Fantastic article. The initial humor nicely slides into the serious discuss about issues facing our society. Over time, we have been desensitized (purposefully or not) to the point where very little shocks us. So much so that the greatest offenders have been elevated to positions of power. Great job.
Really interesting read I didn’t know the full vasectomy process so that was interesting to read. I completely agree with you on teens and pornhub, my friends and I did a test and all opened the home page and not one of us had a video that wasn’t some sort of incest pitch. I was talking with my friend about it for when our children get older, how can you curate the porn they get to see at the start so they don’t get confused about what women really want, especially at a young age and it’s definitely not to be chocked and used.
Such a sad situation; thanks for shedding light on it. I kind of wish you’d had children so you could talk to them about modern porn. Yes, parents should do that, but I doubt the people who really need to — those who thrive on the cruelty we’re seeing everywhere — will be the ones to do it.
Thanks, Rosana. I may not have my own kids, but as a social work educator, at least I train people who will be working with vulnerable youth. Hopefully they internalize what we teach them and use that knowledge to change people's lives for the better.
I do wonder what it will take to fix these issues. I appreciate what your reader Michelle suggested, that we "lean in with curiosity and compassion and truly wonder what makes people like Stephen Miller and Kristy Noem so cruel, so hungry to dehumanize." But it's a huge, complicated problem, for sure, not easy to untangle or to fix.
When I was in high school, in the late 1970s, my boyfriend's father had a lot of pretty hard-core porn. Of course, it was in the form of magazines, and they were hidden under his bed — but my boyfriend found them. I don't know if that was what steered him in that direction, and I wasn't into it at all, but years later, he "came out" to his parents as being into S&M (why they needed to know, I never understood! ;-). We're still good friends and I love his second wife, and I have no idea if he's still into S&M, and sure, consenting adults should be able to do whatever they want and all that. But I did wonder if the exposure to all that hard-core stuff made him think this is what sex is. I guess that would all seem tame compared to what's online today.
On a serious note, I've read that 35% of first time sexual acts between teenagers now involve choking. Incredibly dangerous and really not at all about the excitement of intimate connection. It's what porn has taught them is normal.
Well done, on all fronts — your explanation of your desire not to have children, the details of the procedure, and of your inadvertent immersion into the world of modern porn. You covered a lot of ground here with candor and sometimes humor. Write on!
Good for you, for taking the plunge—or the snip—too often women undergo more complicated and dangerous procedures to avoid pregnancy. Sounds like a very unpleasant revelation as you dug into the world of modern porn with new awareness and technology that allows for pretty much unlimited videos. It makes me wonder what it is within humanity that makes some want to strip the humanity away from others. We can call them depraved and dismiss them, but we will never get to the root of the problem that way. If instead, we lean in with curiosity and compassion and truly wonder what makes people like Stephen Miller and Kristy Noem so cruel, so hungry to dehumanize - maybe we can learn more about why people create those videos too. There’s a question, a need or want within humanity, that isn’t being answered, satisfied, or perhaps healed… I feel like there is something more to discover about what it is to be human. Once we learn how to heal better—how to help one another heal, maybe there will be fewer people who crave this domination or dehumanization of others.
Fantastic article. The initial humor nicely slides into the serious discuss about issues facing our society. Over time, we have been desensitized (purposefully or not) to the point where very little shocks us. So much so that the greatest offenders have been elevated to positions of power. Great job.
Really interesting read I didn’t know the full vasectomy process so that was interesting to read. I completely agree with you on teens and pornhub, my friends and I did a test and all opened the home page and not one of us had a video that wasn’t some sort of incest pitch. I was talking with my friend about it for when our children get older, how can you curate the porn they get to see at the start so they don’t get confused about what women really want, especially at a young age and it’s definitely not to be chocked and used.
Such a sad situation; thanks for shedding light on it. I kind of wish you’d had children so you could talk to them about modern porn. Yes, parents should do that, but I doubt the people who really need to — those who thrive on the cruelty we’re seeing everywhere — will be the ones to do it.
Thanks, Rosana. I may not have my own kids, but as a social work educator, at least I train people who will be working with vulnerable youth. Hopefully they internalize what we teach them and use that knowledge to change people's lives for the better.
Even better — you'll reach more people!
I do wonder what it will take to fix these issues. I appreciate what your reader Michelle suggested, that we "lean in with curiosity and compassion and truly wonder what makes people like Stephen Miller and Kristy Noem so cruel, so hungry to dehumanize." But it's a huge, complicated problem, for sure, not easy to untangle or to fix.
When I was in high school, in the late 1970s, my boyfriend's father had a lot of pretty hard-core porn. Of course, it was in the form of magazines, and they were hidden under his bed — but my boyfriend found them. I don't know if that was what steered him in that direction, and I wasn't into it at all, but years later, he "came out" to his parents as being into S&M (why they needed to know, I never understood! ;-). We're still good friends and I love his second wife, and I have no idea if he's still into S&M, and sure, consenting adults should be able to do whatever they want and all that. But I did wonder if the exposure to all that hard-core stuff made him think this is what sex is. I guess that would all seem tame compared to what's online today.
I love the gentle humor with which you write.
On a serious note, I've read that 35% of first time sexual acts between teenagers now involve choking. Incredibly dangerous and really not at all about the excitement of intimate connection. It's what porn has taught them is normal.
Wow, that is crazy — and scary.
Thanks so much, Debi. 35%?! Good lord that is disturbing. I'm deeply worried about the direction this society is headed. 💔
This is hilarious jeff! Kneidlach! I love it! I was reading the vermicelli part to my guy and we were both laughing and squirming at the image.
Glad you had as much fun reading as I did writing! 🙏💛
Thanks for sharing.
Oh geez, I forgot my mother-in-law would read this! 🤣 I have the best of intentions with your daughter, promise. 😇
A good read, Jeff. Thanks for sharing!!
Thanks for reading Kevin!
Thanks, Caren!
Well done, on all fronts — your explanation of your desire not to have children, the details of the procedure, and of your inadvertent immersion into the world of modern porn. You covered a lot of ground here with candor and sometimes humor. Write on!
Good for you, for taking the plunge—or the snip—too often women undergo more complicated and dangerous procedures to avoid pregnancy. Sounds like a very unpleasant revelation as you dug into the world of modern porn with new awareness and technology that allows for pretty much unlimited videos. It makes me wonder what it is within humanity that makes some want to strip the humanity away from others. We can call them depraved and dismiss them, but we will never get to the root of the problem that way. If instead, we lean in with curiosity and compassion and truly wonder what makes people like Stephen Miller and Kristy Noem so cruel, so hungry to dehumanize - maybe we can learn more about why people create those videos too. There’s a question, a need or want within humanity, that isn’t being answered, satisfied, or perhaps healed… I feel like there is something more to discover about what it is to be human. Once we learn how to heal better—how to help one another heal, maybe there will be fewer people who crave this domination or dehumanization of others.
Thanks Michelle. Your responses are always so thoughtful and considerate. The world needs more yous in it.