Viti

To clarify my position...to a young man who is a virgin, and has watched porn the reality is much different than the expectation. Porn is great for a turn on, masturbation, creativity in current sexual relationships...but they are NOT a good instructional tool and are often the only comparison someone without real experience has. I have devirginized guys...I know

luvluv

Little monkeywrench:

If there is nothing wrong with pornography, how many of you would be willing to have your children, when they are of age, become pornstars?

Do you think there is any harm, psychologically, done to the women in the film over the long term? Giving a very personal expression of yourself away to innumerable men in public has to have some kind of pyschological baggage attached to it, doesn't it? A former teacher of mine said that "the soul is the part of the body you can't touch, and the body is the part of the soul you can touch". By soul I believe he meant "emotional health". The gist being that physical contact (hugs vs punches and kicks) do have emotional effects on the person, therefore it seems illogical that the most intimate touching can occur and have it not effect the person engaged in it. Up to now the women on this forum have stated that it is insulting to be treated as a sexual object, but I would take it further. Admittedly I am speaking as a man, but I would think at a certain point it would be emotionally painful to be considered as a sex object and nothing more, as the women in pornography (if they are succesful enough) may come to be regarded.

So if you wouldn't want (allow is the wrong word I guess) your child performing in pornography, would you allow him to watch pornography featuring, lets just say, your neighbor's adult daughter? A girl whom you have both known personally, and further, a girl whose current decision to star in pornography is causing great emotional pain to your neighbor.

I'm just asking this to perhaps clarify some reasons Christians think pornography is wrong. In reality, all pornography is hurting SOMEONE, even if it is just the parents or children of the people starring in the films. I think the ethic of "love your neighbor as yourself" would pretty much exclude one from viewing pornography because every girl in those films is someone's daughter and, ocassionally, mother.

I'm not saying this from a position of being a prude or anything because believe me I have had my run ins with pornography.

tronvillain

I wouldn't mind my children becoming porn stars, though I hope they would practice safe sex. I just don't attach the same meaning to sex that you apparently do.

tronvillain

LadyShea:
Which is a shame, considering the large amount of excellent instructional material out there. Hell, I still buy books on the subject.

Viti

Me too Tron...I think it is sad that so many young people must learn in the "locker room" or by sneaking porn.

luvluv...I know several pornstars. Some are a wreck emotionally for all kinds of reasons and some are fine and don't view sex as something to be hidden...they love sex! There are screwed up people in every job, from every walk of life...porn does not have the corner market on sad stories.

pepperlandgirl

You know, I honestly don't think I'd be too concerned if my child (girl or boy) wanted to be a pornstar.Shoot, I'd be a pornstar if I could....

tronvillain

LadyShea:
Reminds me of a guy I met at school last year - definitely a locker room/porn educated fellow. He was of the opinion that because I had only been in one sexual relationship and he had been with "lots of chicks", he knew where the g-spot was and I didn't. Needless to say, he was wrong.

Bree

I agree completely, LadyShea. If (and this is a purely hypothetical situation I were to try to have sex with a man and my only sexual exposure to men was through a porno, I would probably have no problem getting his rocks off - porn seems to be pretty explicit in that area, simply because the majority is made for men.

On the other hand, if I had never had sex with a woman before (and again, this is a purely hypothetical situation) I would be completely lost - porn in it's most readily-available form is not generally geared towards pleasing the woman or giving the woman any sort of pleasure at all. That's why I don't see porn as a good teaching tool - it's one-sided.

99% - do you know of any parent who would give his or her son/daughter a romance novel in order to teach him/her about the workings of a romantic relationship? I think we're talking about two seperate demographics.

Bible Humper

Mmmmm, porno


Mmmmm, pepper

Jamie_L

To clarify:

I don't see anything "wrong" with pornography - except possibly for the exploitative and damaging effects the industry may have on its actors/actresses (for which, in my mind, the jury is still out). Likewise I see nothing "wrong" with legalizing drugs or with people under the age of 18 drinking.

All these things, however, carry potential risks in one form or another, especially for the young and inexperienced. Every parent has to determine for themselves and their children how big they feel those risks really are. While I support legal, regulated use of cocaine, I wouldn't give my kids cocaine or encourage them to use it. I would, however, give them honest information along with my personal opinions. In the end, they will make up their own minds. In the case of pornography, my own personal experience makes me put more weight on the potential risks than others might. No big deal. We all gotta do what we all gotta do.

WJ - I'll respond to you when I have more time.

Jamie