When writing this, I sat down and really thought, what would I say to questions like these? There is such a desire to keep the young innocent as long as possible, and a lot of the general wisdom is that if you brush off the question — that they’ll forget about it because they pick up from you that it is not important. But I’m pretty sure that is rarely true.
Which, even if I’m right in that, it doesn’t make answering any easier.
I wish schools taught this advice instead of telling them that if they had sex they’d be dirty toothbrushes, and nobody would want a dirty toothbrush. The typical American attitude towards sex veers between shameful and hypocritical at times, It keeps people from being really honest about the subject, makes people feel ashamed of their bodies and feelings and allows objectification and exploitation to dominate the typical sexual imagery.
I’ve been a long time ready of your strip, having discovered it shortly before the 2004 elections. I became instantly hooked, read through the arhcives and followed it to the end. So I really appreciate that you’re running through them again with commentary, because I like to read what you were thinking as you wrote strips and where you were trying to go with the subject and art. Keep up the good work, and I look forward to reading the rest of the series all over again.
Thanks, @Constantine! Yeah, i don’t think we should be some big lusty orgy of wantonness (unless everyone wanted that, i suppose) but it is so backwards here! Probably because it is in our minds that it is immoral, and yet we’ve ALL done it (especially referring to teachers, politicians, parents, adults in general). To teach your values, you need to either be a immoral, be hypocritical but hide your hypocracies, or say “do as i say, not as i do.” What awful choices. :(
I’m glad you’re enjoying the re-running and commentary. For me it’s been equally enjoyable, re-reading each strip and thinking what was going through my head.
>>>To teach your values, you need to either be a immoral, be hypocritical but hide your hypocracies, or say “do as i say, not as i do.â€
Well, there’s also the “I don’t want you to make the same mistakes I made” approach. If someone genuinely regrets their past actions, is it hypocritical to not want others to repeat them?
Not that I think that many (if any) sex education opponents are proceeding from that perspective, I’m just sayin’.
Excellent point, @Ronald. And I think it has great potential.
I think the main issue with that approach is that the “don’t do it” and “the regret” are what’s discussed. But not the motivation.
I see three kinds of regrets of actions. The first is when you see two good options, and you accidentally chose what you in hindsight feel was the wrong choice. The second is blind ignorance, you enter into something innocently and are blindsided. The third is when you know the pitfalls, but the urge is great enough that you by choice make a bad decision, which is GREAT at the time, but then you have to pay the piper.
That last option can be broken down into two more sub-options. One, in which you genuinely regret doing it and would not do it again if put in the same positions. the other is where you say you regret it, and feel you should regret it, and feel some regret, but somewhere inside you’re glad you did.
If you educate someone on the outcomes (or perceive that they are aware of them), this eliminates the second option of being blindsided. But for the rest, I think being supportive and loving is the best option.
Of course, this is me thinking of anyone old enough to reason well. With children, up to a certain age, there are times when I think it is totally necessary to make the decision for them and say “no.” PLUS there are also situations where it is important to call out your friends and say “this is wrong.”
Ah, so complex and convoluted. Not sure if anything I wrote makes sense or is right. :)
I’m filing this one away somewhere to remind me. My babies are growing up, and I know these questions are coming.