not eat [Apple iPod shuffle.]”  Well come to find out, federal employees may require similar, seemingly unnecessary instruction—no pornography on government computers or electronic devices.  On February 11, 2015, a bill prohibiting this activity was introduced in the House of Representatives.

The timing of this bill is certainly no coincidence—it coincides very clearly with a high-profile investigation into a federal employee who downloaded 7,000 files of pornography and admittedly watched between two and six hours of pornography every day at work.  This individual, whose salary is paid by our tax dollars, reportedly makes $120,000 a year.  And this individual has yet to be fired—the investigation is ongoing.  

The congressman Mark Meadows, who introduced the measure, made the following observation, which I think we can all agree with:  “It’s appalling that it requires an act of Congress to ensure that federal agencies block access to these sites.”

The takeaway, if it needs to be said—keep the “Fifty Shades of Grey”-themed videos out of the office.