Open publication - Free publishing
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
A year without sex: a comedian's adventures in abstinence
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Open publication - Free publishing
Monday, December 13, 2010
Child sexual abuse: Canada vs the U.S.
By Vanessa Brown
Graham James, who was convicted for 350 charges of child sexual abuse in the '90s, was granted bail last week and released from jail on unrelated child sexual assault charges. James is a former Winnipeg minor hockey league coach now infamous for molesting ex-NHLers Sheldon Kennedy and Theo Fleury in the 1970s and '80s.
He initially served two-and-a-half years (from 1997 to 2001) for sexually assaulting Kennedy and an unnamed minor hockey league player. James was arrested in October on an additional nine counts of sexual assault. According to the Globe and Mail, Fleury said that Canadians "pride ourselves on being one of the safest countries in the world and a decision like the one that was made today doesn't really say a lot, make a statement that we're protecting our children, because we're not."
Graham James, who was convicted for 350 charges of child sexual abuse in the '90s, was granted bail last week and released from jail on unrelated child sexual assault charges. James is a former Winnipeg minor hockey league coach now infamous for molesting ex-NHLers Sheldon Kennedy and Theo Fleury in the 1970s and '80s.
He initially served two-and-a-half years (from 1997 to 2001) for sexually assaulting Kennedy and an unnamed minor hockey league player. James was arrested in October on an additional nine counts of sexual assault. According to the Globe and Mail, Fleury said that Canadians "pride ourselves on being one of the safest countries in the world and a decision like the one that was made today doesn't really say a lot, make a statement that we're protecting our children, because we're not."
Art and pornography in homosexual culture
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| Chris Ironside |
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| Ironside as a long weekender |
By: Victoria Gray
Chris Ironside explores masculine identities through his photography. Sometimes it’s very sexualized and could be considered pornographic, but he is dealing with a tough subject with Hard Candy: sexuality.
“I’m never about blatant pornography, he said. “I think pornographic images are lovely and I think they are lovely because of the oddest thing… it becomes a lot about muscle worship and less about ass and cocks.”
Locker-room talk: what men will and won't talk about
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Open publication - Free publishing
Empowering African immigrant women to raise sexually healthy children
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Open publication - Free publishing
Declining condom use among unmarried young adults
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Open publication - Free publishing
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Prostitution laws struck down (updated)
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Open publication - Free publishing
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Wednesday, December 1, 2010
Deconstructing mind games in the world of dating
By Vanessa Brown
Let's be honest here. What girl doesn't want to know what's going on inside a guy's head? While researching a story about why some men can't talk honestly about their feelings for a woman with other guys, I came across a fascinating book called The Game: Penetrating the secret society of pickup artists by Neil Strauss.
Even as a woman, I was sucked into it from the get-go. In a nutshell, it's a guide for self-conscious guys; by training them to play mind games with women, they'll have them eating out of their hands.
Don't get me wrong. I'm all for gaining the confidence needed to speak comfortably to the opposite sex. But is it really necessary to screw with a girl's head in order to achieve that task? Below is an excerpt from the book:
And so goes the game. Apparently it's worked for many men who used to equate approaching women with jumping off a bridge. I can understand what nerves can do to your confidence. But is that a woman's fault? What goes does it serve to trick her into liking you? Why not keep it simple and give a woman a compliment you actually mean? I personally keep my guard up around any man who's too charming. Maybe I'm jaded. But I think many women are smart enough to block "negs," if I may borrow Strauss's terminology.
Let's be honest here. What girl doesn't want to know what's going on inside a guy's head? While researching a story about why some men can't talk honestly about their feelings for a woman with other guys, I came across a fascinating book called The Game: Penetrating the secret society of pickup artists by Neil Strauss.
Even as a woman, I was sucked into it from the get-go. In a nutshell, it's a guide for self-conscious guys; by training them to play mind games with women, they'll have them eating out of their hands.
Don't get me wrong. I'm all for gaining the confidence needed to speak comfortably to the opposite sex. But is it really necessary to screw with a girl's head in order to achieve that task? Below is an excerpt from the book:
After approaching the group... the key is to ignore the woman you desire while winning over her friends - especially the men and anyone else likely to cockblock. If the target is attractive and used to men fawning all over her, the pickup artist must intrigue her by pretending to be unaffected by her charm. This is accomplished through the use of what he called a neg.
Neither compliment nor insult, a neg is something in between - an accidental insult or backhanded compliment. The purpose of a neg is to lower a woman's self esteem while actively displaying a lack of interest in her - by telling her she has lipstick on her teeth, for example, or offering her a piece of gum after she speaks.
