Before I begin, I want to make one things clear: the term deviant does not automatically means bad, yet it is usually used that way. Deviant simply means different from the norm.
Sometimes that is a bad thing, and sometimes it is not. How communities respond to sexual deviance, and how they determine whether any given deviance is bad or not is the subject of this discussion.
I didn't feel as if I needed to tag this post as NSFW; if there is enough community agreement, I will add that tag
This blog is in contemplation of the child porn controversy here on Steemit, yet it requires us to dig a little deeper in understanding sex and deviancy.
Normal versus Deviant
The illustration above shows you what I mean. Most People act Normally: Some People act in Deviant ways; statistically, this is also known as outliers, since they lie outside the norm. Again, I'll restate that deviant is not always bad, but that bad actions are by default deviant
And applied towards sexuality?
Sex is one of humanity's basic drives. Reproduction is instinctive; and I hope you follow my assumption that identification with one's sexual nature is one of our basic ways of identifying ourselves. Most people are Normal because if it were otherwise, we simply wouldn't reproduce as a species.
Due to this identification of self based on sex, Deviant behavior is going to be looked on with abhorrence by instinct, and the farther out of the norm the deviance is the greater that behavior is, the greater the level of repugnance.
There is a wide variation of cultures through the world; some societies practice very different means in social norms. Raping boys is normal behavior in some cultures. Then again, bad behavior is normal in some cultures. You can usually come up with some good socio-biological reasons for cultural standards.
Finally, some people have higher sex drives than others; I'll skip a full digression, but keep in mind that alpha behavior may be interpreted as a means of satisfying a higher sex drive. People with higher sex drives may engage in deviant behavior to satisfy that urge as well, but that doesn't mean that deviant behavior is always the result of a high sex drive either. Sometimes deviance is just deviance.
Child Abuse/Porn
We'll start the discussion here, since this is the subject that sparked this post. There are some instinctive reason for us to regard this behavior both as deviant and as bad.
- Failure to reproduce. Children are extremely unlikely to bear children
- Instinct to protect children. Part of the reproductive instinct is to protect offspring until they are mature enough to do so themselves. Hurting children sets us off.
- Children that are victims develop problems in normal sexual behavior as adults; again, this interferes with the species drive to survive.
So whether it is child rape, or child porn, it sets us off in a negative response, and deservedly so.
Homosexuality
Homosexuality goes against the reproductive instinct as well. OTOH, there is not an inherent...badness...to it. One of the reasons it was regard as bad in the past is that it did harm to a tribe's ability to reproduce and to defend itself. A man was expected to be tribesman and warrior; the reason that there is a stereotype of the "limp wristed" homosexual comes from the female imitative behavior of some homosexuals.
Digression note - In the Old Testament, it is male to male homosexuality that is the sin, not lesbian sex. This indicates that it is not homosexuality that was regarded as wrong, but the harm done to the tribe from male homosexuality
And of course, you could point to the Scared Band as a counter-example, but keep in mind that we are still looking at the norm in determining social reaction.
Bestiality
If you cross a man and a bear and a pig, you get Al Gore and his inherent mental instability...
...but most likely you get no offspring as well.
In addition, no one wants their meat basted in this fashion.
Sorry, I can't take bestiality seriously; or the reasons why someone would resort to it, desire it, or to consider excusing it.
"If he had sexual intercourse with an animal, that will not make his hajj void"
Islam and Bestiality
Rape
Rape is not considered sexual deviance as much as it is a personal crime. It can looked at in terms of stealing sex. OTOH, there is some some study done in the argument that it is the act of dominance rather than sex that drives the rapist.
Returning to the Old Testament, there is argumentation that the crimes of Sodom were the intended rape of the angels, not the homosexual aspect of the rape.
Dominance in sex may be related to normal sexual impulses, as we'll look at shortly.
This does not imply that the act of rape is anything other than a crime. I'm not going to spend a lot of time on the idea of consent in this blog; consent should be assumed as a foundation of normal sexual relations. Period.
Yes, I know that feminism says differently, but I take feminism as seriously as I do bestiality
Kinks/Porn
What? Everybody has their clothes on!
Does this picture make this post NSFW? I'll come back to that question. And if there is enough demand, I will indeed mark the post as such
Depending on how a culture defines normal, fetishes may be considered as deviant. Tying up and spanking a partner can be looked at as expression of dominance in sex. Costumes, gorilla suits, lingerie, tickling, etc etc...can all be looked at as deviations from normal sex; at least from religious norms in which everything other than reproductive sex is a sin.
