St Pete Times June 19

[theoldman]

How many saw this article?

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Youth camps in the buff are "good old-fashioned naked fun," a leader of nudists says. A lawmaker from Florida considers them something else.
By JAMES THORNER, Times Staff Writer
? St. Petersburg Times
published June 19, 2003

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LAND O'LAKES - For 10 years, young people ages 11 to 18 have gathered in Pasco and other Florida counties to pitch tents, swat volleyballs and sing around campfires.

Typical summer camp, save one important distinction: They do it naked.

U.S. Rep. Mark Foley, one of Washington's leading advocates for missing and exploited kids, doesn't like the idea of a clothes-free camp for teenagers. After reading a story Wednesday in the New York Times, he decided to raise a fuss.

Foley, running for the U.S. Senate seat held by Bob Graham, plans to deliver letters today to Gov. Jeb Bush and Attorney General Charlie Crist, singling out Lake Como nudist resort in Land O'Lakes, which hosted a bare-skinned youth camp that ended last week.

Foley said the camp, sponsored by the American Association for Nude Recreation, appears to exploit children to make money.

The camps operate under a Florida law that allows people to be nude as long as they're not lewd. Foley wonders if state statutes should change. Thus the letters to Bush and Crist.

"What's wrong with your kids going to Boy Scouts, Campfire Girls or sports camps?" Foley, the West Palm Beach Republican, said Wednesday from Washington. "It's beyond the pale that this is a normal way to bring up a 14-year-old child."

The adult nudists who run the camps say they teach teenagers healthy lessons about accepting their sometimes awkward adolescent bodies. Aside from the Pasco camp, others are held in Virginia and Arizona.

Erich Schuttauf, executive director of the nude association, called Lake Como's camp, which attracted about 25 young nudists from June 5 to 13, "good old-fashioned naked fun."

"We have always been about a wholesome family-oriented environment suitable for people of all ages," Schuttauf said from his Kissimmee office.

Foley wonders about the wholesomeness.

The New York Times article noted that the kids were subjected to the unwanted gaze of a 40-something visitor to Lake Como peeping from a sauna window.

Lake Como resident Elf Andersen dubbed the man a "COG," which she said stands for "creepy old guy." This particular COG, like all others, was ejected from the 200-acre resort.

"The kids can spot when somebody is not pure of heart," said Andersen, who stressed that campers are protected by adult counselors and sleep in tents isolated from regular resort patrons.

Foley, a fifth term congressman, denies that he's raising the nude camping issue to bolster his chances for the Republican nomination for Senate.

As co-chairman of the House's Missing and Exploited Children's Caucus, he lobbied for the AMBER network, a way to broadcast missing children's cases across the country.

He most recently tackled child erotica on the Internet. He said he was shocked by the newspaper article about the naked camps that have been going on in his home state since 1993.

Foley suggested the camps force kids to fixate on nudity during their impressionable, formative years. Normal teen sexual urges can become inflamed by the nakedness around them, he said.

"It's putting matches a little too close to gasoline," he said.

But nudists said the camp's goal is exactly the opposite. Most of the campers have grown up as nudists. Removing the clothes actually minimizes the importance of bodies, they say.

"As you know, kids are natural nudists," Andersen said. "It's so cute to see a naked baby and toddlers. But as we mature somehow that no longer is seen as a wholesome, healthy thing."

[theoldman]

How many saw this article?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Youth camps in the buff are "good old-fashioned naked fun," a leader of nudists says. A lawmaker from Florida considers them something else.
By JAMES THORNER, Times Staff Writer
? St. Petersburg Times
published June 19, 2003

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


LAND O'LAKES - For 10 years, young people ages 11 to 18 have gathered in Pasco and other Florida counties to pitch tents, swat volleyballs and sing around campfires.

Typical summer camp, save one important distinction: They do it naked.

U.S. Rep. Mark Foley, one of Washington's leading advocates for missing and exploited kids, doesn't like the idea of a clothes-free camp for teenagers. After reading a story Wednesday in the New York Times, he decided to raise a fuss.

Foley, running for the U.S. Senate seat held by Bob Graham, plans to deliver letters today to Gov. Jeb Bush and Attorney General Charlie Crist, singling out Lake Como nudist resort in Land O'Lakes, which hosted a bare-skinned youth camp that ended last week.

Foley said the camp, sponsored by the American Association for Nude Recreation, appears to exploit children to make money.

The camps operate under a Florida law that allows people to be nude as long as they're not lewd. Foley wonders if state statutes should change. Thus the letters to Bush and Crist.

