Our generation is getting a lot of sex education these days, but not from the usual sources. Sure, they are still teaching the textbook, physiological stuff in school, and the birds and the bees chat with the parental units usually includes something about abstinence or safe sex and birth control. But there’s only so much a sex ed teacher can talk about in school, and according to one poll, only 43% of parents actually feel comfortable talking to their kids about sex. So where do you think this generation is getting this knowledge from?
The unfortunate answer: porn.
That’s right, pornography has become one of the main sex educators in society. And if we allow porn to teach our generation about sex, these are the four things we will be learning:
1. It’s all about you, man.
As much as the porn industry wants you to think that it “empowers” women, it’s really all about pleasing men. And why would an industry with the sole purpose of making money off the main consumer cater to women? In almost all porn, the woman typically submits to whatever the man wants to do, regardless of how uncomfortable, painful or degrading it looks. As an LA Times article once put it, “Women are no more than a set of orifices intended for the use and abuse of men and men are nothing more than anonymous phalluses demanding to be serviced.” How disgusting of a description is that? Yet it’s the truth. And if you don’t think porn conditions people to think that way, consider the hundreds of celebrities who were violated by “Celebgate,” only a few of which were men. All of these lies are what porn promotes. What porn doesn't teach is that sex is about physical and emotional equality, not dominance and submissiveness.
2. Violence isn’t just okay, it’s sexy.
One of Fight the New Drug's fact pages cites some seriously messed up stats about violence in porn. For example, in a recent study done on the most popular porn films, researchers found that 88% of the scenes contained physical violence. That’s almost 9 out of 10! In an interview with ex-porn star Vanessa Belmond (warning: graphic), she shared some of what she went through while in the porn industry, including bleeding in her throat and having to take painkillers so she could “act like [she was] having a good time.” In what world is it okay for someone’s pain to be filmed and sold as pleasure?? Not cool at all. And all one has to do is a simple Google search or spend a few minutes on our website to see the violence and abuse that the majority of women in pornography face.
3. Porn is better than sex.
One of the many problems with porn is that it provides a super-stimulus overload that can keep the chemical level in your brain elevated for hours and hours. Over time, porn overstimulates and desensitizes the brain’s pleasure center, meaning you no longer get off on the same old stuff and need something more intense. This leads to addiction, dependency, and the increasingly common porn-induced erectile dysfunction. When it comes to natural stimulation from real sex, it is a much different experience and feeling from what the porn user has been conditioning themselves to enjoy. Basically, the brain doesn’t recognize sex as “the real deal” and thinks that porn is what it needs to get aroused. Pretty ironic, eh? The movie Don Jon, directed by and starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt, is a perfect depiction of this reality. The main character’s brain is so twisted that he can’t be sexually satisfied without viewing porn and openly admits that he likes porn better than real sex. That’s why this Italian study found that erectile dysfunction and “sexual anorexia” is common among porn users. Sound sexy at all? We don’t think so.
4. Nothing else matters.
In porn, the ultimate goal is sexual stimulation. There’s no emotional connection. There’s no romance. There’s no conversation or commitment. That’s why our slogan is ‘Porn Kills Love’. Countless studies are now showing that porn diminishes relationship commitment and often leads to greater acceptance of cheating. The idea that porn creates is that if someone doesn't what’s happening in a real-life relationship, there are plenty of potential willing sexual partners out there (real or online). Is it any wonder that 56% of divorces involve at least one person with an obsessive interest in porn? Basically, porn is a really poor excuse for real human intimacy and it’s designed to trick the brain into believing sex is all that matters.
What YOU Can Do
Obviously, all these things are far from the truth. Help spread the word about the harmful effects of pornography and raise awareness on the misinformation being sold to society. SHARE this article and be a part of this movement to stop the demand for porn.
(With thanks to Fight The New Drug - See more at: http://fightthenewdrug.org)
Something else that should be addressed is the effect it has on the woman loving the man who is abused by porn.
ReplyDeleteGreat article Dustin. Keep standing firm in HIM! It is a tough battle but men everywhere are able to say no and the world is better for it!!