So while we expect a negative reaction to such inherently evil deviances as child abuse, we can also see hostile reactions to other, perhaps not so bad deviances as porn (or the circumstances where porn is accessible - a person may enjoy porn in private, but express concern where others, especially children, can access it)
The Red Pill
What is normal sexual behavior between men and women? I suggested that social behavior derives from biological circumstances above. Red Pill philosophy comes from the notion that women will select the best man to mate with, regardless of who she ends up living with. I'm not going to argue Red Pill here, but I did want to throw the idea out for those of you that may want to seek reasons for why people behave the way they do in normal situations.
Especially in the idea that expressions of dominance in a man are attractive to women.
Religion and Social Norms
Following from the idea that biological considerations will drive cultural expectations (brain tease - is homosexuality more common and accepted in overpopulated societies? cough cough, Japan), we can see why some religions spend so much of their dogma on definitions of sexual normality.
In a society where an unwed mother became a strain of the tribe's resources, marriage circumstances and the rules protecting them became major rules in the religion.
In societies where leftism has become one of the prevalent religions, we see the identity politics catechism derived from feminism become part of society's rules, resulting in the kangaroo courts we see in colleges.
I have also seen the argument that a religion may create sins in order to always have a hold over the population; I won't argue that either way.
Witch Hunts
Any set of rules may be abused ( oh yes, this includes lack of rules as well). I think there are enough historical examples that all I need to do is to mention this idea as part of this post.
Finally
Each of these ideas can be expanded on in great detail, but I did want to put them together in overview. I'll draw some conclusions.
- Sexual mores derive from biological concerns
- The farther from social norms a sexual behavior is, the more repulsive that behavior becomes, drawing more negative reactions...whether or not the behavior is harmful or not
- Different biological situations create different norms
- Social mores created by a religion/politics may become outdated, or may be based on political reasons, not biological ones. Circumstances change while sexual behavior will not
- Steemit is going to develop standards of acceptable posting (including NSFW labeling) based upon the voting weight of it's members, and the social mores they developed previously. This includes punitive measures such as use of the flag, and reSteeming warnings of abuse.
Did you find the final picture deserving of a certain level of censorship (the NSFW label) on Steemit? Why? Does that definition of deviance change based upon intent? Is it OK in this context, but in definite need of NSFW tagging if used as the subject of a post by itself? How do you see these questions in relation to this post as a whole?
Yes, I want you to think ;> And to discuss!
Would you show this last photo to your girlfriend/wife/partner? This may not be porn but it might look like I am reading porn. So... yeah nsfw.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
I count 1 for NSFW, and I understand the reasoning
...but yes, I would show this to my squeezebox ;>
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
hmm. being at work, scrolling through and seeing that image, yikes lol. just a co-worker seeing a flash of that would probably give a bad impression!!!
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
that's two for NSFW, and outvotes my one for not
tagged as such
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Personally, I believe that whatever two consenting adults do in the privacy of their home is their business, not mine. I don't have to like or indulge in it... it's simply none of my business (which also means I don't want it shoved in my face). When I see homosexuals parading around in leather jockstraps in front of children- this becomes another matter. Children are to be protected.
As for bestiality...
What can I say!
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Have to agree on both points
and that poor gorilla...well at least it wasn't Barky under there
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
GASP!!
(ahem)
insert obligatory any group of more than 150 people acts irrationally.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
I'm just going to have to include that as part of my sig LOL
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
nothing less than the truth.
thru out history people have been taught NOT to trust themselves but to defer their judgment to that of the community
In other words to trust the insanity of the mob.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Age barriers are different in various countries and cultures too so...what one might find offensive and repulsive, another might accept as normal.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Good point, and one I intended to bring up in the Child Abuse section.
Following from comments in other posts on this subject, I think our culture has it right on this...or did in the period before Hollyweird culture beset us.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Hollyweird! Ha! Love it and yes, I agree. Between that place and the web...it's getting harder for people to know what is and isn't ethically sound anymore.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
It seems the point of NSFW is to keep you from getting in trouble at werk. This picture could easily do that. Who wants to see some shirtless fat-ass? (Nudge, nudge. Wink, wink. Know what I mean? Is your wife a go-er?) This is depicting a far less abhorrent sexual encounter than others you describe. As far as abhorrent sexual behavior, children and animals are out-of bounds for me. Those people should be executed so their gene can be weeded out.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
with a claw hammer.
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Sexuality there are limits to certain legal norms, abnormal sexuality close to diseases like HIV and AIDS.good post @stevescoins
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit
Good point; the spread of disease such as AIDS and syphilis before that has been linked to male homosexuality. Maybe it's unfair, but male homosexual promiscuity has been blamed for these diseases
syphilis has also been linked to royalty; the elite face less social sanction because they dont suffer the same level of repercuussion that others do
Downvoting a post can decrease pending rewards and make it less visible. Common reasons:
Submit