Ottawa museum sex exhibit controversy.

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You MUST watch the video linked at the bottom of the post. It can't be missed.

From the CBC:

Sex exhibit at sci-tech museum causes furor. Age limit raised and animated masturbation video removed after complaints.

Canada's Science and Technology Museum in Ottawa has raised the age limit for admission to a controversial sex exhibit after dozens of complaints about the content.

As well, animated video informing children about masturbation has been removed.

The moves followed complaints about the exhibit called Sex: A Tell-All Exhibition.

"The museum has received a higher-than-expected amount of expressions of concerns from the public," spokesman Yves St-Onge told Reuters.

“We take the feedback of our community seriously, and so we have carefully considered their suggestions, and taken appropriate action that we believe will best serve our audiences."

Not appropriate viewing without parents: Moore Heritage Minister James Moore said during question period Thursday that he was invited to view the exhibit and expressed his concerns.

"I respect the independence of the museum, but they asked me my opinion, and in my opinion it's not appropriate for young underage children to be exposed to sexually explicit material without the consent of their parents," said Moore.

"I've made my views known, it's up to the museum to decide now where they go," said Moore.

Moore's spokesman, James Maunder, had earlier said the purpose of the Museum of Science and Technology is to foster scientific and technological literacy.

"It is clear this exhibit does not fit within that mandate," Maunder told CBC News. "Its content cannot be defended, and is insulting to taxpayers."

The age of admission has been raised to 16 from 12.

The exhibit was originally produced for the Montreal Science Centre.

The exhibition is interactive, and includes videos of couples kissing passionately and large photographs of penises and clitorises. It also explores puberty and hormonal changes, contraception and how to say no to sexual advances in language teens understand.

Parent changes mind after viewing exhibit Suzanne Watson of Russell, Ont., said she had written to her children's Catholic school board to ask them to ban tours of the exhibit and also threatened to cancel her membership at the museum after hearing negative reviews of the exhibit.

But Watson, who describes herself as a pro-life mother of five who advocates abstinence to her own children, said she revised her opinion after seeing the exhibit.

"I like the fact it's telling children ... that we can say no — we can say no to sex — and there are other options and it talks about peer pressure and how to deal with that," said Watson.

Watson said she'll keep her membership at the museum, but said still believes schools shouldn't take children to it, saying it's something she thinks parents should do instead.

Mylene Côté, 18, was also touring the exhibit on Thursday, was unfazed by what she saw.

"I think they're showing us healthy sexuality ...they aren't sexualizing it," said Côté. "I mean they're showing the facts, we all have bodies and we all go through this stuff."

The Institute for Marriage and Family Canada, which visited the show last week, also complained, saying it believes the "erotic and titillating" exhibit doesn't belong in a museum.

Dave Quist, the institute's director, said the exhibit approves and promotes anal sex, multiple partners and sex without emotional and marital commitment.

The service that I use to post videos no longer works so click on the following link to hear the outrageous things the Conservative MP had to say about the show: link.

Stars in tailored clothes.

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From whatever, etc.:

This weekend I was told a story which, although I’m kind of ashamed to admit it, because holy shit is it ever obvious, is kind of blowing my mind.

A friend of a friend won a free consultation with Clinton Kelly of What Not To Wear, and she was very excited, because she has a plus-size body, and wanted some tips on how to make the most of her wardrobe in a fashion culture which deliberately puts her body at a disadvantage.

Her first question for him was this: how do celebrities make a plain white t-shirt and a pair of weekend jeans look chic? She always assumed it was because so many celebrities have, by nature or by design, very slender frames, and because they can afford very expensive clothing. But when she watched What Not To Wear, she noticed that women of all sizes ended up in cute clothes that really fit their bodies and looked great. She had tried to apply some guidelines from the show into her own wardrobe, but with only mixed success. So - what gives?

His answer was that everything you will ever see on a celebrity’s body, including their outfits when they’re out and about and they just get caught by a paparazzo, has been tailored, and the same goes for everything on What Not To Wear. Jeans, blazers, dresses - everything right down to plain t-shirts and camisoles. He pointed out that historically, up until the last few generations, the vast majority of people either made their own clothing or had their clothing made by tailors and seamstresses. You had your clothing made to accommodate the measurements of your individual body, and then you moved the fuck on. Nothing on the show or in People magazine is off the rack and unaltered. He said that what they do is ignore the actual size numbers on the tags, find something that fits an individual’s widest place, and then have it completely altered to fit. That’s how celebrities have jeans that magically fit them all over, and the rest of us chumps can’t ever find a pair that doesn’t gape here or ride up or slouch down or have about four yards of extra fabric here and there.

Read the rest here.

Film: Psychopathia Sexualis.