"What's wrong with your kids going to Boy Scouts, Campfire Girls or sports camps?" Foley, the West Palm Beach Republican, said Wednesday from Washington. "It's beyond the pale that this is a normal way to bring up a 14-year-old child."

The adult nudists who run the camps say they teach teenagers healthy lessons about accepting their sometimes awkward adolescent bodies. Aside from the Pasco camp, others are held in Virginia and Arizona.

Erich Schuttauf, executive director of the nude association, called Lake Como's camp, which attracted about 25 young nudists from June 5 to 13, "good old-fashioned naked fun."

"We have always been about a wholesome family-oriented environment suitable for people of all ages," Schuttauf said from his Kissimmee office.

Foley wonders about the wholesomeness.

The New York Times article noted that the kids were subjected to the unwanted gaze of a 40-something visitor to Lake Como peeping from a sauna window.

Lake Como resident Elf Andersen dubbed the man a "COG," which she said stands for "creepy old guy." This particular COG, like all others, was ejected from the 200-acre resort.

"The kids can spot when somebody is not pure of heart," said Andersen, who stressed that campers are protected by adult counselors and sleep in tents isolated from regular resort patrons.

Foley, a fifth term congressman, denies that he's raising the nude camping issue to bolster his chances for the Republican nomination for Senate.

As co-chairman of the House's Missing and Exploited Children's Caucus, he lobbied for the AMBER network, a way to broadcast missing children's cases across the country.

He most recently tackled child erotica on the Internet. He said he was shocked by the newspaper article about the naked camps that have been going on in his home state since 1993.

Foley suggested the camps force kids to fixate on nudity during their impressionable, formative years. Normal teen sexual urges can become inflamed by the nakedness around them, he said.

"It's putting matches a little too close to gasoline," he said.

But nudists said the camp's goal is exactly the opposite. Most of the campers have grown up as nudists. Removing the clothes actually minimizes the importance of bodies, they say.

"As you know, kids are natural nudists," Andersen said. "It's so cute to see a naked baby and toddlers. But as we mature somehow that no longer is seen as a wholesome, healthy thing."

[Raised_by_She-Wolf]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by theoldman:
The New York Times article noted that the kids were subjected to the unwanted gaze of a 40-something visitor to Lake Como peeping from a sauna window.

Lake Como resident Elf Andersen dubbed the man a "COG," which she said stands for "creepy old guy." This particular COG, like all others, was ejected from the 200-acre resort.

"The kids can spot when somebody is not pure of heart," said Andersen, who stressed that campers are protected by adult counselors and sleep in tents isolated from regular resort patrons. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE><font color="navy">
[b]
I bet we all know who that creepy old guy (http://congress.org/congressorg/bio/?id=178&lvl=C) was! /infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif

[florida-david]

please do not repeat the entire original post, all it does is make us scrollllllll forever....

as for this stupid foley politician, he should do some research before he opens his mouth. seeing as our state and country are run by two republican brothers, i guess he can spout whatever crap he wants and we are supposed to believe him without questioning. wake up people....

[Frank R]

LAND O'LAKES - For 10 years, young people ages 11 to 18 have gathered in Pasco and other Florida counties to pitch tents, swat volleyballs and sing around campfires. Typical summer camp, save one important distinction: They do it naked.

U.S. Rep. Mark Foley, one of Washington's leading advocates for missing and exploited kids, doesn't like the idea of a clothes-free camp for teenagers. After reading a story Wednesday in the New York Times, he decided to raise a fuss.
Foley, running for the U.S. Senate seat held by Bob Graham,

Maybe with luck Foley will be elected Senator and that will save the Pasco nudist camp. After all, I think everyone knows that politicians lie all the time and almost none of them ever keeps a campaign promise.

[theoldman]

Hey! Raised by she wolf, I hope people click on your link to see what (not who but what -- who refers to humans & what refers to non-humans, &
in my opinion Sen Foley is a what).

Anyway I don't want anyone to think I am a COG !!!

[Bob S.]

A similar article can be found here as well.
http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/southflorida/sfl-0620nudist,0,1747988.story?coll=sfla-home-headlines

It talks of the JAANR-ER Junior Camps that are going on right now. Although we have a Democratic guv'ner, we have a Republican Atty. Gen. and he has the same problem with it. Egads, teens naked! What will be next? Maybe they should read the staistics regarding nudism and teenage pregnancy.

Bob S.

[Doug H]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><font size="-1">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Bob S.:
Maybe they should read the staistics regarding nudism and teenage pregnancy.