And so goes the game. Apparently it's worked for many men who used to equate approaching women with jumping off a bridge. I can understand what nerves can do to your confidence. But is that a woman's fault? What goes does it serve to trick her into liking you? Why not keep it simple and give a woman a compliment you actually mean? I personally keep my guard up around any man who's too charming. Maybe I'm jaded. But I think many women are smart enough to block "negs," if I may borrow Strauss's terminology.
The Male Psyche - virginity and beyond
I spent a good long time talking to two 13-year-old boys about sex. Mostly all they said was "I don't know".
It was very frustrating. I felt like I couldn't get them to tell me the truth no matter how hard I tried. I asked them if they had ever watched pornography, one admitted he had only because it was on at a friends house and he wouldn't say much more than that. The other was adamant that he had never watched porn. I told him it was ok to watch porn, that when I was 13 I had like 3 gigs of porn. He still didn't say anything.
Afterward his older sister told me she knew for a fact that he had watched porn.
I am really becoming annoyed with the fact that sex is taboo. Neither of the boys felt like they could talk to anyone about sex. They thought it would be weird to talk to their parents, and said they didn't talk about it with their friends in a serious way.
So they know nothing, but they are 13 and becoming sexual beings. They want girl friends, they want to dabble in sexual experiences, but know nothing about their bodies or that of the opposite sex.
Why isn't this something everyone talks about? We all do it, why don't we talk about it?!
It was very frustrating. I felt like I couldn't get them to tell me the truth no matter how hard I tried. I asked them if they had ever watched pornography, one admitted he had only because it was on at a friends house and he wouldn't say much more than that. The other was adamant that he had never watched porn. I told him it was ok to watch porn, that when I was 13 I had like 3 gigs of porn. He still didn't say anything.
Afterward his older sister told me she knew for a fact that he had watched porn.
I am really becoming annoyed with the fact that sex is taboo. Neither of the boys felt like they could talk to anyone about sex. They thought it would be weird to talk to their parents, and said they didn't talk about it with their friends in a serious way.
So they know nothing, but they are 13 and becoming sexual beings. They want girl friends, they want to dabble in sexual experiences, but know nothing about their bodies or that of the opposite sex.
Why isn't this something everyone talks about? We all do it, why don't we talk about it?!
Why I hate my boobs
I have big breasts.
But that's really stating the obvious.
Yes, they're real. No, you can't touch them. But ask me again once I'm drunk and I know you a little better. It's none of your business how they factor into my sex life. No, you can't see them, perfect stranger. My eyes are up here.
I don't know what I hate more - the constant attention from dudes, or the jealousy from the ladies.
Guys, I can deal with. They're singular-minded for the most part and who doesn't like a little male attention? Guys don't comment on my boobs (unless fuelled by alcohol). I realize if I wear something cleavage-barring in front of drunk men, I will get looks and comments.
It's the girls I can't stand.
When I was in Grade 7 this group of "mean girls" started a rumour that I had implants. (And I remember thinking, 'I'm 12! What reasonable doctor, in their right mind, would allow a 12-year-old to get a breast augmentation!')
But that's really stating the obvious.
Yes, they're real. No, you can't touch them. But ask me again once I'm drunk and I know you a little better. It's none of your business how they factor into my sex life. No, you can't see them, perfect stranger. My eyes are up here.
I don't know what I hate more - the constant attention from dudes, or the jealousy from the ladies.
Guys, I can deal with. They're singular-minded for the most part and who doesn't like a little male attention? Guys don't comment on my boobs (unless fuelled by alcohol). I realize if I wear something cleavage-barring in front of drunk men, I will get looks and comments.
It's the girls I can't stand.
When I was in Grade 7 this group of "mean girls" started a rumour that I had implants. (And I remember thinking, 'I'm 12! What reasonable doctor, in their right mind, would allow a 12-year-old to get a breast augmentation!')
My introduction to manscaping
I was first introduced to manscaping several years ago. I came home after a late night at work and hopped into bed with my boyfriend. One thing led to another, and soon enough he was down to his boxer shorts.
And all of a sudden he was hairless.
After a year of dating a moderately hairy, blue-collar gent, it was quite a shock to come home to someone without any body-hair - chest, pubes, even legs and armpits.
And all of a sudden he was hairless.
After a year of dating a moderately hairy, blue-collar gent, it was quite a shock to come home to someone without any body-hair - chest, pubes, even legs and armpits.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Confessions of a Toronto sex worker
By Vanessa Brown
* Names have been changed to protect privacy
Meet Ruby Jeffrey. She's in her early 40s; she supports two teenage daughters, one of whom is in university; she'd talk to you for hours if you let her, with a comforting voice that would remind you of your mother's; she holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology. Ruby is aToronto
* Names have been changed to protect privacy
Meet Ruby Jeffrey. She's in her early 40s; she supports two teenage daughters, one of whom is in university; she'd talk to you for hours if you let her, with a comforting voice that would remind you of your mother's; she holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology. Ruby is a
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