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Passed along by Katie (thanks!), who stumbled upon this while studying. From the film homepage:

Employing a complex multi-narrative structure, Psychopathia Sexualis dramatizes case histories of turn-of-the-century sexual deviance, drawn from the pages of Richard von Krafft-Ebing's notorious medical text. Among the cases are a sexually repressed man who discovers an unhealthy appetite for blood; a homosexual man who submits himself to a doctor who promises to 'cure' his condition; and a masochist who hires a pair of corseted prostitutes to enact a most peculiar performance. In the final chapter, a woman who has spent her life suppressing her lesbian desires is hired to tutor a sexually curious young woman. These stories are bound together by the thread of an ambitious doctor who not only studies the patients, but uses them as pawns and playthings.

Sadly, it looks like the film was rubbish - reviewers completed panned it.

Here's the trailer, for interest's sake:

www.pscychopathia.com - Employing a complex multi-narrative structure, Psychopathia Sexualis dramatizes case histories of turn-of-the-century sexual deviance, drawn from the pages of Richard von Krafft-Ebing's notorious medical text.

GOP buttplugs.

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For those not in the know, the Republican (the US right-wing, conservative party, otherwise known as the GOP, or Grand Old Party) presidential nominee competition just wrapped up this spring. It was a rather fierce battle with the contenders trying to outdo each other in terms of how far right on the political spectrum they sit. As commentary on the process, Mathew Epler put together the following project:

Dear Voter,

Whether you’re Democrat or Republican, you’ve probably grown weary of the endless circus that is the electoral process. It is painful. But it shouldn’t be that way. As a member of a free democratic state you should feel exhilarating pleasure when exercising your right to choose your leader.

Grand Old Party demonstrates that as a people united, our opinion has real volume. When we approve of a candidate, they swell with power. When we deem them unworthy, they are diminished and left hanging in the wind. We guard the gate! It opens and closes at our will. How wide is up to us.

In an age of information, we rely on hard facts. Each of the shapes you see here come directly from poll data collected by Gallup. This data reects approval ratings for each GOP candidate among registered Republican voters from December 10, 2011 to April 1, 2012. Each shape’s girth is a reflection of popularity while their height is a reflection of time.

The contours of these delightful shapes conjure up the waves of amber grain and those lapping at the rim of our great nation spanning from sea to shining sea. As the battle for the Presidency rails on, we must remember that Americans may may have achieved freedom through war, but they are also a people of love. After all, in the end all we have is each other.

And the video: 

From the catalogue (available at http://mepler.com) Dear Voter, Whether you’re Democrat or Republican, you’ve probably grown weary of the endless circus that is the electoral process. It is painful. But it shouldn’t be that way. As a member of a free democratic state you should feel exhilarating pleasure when exercising your right to choose your leader. Grand Old Party demonstrates that as a people united, our opinion has real volume. When we approve of a candidate, they swell with power. When we deem them unworthy, they are diminished and left hanging in the wind. We guard the gate! It opens and closes at our will. How wide is up to us. In an age of information, we rely on hard facts. Each of the shapes you see here come directly from poll data collected by Gallup. This data reects approval ratings for each GOP candidate among registered Republican voters from December 10, 2011 to April 1, 2012. Each shape’s girth is a reflection of popularity while their height is a reflection of time. The contours of these delightful shapes conjure up the waves of amber grain and those lapping at the rim of our great nation spanning from sea to shining sea. As the battle for the Presidency rails on, we must remember that Americans may may have achieved freedom through war, but they are also a people of love. After all, in the end all we have is each other.

Necronomicox.

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More unusual sex toys, this time from Necronomicox.

From the company's website:

Necronomicox was founded by a collection of artists with a love for the macabre. While the toy industry is full of a bewildering array of designs, there was nothing that fit with our twisted sensibilities. We saw a niche that needed to be filled, so to speak.
Toys designed for the dark side of your psyche. Sculpted and produced by hand with customizable colour schemes, each toy is made-to-order in body safe platinum cure silicone.

Link here.

Ouch.

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This was originally aired 2 years ago (2005) on CBC Hemispheres. A unusual story from Taipei, Taiwan about a treatment for prostate problems. I had to record it because it was just so amusing and bizarre. Its based on Qigong (Chi Gong) healing techniques and is said to shrink enlarged prostates and result in healing and improved sexual functions.

Penis leggings.

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Click to make larger:

From the Huffington Post:

In the past few weeks we've seen our share of ridiculous fashion statements, includngduck nails and the super cool bra (the latter of which is adorned with tiny "fish tanks").

But a find we stumbled upon last night takes the cake. Introducing: penis leggings.

Yes, folks -- someone decided creating a pair of pants with tiny little penises all over them was a good idea, although we have no idea who is wearing them. Jezebel describes them as "revolting and totally NSFW." Obviously, creating a sartorial statement like this is all about shock value.