Bob S. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>Yes, they should read them. But will they believe them? /infopop/emoticons/icon_confused.gif Good question. I've noticed over the years, that, on the subject of "harmful to children", otherwise reasonable people will kneejerk and throw reason out the window.

That said, about a year ago, in Ohio, a state subcommittee was holding a hearing on a bill intended to regulate adult entertainment establishments. The bill was, as one might imagine, poorly written and overly broad. /infopop/emoticons/icon_rolleyes.gif I attended that hearing, and the look on the committee on the faces of the committee members was priceless, when, upon request of the NAC rep, half the room stood up. /infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif That bill would later be shot down.

Another look that wasn't so priceless, but very "Omigod!", was on the face of a subcommittee member when he found out that parents actually bring their kids with them when they go to the resort. /infopop/emoticons/icon_eek.gif I swear his jaw actually dropped all the way open. He left the hearing shortly thereafter even though the hearing would continue for another hour. /infopop/emoticons/icon_mad.gif

This is what we're dealing with.

Doug H.

>From St. Pete Times columist Jan Glidewell:

Can't critic see camp is nude, but not lewd?
------------------------------------------------------
Archive By JAN GLIDEWELL, Times Columnist
St. Petersburg Times
published June 22, 2003
------------------------------------------------------

Shaky economy? Erosion of civil liberties in the
name of national security? War? Terrorism? A
health care system that is such a shambles that
many sick people can't afford doctors and many
doctors can't afford to take care of them?

Think these are issues a busy member of
Congress ought to be thinking about?

How about kids getting naked at a nudist camp?

U.S. Rep. Mark Foley, R-West Palm Beach, who is
running for the U.S. Senate, wrote a letter to Gov.
Jeb Bush and Attorney General Charlie Crist
saying he found a New York Times article about a
summer camp for kids 11-18 at Lake Como in
Land O'Lakes to be "truly disturbing."

While admitting he doesn't know that anything
illegal is going on, he says he thinks the issue is
whether the camp is "exploiting nudity among
minor children to make money."

Would that be something similar to exploiting a 10-
year tradition of closely supervised recreation for
children, who already come from nudist families,
to make political hay?

It's ridiculous," Lake Como manager Van Bradley
said of Foley's complaint, adding, "It is a well-
supervised, well-structured camp. Children are as
safe here as any child can be. This is just way off
base."

Bradley enrolled his own 12-year-old grandson in
this year's camp. "He had a great time and came
away more grown up and with a better outlook on
life in general. He can't wait to go back."

What seems to bother Foley is that Florida's laws
make nudity legal as long as no lewdness is
involved.

Believe it or not, people can get naked without
getting lewd, and, for that matter, they can get lewd
without being naked.

As a nudist myself, I don't come to this situation
with an unbiased attitude, but neither do I come
with an uneducated viewpoint.

I have been spending time every summer for the
past six years at a clothing-optional campground
in Colorado. Children are always around, and so
are plenty of adults to make sure they are safe.

The one thing you don't see is many adolescent
children because, their parents tell me, they go
through a phase of feeling uncomfortable with the
changes in their bodies.

I think anything that allows them to get over that in
a structured environment under adult supervision
is much healthier than having them think they are
the only ones going through it.

Lake Como, founded in 1947, is the oldest of
Pasco County's five nudist resorts, and nudism is
big business in Pasco with tens of thousands of
visitors every year making a major economic
impact.

Criminal behavior is extremely rare. In 30 years I
can remember one murder at Paradise Lakes 13
years ago, the result of a marital conflict, and one
drug raid, 26 years ago at Lake Como, that was
conducted with much media hooplah and that
turned up a marijuana plant and a handful of pills
that later proved to be vitamins.

One guy was convicted 12 years ago of
videotaping children in lewd poses at the
Riverboat Club.

In each instance it was the management and
guests of the resorts who brought the criminal
activity to the attention of authorities - quickly.

The average Wal-Mart requires more police
service than all of the nudist resorts combined and
more children by far, maybe Foley should note,
have been sexually exploited in their homes and in
schools than at nudist resorts."

Foley has long been an advocate of missing and
exploited children, an admirable effort in cases
where children really are exploited.

Recently, in response to public questioning about
his sexual orientation, he has also been an
advocate of people's rights to live their private lives
without government or media interference.

That includes people involved in the legal activity of
patronizing nudist resorts.

Florida's laws outlawing lewd conduct by clothed
or unclothed people are sufficiently specific, and
because Foley says he doesn't know if any are
being broken, perhaps he should look first and
pontificate later.