The Supreme Court just handed parents a victory. In a 6-3 ruling, justices upheld a Texas law forcing porn websites to verify users’ ages, aiming to shield kids from explicit content, as Breitbart reports. This decision slaps down progressive claims that such measures trample free speech.

The Court’s ruling on Friday greenlit H.B. 1181, a Texas law passed in 2023, requiring age checks for websites where over a third of the content is deemed harmful to minors. Justice Clarence Thomas, writing for the majority, argued it’s within a state’s power to protect children from online smut. Dissenters -- Justices Sotomayor, Kagan, and Jackson -- cried foul, but their free-speech worries didn’t sway the bench.

Texas rolled out H.B. 1181 to tackle the flood of hardcore porn accessible to kids online. The law targets commercial sites peddling sexual material, demanding they confirm users are 18 or older. Violators face injunctions and civil penalties, with the Texas Attorney General ready to pounce.

Protecting kids, not banning content

“The power to require age verification is within a State’s authority,” Thomas wrote, emphasizing the law’s focus on shielding minors. He’s right -- states have long restricted kids’ access to adult material, from corner stores to cyberspace. The woke crowd’s hysteria over “censorship” ignores this common-sense precedent.

The law doesn’t ban adults from their guilty pleasures. “The statute does not ban adults from accessing this material,” Thomas clarified, noting users just need to flash some ID. Critics whining about privacy seem more concerned with anonymity than protecting vulnerable eyes.

Back in 2023, U.S. District Judge David Alan Ezra tried to derail H.B. 1181 with a last-minute injunction. His block, issued a day before the law’s start, thrilled porn giants like Aylo, Pornhub’s parent company, who cheered the pause. But the Supreme Court’s ruling just flipped that script, putting Texas back in the driver’s seat.

States follow Texas' lead

Texas isn’t alone in this fight. At least 21 other states have passed similar laws, fed up with the internet’s role as a digital red-light district for minors. Thomas noted, “H.B. 1181 is not the only law of its kind,” signaling a broader push to clean up online spaces.

The law’s sponsors highlighted the stakes, pointing to content glorifying sexual violence, incest, and assault. Such material, they argued, is far too accessible to impressionable kids.

Progressive naysayers might clutch their pearls over “rights,” but most parents would rather their teens aren’t one click away from depravity.

Opponents of H.B. 1181 leaned hard into First Amendment arguments. They claimed age verification could expose adult users’ identities, chilling free speech. But the Court’s majority saw through the smokescreen, ruling the law’s burdens don’t outweigh its benefits.

Balancing rights, responsibilities

“Adults have a First Amendment right to access pornographic content,” Thomas acknowledged, but that right isn’t a free pass to dodge responsibility.

The law’s tailored approach -- using standard ID checks -- hardly qualifies as a police state. It’s a speed bump, not a roadblock.

Thomas pointed out the challenge of enforcing old-school obscenity laws online. “It has proved challenging to enforce against online content,” he wrote, underlining the internet’s Wild West nature. Texas’ solution is pragmatic, not draconian, despite what dissenters might scream.

The ruling makes clear: states can prioritize kids’ safety without torching free speech. “This requirement furthers the lawful end of preventing children from accessing sexually explicit content,” Thomas wrote. That’s a win for parents who’ve long felt outgunned by Big Tech’s moral apathy.

Tech's wake-up call

Pornhub’s parent company may have danced a jig when Ezra’s injunction hit in 2023. But the Supreme Court’s decision is a reality check for an industry that’s dodged accountability for too long. Their “pleased” spokesperson might want to rethink that smugness.

The law’s enforcement teeth -- civil penalties and lawsuits -- put porn sites on notice. If they knowingly flout age verification, the Texas Attorney General can hit them where it hurts. This isn’t about shaming adults; it’s about keeping explicit content out of kids’ hands.

Friday’s ruling sets a precedent that could ripple nationwide. With over a third of some websites’ content flagged as harmful to minors, states now have a blueprint to act.

The Court’s message is loud: protecting kids trumps progressive handwringing over hypothetical privacy gripes.