But really? Really?! Has fashion come to a point where the only way to shock and awe is to wear a $150 pair of pants dubbed "Is That A Cock Or Your Legs?" What happened to bright colours or couture clothing?

This, dear readers, is what we call a fashion fail.

If you're interested in purchasing a pair, click here.

Time magazine's controversial cover.

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Not surprisingly, the latest Time magazine cover has created a massive storm of controversy. The puritans are upset because it shows a breast; the cynics have been quick to point out that it's simply a desperate attempt to make the magazine relevant at a time when it's been losing relevance; the non-attachment-parenting moms are feeling attacked; and many people just think it's a weird (creepy?) seeing a three year-old breastfeeding.

The article that goes along with the cover image discusses a style of parenting that's gaining popularity - attachment parenting. It'a rejection of the whole let-them-cry-it-out and self-soothing movement that's predominated parenting in the last couple of decades.

Many editorials about the piece have been published since the magazine hit the shelves. Here's a sample from the New York Times (there are many, many more - just search):

Never Mom Enough By KJ DELL'ANTONIA

My favorite part of Time magazine’s coverage of “Attachment Parenting” wasn’t the cover image, or even the headline, “Are You Mom Enough?,” both of which beg the adjective “provocative.”

We can get caught up in whether a mother should nurse a preschooler — or, perhaps more relevant, whether that preschooler will later appreciate being photographed nursing for a national magazine. (No, and I’m so convinced that most of you will agree that I’m not going to say any more about it.)

[...]

But “Are You Mom Enough” still fails to take into account, as so many things do, that not only is there a continuum of attachment parenting from all to nothing, but there is also a continuum of parenting in all of our lives. I am no model of motherhood, but my answers to those quiz questions are all of our answers. Sometimes. Kind of. When it seemed like the right thing to do. With one baby, not the other.

Do you feel pressured to parent your children in a certain way? Sometimes. Kind of. But as Jennifer DeLeonardo put it in another discussion of “The Conflict,” those pressures vary depending on whom you’re with and how you respond to them (some people — and some magazine articles — can make you want to go right out and do the opposite). Did those pressures affect your choices about working, staying home or doing something in between? Maybe, along with a career choice, financial necessity, personal history, job availability, child care and a host of other factors — all of which, along with our personal status, are subject to evolution.

The factors and the nuances and the continuum are the reasons the conversations women have about how we balance, or combine, work and family are worth having — conversations that men have too, although with a different historical background and set of pressures. We are different parents at different times of our lives. An autism diagnosis, a financial crisis, a divorce, a move — all of those things can change us in an instant, so the the question isn’t really “does your baby sleep in your bed?” but why, and for how long? What does that say about what’s important to you, and how would you hold onto that if circumstances changed?

Read the rest of the editorial here.

Breasts.

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From MacLean's, courtesy of Anne (thanks!):

In conversation: Florence Williams

On why we have breasts, what we don’t know about implants, and the future of breastfeeding

After reading a report about the presence of environmental toxins in breast milk in 2004, American journalist Florence Williams, who’d just had a child at the time, decided to have her own milk tested. She mailed samples to a lab. The results were astounding and unsettling: her toxin levels were exceptionally high. That propelled Williams to embark on an intense search that went well beyond her initial inquiries into the sociological, sexual and medical complexities of this organ. In Breasts: A Natural and Unnatural History, she provides a fascinating cultural and scientific tour of breasts through time—and what they might face in the future.

Q: You start the book by asking why humans have breasts. What did you find out from anthropologists, and how did their theories differ depending on their own sex?

A: It really surprised me that this topic is still so contentious. A lot of male anthropologists love to study the breast and they seem to be easily persuaded that the breast evolved as a sexual signal. But the more feminist [and more often female] anthropologists said it may be that breasts evolved not for men, but for the fitness of women and offspring.

Q: There is a compromise theory: breasts evolved to help women feed babies, and that made men love breasts.

A: Exactly.

Q: What do breasts signal to men?

A: The theory is that breasts are filled with information for potential mates about the fertility status of a woman, her age, how healthy she is: if the woman is young her breasts will be perky, and if she’s older her breasts will sag. I find this theory flawed. A woman’s breasts are biggest and perkiest while she’s pregnant and breastfeeding—and obviously she’s not a good mate at that moment if you’re just interested in your own offspring. And there are plenty of women who, after childbirth, continue to have nice, perky breasts. So breasts are an unreliable signal of age and fertility.

Q: Studies show female waitresses with large breasts get more tips, and busty diners get hit on more often. Is bigger always better?

A: In Western cultures, the studies do bear out that women tend to get more attention if they have bigger breasts. Many men really respond to big breasts. It’s hard to say whether that’s evolutionary driven or whether that’s our culture. Certainly our culture celebrates and is obsessed with big breasts.

