JOHN Issa, the SuperClubs chairman whose Hedonism hotel has offered nude weddings, said he would not want his children to get married in the nude.

“No,” Issa replied when asked “Would you want one of your children to participate in a nude wedding?”

Issa, who was giving a follow-up deposition in his ongoing lawsuit that began in January this year in the Circuit Court of the 11th Judicial Circuit in and for Miami-Dade County, Florida, was responding to questions from Attorney Reginald Clyne of Clyne and Associates, representing the defendants. Issa is claiming that he was defamed by e-mails traced to computers originating in that US state.

“Do you think it is hypocritical that you advocate a nude wedding but you don’t want your own children to participate in one? Clyne persisted.

Issa: “No. I mean, we serve a lot of high-fat foods and we have butter on the table at the hotel and we sell a lot of fried stuff and I don’t eat, you know, fried things and I don’t eat butter. Each to his own. Why do you want to force your religious beliefs on other people? I don’t want to use the offensive word I used before (bigot) but you are really tending in that direction.”

Clyne: “Sorry. Was there a nude flight that flew into

the wedding?”

Issa: “No.”

Clyne: “Do you know there that there was no flights that were chartered by swinger clubs that weren’t nude?”

Issa: “Not that flew into

our hotel.

Clyne: “You’re sure?”

Issa: “Positive.”

Clyne: “We went into this, the Sensual Couples with your daughter (Zein). Do you think having – what some people might describe as conservative Christians, whatever, conservative Muslims, conservative Jews, whomever, conservative moral people – a video that shows people having sex, do you think that enhances your reputation?”

Issa: “You are speculating that there is a video being circulated of people having sex.”

Clyne: “Sensual Couples is going to have that.”

Issa: “It’s an educational thing. I don’t think it enhances it or hurts it one way or another.”

Clyne: “Would you be upset if someone says John Issa is allowing porno movies to be made on his property?”

Issa: “Yes, because it’s not a porno movie.”

Clyne: “If they are having sexual intercourse in the movie, don’t you think it’s a porno movie?”

Issa: “Not necessarily a porno movie. You know the definition in law. You know the practical definition.”

Clyne: “Does bringing in prostitutes like they did in Blind Date and having them have sex with men.”

Issa: “I didn’t see any evidence of them bringing in prostitutes.”

Clyne: “It says in the very beginning of the video.”

Joe DeMaria, Issa’s lawyer objected.

Issa: “I don’t have any evidence of them bringing it in. I saw something printed on the front of a video. I don’t know if it’s true. I don’t know who put it there. I don’t know what the original programme was. You have to establish it. Do you have any evidence of someone who saw it happening?”

Clyne: “Yes, we will deal with it in a second. Let me ask you, hypothetically, if Sandals complained when it was being made, they complained to your manager because people were screwing in front of their desk, and they didn’t think it was appropriate.”

Issa: “Their guests were over in Hedonism?”

Clyne: “They were able to see them filming it. Anyways, let me ask you, hypothetically, do you think that your name being tied to a sex education video is enhancing your reputation?”

Issa: “I don’t think it hurts one way or another.”

DeMaria objected.

Clyne: “Do your entertainers provide sexual services to your guests?”

Issa: “No.”

Clyne: “For free or not for free?”

Issa: “No. If one of my staff has sexual relations with a guest and we find out, they are out.”

Clyne: “How about the entertainers, the ones you bring in?”

Issa: “We wouldn’t call them back.”

Later in the deposition, Clyne asked Issa whether all the blogs, video tapes, the Washington Post article, the website about.com article, “the articles that mention sex happening openly in your hotels, you think that is all created over the years to denigrate your hotel?”

Issa: “No, I never said that.”

To be continued