This is not the porn you were looking for.

Why should we care about the guy who the National Bureau of Investigation alleges was the first to upload the Hayden Kho-Katrina Halili videos onto the Internet? (or about Hayden Kho and Katrina Halili at all, if you think about it.)

Hayden Kho is already on the path to forgiveness, blaming everything from being molested as a child to having been cheated on for leading him to the act of secretly videotaping himself having sex.

Katrina Halili’s career, allegedly destroyed by the videos, is already back on track, and is probably stronger than ever. So is Maricar Reyes’ career, apparently. Although she never had to go through the media circus that was the Senate hearing on the issue, but she was never that famous to start with.

Sen. Ramon Revilla, Jr. has already milked the issue for all its political pogi points, coming out of it every bit the macho gentleman.

The Hayden Kho-Katrina Halili is all but forgotten, so who cares if “Mike Chanco” of adult-entertainment blog Flesh Asia Daily 2.0 has been charged with violating Art.201 of the Revised Penal Code?

“Mike” may (or may not) have been the first to upload the video, but he didn’t spread it himself. That ball was in the court of everyone, senator or not, who downloaded the video and passed it on. But who cares about “Mike Chanco”? He’s a pervert and a smut peddler, amirite?

He might well be, if he loses the case. But if you’re a blogger, and you write about (or against) government, you might find yourself sharing a cell with the guy over writing things that “are contrary to law, public order, morals, good customs, established policies, lawful orders, decrees and edicts.”

It’s not about porn per se. I mean, that’s clearly illegal, and we’ll have to see whether the videos being stored in an off-shore server will be enough to keep him out of jail.

It is, however, about Internet freedom. As “Mike” himself says, the case  “may serve as a basis for future shit. Really murky shit.” What constitutes violation of  “public order” or “morals,” for example?

Does supporting the “immoral” Reproductive Health bill count? Does calling President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo a douchebag qualify as a violation? What about inciting others to rally and demand for her resignation? What about offensive and politically-incorrect jokes?

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Flesh Asia Daily 2.0 is asking for donations for their legal fund. Donate, if you’re inclined.

Or join the discussion: Does prosecuting “Mike Chanco” have any bearing on our freedoms,or am I overreacting and going down a slippery slope on a high horse? Did you see the Hayden Kho videos? What did you think of them?

Remember, there are no wrong answers, only ones that don’t make sense.

(UPDATE: Jester In Exile is on a higher horse at his blog.)

(MOAR!: Jester explains how the NBI may have fucked up.)