I have a new piece up on the Blowfish Blog. It's about the newly notorious Republican politico Michael Schwartz, who recently opined that straight porn makes you gay -- and that telling young boys "straight porn makes you gay" is a fabulous way to keep them from being interested in straight porn. And it's about the profound level of reality- denying delusion involved in this sort of reflexively sex-negative propaganda.
It's titled "Straight Porn Will Make You Gay": The Delusion of Sex-Negativity, and here's the teaser:
What I'm finding truly fascinating is the profound futility, to the point of delusion, of the ultimate purpose behind Schwartz's bizarre connection between straight porn and homosexuality.Schwartz's ultimate point wasn't "Straight porn makes you gay." I'm not even sure he believes that himself. (In fact, he backpedaled from it just a few sentences later in his speech, saying, "If it [porn] doesn't turn you homosexual, it at least renders you less capable of loving your wife.") His ultimate point wasn't that. His ultimate point was, "Teaching ten- year- old boys that straight porn makes them gay is a great way to keep them away from porn." His point was that ten- and eleven- year- old boys are profoundly grossed-out by homosexuality... and therefore, telling them that porn will make them gay is a nifty way to make them not want porn.
To me, that's the money quote. Not the one about how all porn is really gay porn. To me, the money quote is, quote: "If you tell an 11-year-old boy about that, do you think he's going to want to go out and get a copy of Playboy? I’m pretty sure he'll lose interest. That's the last thing he wants."
So here's what I want to know.
Does Michael Schwartz truly believe that you can keep pre- and early- pubescent straight boys from being interested in pictures of naked women, just by telling them it'll make them gay?
To read more about sex-negativity and self- delusion, read the rest of the piece. (And if you're inspired to comment here, please consider cross-posting your comment to the Blowfish Blog as well -- they like comments there, too.) Enjoy!
That is pretty freaken stupid. Just wait.....this guy will be the next one to get caught with his pants down.. . and I have always thought this, regarding the right wing homophobic conservatives. So many of them get caught with other men......I think part of that whole thing is the thrill of the forbidden. Because fundie Christians have such a strong taboo against ALL sex - straight sex, self pleasure, but ESPECIALLY gay sex.....that makes it all the more tantalizing. The more they hear about this "abominable sin," the more they want to try it.
Posted by: Donna Gore | October 07, 2009 at 05:54 PM
Another who think homosexuality isn't natural. The next piece will be a piece on how to cure homosexuality in young people.
And 10 and 11 year olds do act all macho around the subject...but it doesnt mean they are all really grossed out by it.
Let us face it, you are not supposed to enjoy anything sexual other than wife/husband baby making anyway.
Posted by: Janz | October 07, 2009 at 06:32 PM