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Saturday, November 15

Pornofication?

The Netherlands is currently in an uproar about the 'pornofication' of our country. Sex becomes more meaningless and is advertised in cheap musicvideos, adverts and commercials. The government is seriously starting to worry about the way young people think about sex. Kids lose their virginity at a younger age every day, and research has shown that girls especially, feel pressured to have sex. I was wondering if these problems play in any other countries too. It's been in the news here, and I just saw a discussion about it that worries me to bits. Damnit, stupid people. Has sex become completely meaningless? Is there no more emotional value? What do you guys think about this?

5 comments:

Dr. George said...

I think that there is a form of misrepresentation there - in the way that the media usually depicts muslims and black people engaged in terrorist or criminal activities, we usually see young people shagging eachother in the club, and listening to music with people saying they want to smack their ho and tap that pussy.

I'm not saying It's not there. It is. Even I have noticed an increase in sexualisation compared to my childhood, and I'm only 25. I think the Internet plays a HUGE part in this. Before the days of the search engine, you had to put in some effort to see nudity. It was scarcely on TV, and the only other place I ever saw nudity before erotic TV programmes was in a discarded porno magazine me and my brother found in a ditch. Now you can have titties on your screen in exactly 3 seconds - day or night.

At the risk of sounding like an old man, I think it's worrysome. Sex is fun, the best fun you can have, but it is also sacred. I don't know wether Mr. Rouwvoet will actually be able to do anything about this. What CAN he do? Censor music videos? Require personal identification on porn sites? I'm not sure any of that is achievable. Besides, I don't think we'd want censorship or privacy-violating security.

It may be a natural process, which will eventually balance itself out... who knows.

Unknown said...

thanks so much for your insights, dr. george. I'll give a proper reply soon.

Unknown said...

I quite agree with what you said, it's so prominently visible in the media that kids can't possibly escape being confronted with sex. That said, the Internet is such an accessible database of information that they are bound to go looking for it anyway.

I thought we had it bad, though, but it's apparently far worse in the UK. Someone that responded to my post about this on another forum, used an extract from a BBC research:

"The Netherlands has the lowest teen pregnancy rate in Europe. Social attitudes to teenage sex and pregnancy are very different to those in the UK. [...] Children are taught openly about sex both at home and at school - and they are expected to deal with sex responsibly. Contraception is promoted for its health benefits by doctors. Many young women start using the pill before they begin having sex. The Netherlands defies theories that openness encourages sex. Surveys show that teenagers in the Netherlands are likely to start having sex on average a year later than their British counterparts. In the Netherlands, 58% of teenage girls discuss pregnancy with their partners, compared to 30% in the UK. Roger Ingham, who has done comparative studies of the two countries for the Centre for Sexual Health Research at the University of Southampton, says openness is the answer."

So maybe I was wrong, lol....

Dr. George said...

Me and my best friend had a similar discussion on Cannabis the other day.

Imagine if you will, the following scenario:

1. A kid grows up in an ordinary family, with two parents who constantly shushing up any conversation to do with drugs. When the kid first mentions he saw his schoolfriends try out weed, the parents give him a thunderous speech about how he's NEVER to touch that stuff in his life, or he's going to answer for it.

2. A kid grows up with two ordinary parents, who encourage openness. When the kid first mentions he saw his schoolfriends try out weed, the parents tell him about what happens when you smoke it, and what possible dangers there are. They tell him to be cautious.

Then, puberty hits.

Which of those two kids will be more likely to abuse cannabis, do you think?

I'm a firm believer that openness prevents excessive exploration resulting in addiction and abuse.

I think the same goes for sex. A little more emphasis should be put on the fact that sex is okay, instead of shushing it up. If there is one thing that infuriates me, it's people who think it's wrong to tell a young child about sexuality (in terms fit for the child, ofcourse). Boys and girls from the age of 2 play rudimentary sexual games wich eachother, even if they aren't consciously aware of it. What's the problem with teaching kids about the basics sexuality? I'm not talking about a children's version of the Kama Sutra, I'm talking about what sex is, what it does, what it's for, and how sacred it is. How it's not to be treated lightly.

If you can teach 5 year old kids to be nice to other kids, not to throw the hamster across the room, not to punch other kids when there is an argument, you can teach kids to have respect for sexuality, both their own and that of others - without even remotely enticing them to try it for themselves.

Unknown said...

Can't do anything but agree with you, george.