An anonymous flier was distributed in Fairview, Ill., notifying residents that Mayor Gail Mitchell had "allowed" a group of bondage enthusiasts to hold “Beat Me in St. Louis” in the Fountains at Fairview and the adjoining Four Points by Sheraton hotel. The flier's author called the conference a “porn convention on city-owned property,” and claimed Mitchell did what he could to keep it a secret.

Mitchell says he couldn't have stopped the conference if he wanted to. But he absolutely wanted to.

“You bet I would have stopped it if I could have, because I don't want that kind of stuff going on in my city,” Mitchell said. Lawmakers say the conference will be the first item on the agenda at their committee meeting. And Mitchell had the police department and city attorney look into the matter.

“We host a lot of different organizations,” Christine Orr, general manager of the hotel and conference center, said. “This was a private organization. They rented out the hotel and conference center. We had no problems whatsoever with the group.”

And there's the rub. It was a private party. No one in Fairview was the wiser until the flier circulated. And even if they had been, what difference would it make? It was a gathering of consenting adults doing things consenting adults like to do. Who cares? Really?