Read the rest of the interview here.

Anti-gay rant.

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While people's initial reaction to this rant is most likely complete disgust, it might be worth noting that this woman is probably mentally ill. From Mediaite

Terrifyingly Hilarious: Nebraska Woman Gives The Most Amazingly Bonkers Anti-Gay Rant Ever

You know what’s not funny? Hate. You know what’s also not funny? People going on hate-filled rants. However, you know what is funny, people going on hate-filled rants that make so little sense that they sound like someone took the worst comments from a political message board, mixed all the words around, translated them to Japanese, and then translated them back. And that’s what happened at a council meeting in Lincoln, Nebraska and it resulted in one of the craziest videos you’ll see this week.

Recently, Nebraskan cities have been trying to deal with the lack of protection that LGBT citizens have from discrimination. The state’s anti-discrimination laws don’t cover sexual orientation. YouTube user aksarbent has been uploading videos of some of the more interesting moments from hearings on the issue. One of them, he or she labeled “Best in Show!” and, good lord, is that not hyperbole.

Wearing a big white hat, a woman gets up and reads a screed that you need to hear to believe. She begins by accusing the ABC show Wipeout of being “produced in Holland by gays, bis, and orgiers” who like to see “people perishing.” At least I think that’s what she’s saying. And it just gets weirder and weirder.

In no discernible train of thought, the woman accuses Hillary Clinton of turning lesbian in college, gay people of being “homociders” who all dying at the age of 40, gay men of molesting boys because “they don’t have AIDS yet,” talks about the health risks of “licking anus,” and says something I can’t even figure out about Whitney Houston being naked when she died.

Again, there’s nothing funny about bigotry but there’s something amazing about watching a video that makes it clear just how ridiculous these beliefs are.

Plus, the kid sitting directly behind the lady who can’t stop cracking the hell up really seals the deal!

And the video:

Watch the guy in the audience behind her, for added hilarity. The world is a tragedy for those who feel and a comedy for those who think. Lincoln, Nebraska proposed LGBT protection ordinance.. Original post featuring this clip: http://aksarbent.blogspot.com/2012/05/video-lincoln-nebraska-hearings-on.html Towleroad, (then Gawker, Queerty, Huffington Post, JoeMyGod, et al picked this up later.


Lead singer of Against Me! comes out as transgender.

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Singer reveals plans to begin living as a woman in the new issue of Rolling Stone

Against Me! singer Tom Gabel reveals plans to begin living as a woman in the new issue of Rolling Stone. Gabel, who has dealt privately with gender dysphoria for years, will soon begin the process of transition, by taking hormones and undergoing electrolysis treatments.

Gabel will eventually take the name Laura Jane Grace, and will remain married to her wife Heather. "For me, the most terrifying thing about this was how she would accept the news," says Gabel. "But she's been super-amazing and understanding."

Gabel only told a handful of family and friends about her plan to transition before talking to Rolling Stone. Because this is the first time a major rock star has come out as transgender, the singer made a point of speaking openly about it. "I'm going to have embarrassing moments," says Gabel, "and that won't be fun. But that's part of what talking to you is about – is hoping people will understand, and hoping they'll be fairly kind."

The full story of Gabel's transformation is in the latest issue, on newsstands this Friday (May 11th). In it, the singer tells Josh Eells about her history of gender dysphoria, the specifics of the transition process and what becoming Laura Jane Grace will mean for the future of Against Me!

Man suing BMW for perma-erection-inducing motorcycle.

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From SF Weekly:

Local Man Claims BMW Ride Gave Him a Permanent Boner

Turns out BMWs aren't always a chick magnet.

Sadly, a San Francisco man had to find out the hard way how unpleasurable a BMW ride can be -- literally. According to a lawsuit filed in San Francisco this week, Henry Wolf says his BMW motorcycle's ridge-like seat gave him a "severe case of priapism," otherwise known as a really, really long (lasting) erection.

On the surface, that sounds like nothing more than a literalization of why guys buy motorcycles in the first place. But Wolf claims his constant erection has ruined his sex life -- and we're guessing that's more painful than the erection itself.

The complaint states that on May 1, 2010, Wolf was riding his 1993 BMW motorcycle equipped with a Corbin-Pacfic seat for about four hours when he noticed he had a hard and painful erection, which he now blamed on BMW and its deficiently designed seat.

"Plaintiff ... has been experiencing continuing problems since his motorcycle ride. He is now unable to engage in sexual activity, which is causing him substantial emotional and mental anguish," his lawyer states.

Wolf is suing BMW of North America and Corbin-Pacific, seeking damages for lost wages, personal injury, medical expenses, product liability, and negligent infliction of emotional distress.

Perhaps Wolf should trade in his BMW for a minivan -- those are definitely boner-killers.