In the news
A selection of recent news items that might be of use or interest to pleasure activists.
Please note that inclusion of a news item on this page should in no way be taken as an endorsement by Pleasure Activism Australia of the news provider, the views of the news provider, the article author(s), or the views of the article author(s). News items are listed solely on their possible relevance to pleasure activists and/or their work.
If you would like to suggest a news item, please send your suggestion to inthenews@pleasureactivism.org.
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Facebook Deletes The Our Porn, Ourselves Page
"In yet another example of their opaque censorship policies, Facebook has removed Violet Blue’s Our Porn, Ourselves page, even though it had over 3000 members and was obsessively policed by Violet. It seems the anti-porn zealots may have been behind it."
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"Narcissistic heterosexual men target their hostility primarily at heterosexual women, the objects of their desires; lesbians are seen favorably"
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Women Who Want to Watch Porn: What to Expect
"If you’re a girl who has never really seen pornography, admitting to yourself that you want to watch porn or explicit sexual imagery may take some — or a lot of — forethought. And if you think that all porn is nothing more than pool boys and women with poor payment negotiation skills and eternal bad hair days (or worse: women being coerced into doing something they don’t want to), then the realities of today’s porn will come as quite a surprise."
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63 percent of women report sexual problems with orgasm proving biggest issue in teens and 20s
"Dysfunction rose with age in all categories except orgasm, with more than half of women aged from 18 to 30 reporting orgasm problems, significantly higher than women aged 31 to 54."
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China: No more "shame parades"
"Police are ordered to refrain from shackling prostitutes and leading them through the crowded streets"
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New to You: A Review of Good Porn
"It’s difficult for me to critique this book: Lust consumes porn in similar ways that I do, and we have a similar history with viewing porn, so most of my responses to this consist of, “yeah, so what?” It’s not new information to me, nor would it be to anyone who is aware of the ways that the porn industry is rapidly changing to include more female directors, more perspectives from and by and about women, and more woman-oriented pornography."
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Lack of access to evidence-based HIV prevention and care is a fundamental violation of human rights
"The appalling lack of access to scientifically proven interventions for key populations at risk -- including sex workers, men who have sex with men and people who use drugs – and the lagging scale up of simple and inexpensive treatment regimens to prevent vertical transmission of HIV reflect persistent, underlying human rights violations that threaten future progress on AIDS, according to organizers of the XVIII International AIDS Conference taking place in Vienna this week under the theme of Rights Here, Right Now."
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Enterprise filters block political Sex Party website
"Corporate web filters at organisations like Shell and the National Australia Bank (NAB) are blocking web access to the AEC-registered Australian Sex Party."
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Beijing's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"
"It's called the "Three No's": no support, no prohibition, and no promotion. Unlike Don't Ask, Don't Tell, the jurisdiction of the Three No's policy isn't limited to the military. In fact, it drives Chinese decisions about gay rights in all realms of life -- at least, most of the time."
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Sex Makes You Smarter — Can ‘Virtual Sex’ Do The Same?
"It has been known for quite some time that exercise promotes neurogenesis, but now a study by Leuner, Glasper, and Gould, published by PLoS ONE this month, claims that the most intimate form of exercise—sexual activity—can produce the same effects."
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A Federal Court That Trusts People More Than Government
"There’s a government agency in Washington whose job is deciding what’s “offensive” and should be kept off broadcast TV and radio—the FCC. Their policy is terribly flexible. If material has to do with sexuality or execretory functions, it’s “offensive” if the commissioners decide it’s offensive."
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Ancient Dildo Excavated In Sweden?
"The folks at LiveScience have reported on a startling discovery: an ancient dildo was excavated in Sweden last week. Okay, so maybe it isn't actually a sex toy, and could have been used to "chip flakes of flint,""
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New Zealand women suffer long delays for abortions
"Women in New Zealand wait an average of 25 days to get a termination of pregnancy, from the date of their first visit to the doctor."
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Porn star Lorelei Lee talks obscenity
"An actress at the center of the case against John Stagliano opens up about the darker sides of the adult business"
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Censorship: Labor's hidden policy
"What Australia will get from this internet filter is a framework for censorship that doesn't stop "the worst of the worst" but will absolutely curtail discussion on politically incorrect topics like euthanasia, safe drug taking and graffiti while banning relatively-tame adult content."
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Circumcising gay men would have limited impact on preventing HIV
"Circumcision is thought to reduce the risk of HIV transmission by removing cells in the foreskin that are most susceptible to infection by the virus. Clinical trials conducted in Africa have found it reduces the risk of HIV in heterosexual men, yet there is little evidence that it can reduce transmission among American gay men."
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"As I view the phenomenon of the Western Tantra explosion in this country, black Tantra and yoga teachers are not visible in the best known Tantra networks and circles. My point is not that people of color are intentionally excluded, but that they are not intentionally and explicitly welcomed."
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Romantic Comedies Affecting off-Screen Love Lives: Poll
"A poll of 1,000 Australians found almost half said rom-coms with their inevitable happy endings have ruined their view of an ideal relationship."
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Woman sees 'Sex and the City', beds 1000 men
"Christina Saunders, from Hertfordshire in east England, reached the target last month after setting herself the challenge 10 years ago, News of the World reports."
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Date set for couple to face alleged illegal abortion trial
"Tegan Leach, 20, and Sergie Brennan, 22, were committed to stand trial last year after allegedly importing an abortion drug from overseas to terminate a pregnancy."
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"In the following story which pointedly uses the word rescue, the police try to blame foreign devils for the existence of sex businesses, make sure to point out that some of those rescued were ‘only waitresses’ (which perfectly shows what they think about prostitutes), and, most important, if compliance with US aims to ‘convict’ traffickers is what’s needed, how does detaining and forcibly rehabilitating 200 victims help?"
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When a Kitten Masturbates, Who Does God Kill? The Bible on Masturbation
"Those who claim the Bible as their source for prohibition of masturbation usually refer to the Old Testament story of Onan and Tamar. It's a twisted story, as are many of them in the Good Book. But the ways it's been used by generations of proselytizers is even more twisted."
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HPV vaccine gives prolonged protection against genital warts and low-grade pre-cancerous growths
"The vaccine for HPV types 6, 11, 16 and 18 has the potential to prevent about 70% of cervical cancers and 90% of genital warts, but what contribution the vaccines make to low grade growths is still uncertain."
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"But answer me this: are there websites suggesting that a man with an extremely low dangling ball sac should get a scrotum lift, or that a man with a small penis should cut some skin from his arm and add it to his rod? Why is plastic surgery recommended for a woman whose inner lips hang lower or flower fuller than her outer ones?"
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"This disconnect between talk and action that stands out in Almedal's mind has long characterized faith-based work on HIV/AIDS, as religious groups working in the field part ways with the strictures of their traditions and hierarchies, and in recent years the mandates of conservative American funders, in order to deliver potentially life-saving resources to populations most vulnerable to the disease."