It didn't take long at all . . .

for child pornography to become acceptable when placed in the context of "art."

Australian photographer Bill Henson, something of a hot shot Down Under, had photos of nude 13-year-old girls on display at a Sydney area gallery when police seized them.

The seizure took place after a gallery patron complained.

Australia's prime minister has called the images "revolting."

Ah, but enter Hollywood and Oscar-winning actress Cate Blanchett. She and several other artists sit on some sort of arts council called by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and all are defending Henson's works.

Police officials admit that prosecuting Henson for child porn would be difficult and thus unlikely.

I'm struggling to understand WHY IN THE NAME OF ALL THAT IS HOLY does our culture -- and, yes, Australians are usually lumped in with the rest of Western civilization despite their geographic locale -- continue to push the boundary when it comes to what is socially and morally acceptable.

I'm not asking whether it is or isn't okay to hand pedophiles their most coveted possession on a silver plate. It's not, and there's no one no how who could ever convince me otherwise.

I want to know why the photographer Henson and the sponsoring gallery owner thought this was a good idea in the first place.

Have they absolutely no moral compass? Have they been living in caves and just missed the news year after year about the growing threat to children posed by online pedophiles and those whose proclivities in real time are fed by easy access to smut?

Got a wildfire going here, but hey, let's dump this big tank of fuel on it!

Idiots. And indicative of a dangerous slippery slope down which we're all headed.

The Henson exhibit will reopen soon, with additional showings set for another gallery in New South Wales in the future.

This is how it starts, little by litttle, inch by inch, the proverbial frog in the pot of boiling water who doesn't realize it's being cooked alive because the temperature rises so gradually.

But it's okay because it's all in the name of "art."