February 7, 2004
THE UNQUENCHABLE THIRST:
Explicit ads target sex diseases among young (James Meikle, The Guardian, 07/02/04)
An explicit government advertising campaign will be launched by the Department of Health on Monday as part of a drive to reduce the rates of sexually transmitted diseases.
Radio advertisements will warn of the risk of developing genital warts and spoof Valentine cards will be distributed in clubs, student unions and other young people's social haunts.
One of the cards shows a pink teddy bear with its face twisted in pain and the message "I love you so much it hurts ... when I pee."
Another has a couple in a romantic sunset beach scene with rhyming verse: "Oh Valentine, since you came to me you're always in my thoughts, I'll never forget the night we met and you gave me genital warts." [...]
In the last 10 years, new sexually transmitted infections in England have more than doubled to nearly 1.5m a year. "We have a problem of growing seriousness," said Ms Johnson (Public Health Minister).
The government is however unlikely to run television campaigns on the issue, despite the famous tombstone HIV/Aids advertisements of the 1980s. Advisers think young people might think them too didactic.
The advisers are right. Today’s Mrs Grundys tend to intense and humourless social workers, activists and public health officials who harangue modern youth about the dangers of sex without ever mentioning morality or daring to suggest they should avoid it. That would be as shocking as an extra-marital affair was to the Victorians.
Modern sex education and public campaigns like this one range from the embarrassing to the boring and betray how quickly adults forget the painful, overwhelming and confusing intensity of romantic and sexual passions in youth. We can try to threaten and frighten them, but unless youth is taught to relate sex to the sacred, which alone can sublimate their passions in joy and purpose, campaigns for condoms, safe-sex and even abstinence will have all the appeal of Dr. Atkin’s diet and about the same degree of success.
Posted by Peter Burnet at February 7, 2004 9:27 AMWhy not give them a scarlet W?
Posted by: oj at February 7, 2004 1:11 PMOh, I'm a little more optimistic about the power of a good scare, and less optimistic about the ability of a campaign to "relate sex to the sacred." My father told me he was impressed by Army anti-VD films in the late '40s. Lots of scares and no sacredness there.
Posted by: PapayaSF at February 7, 2004 2:56 PMWhat's your beef with Atkins?
Posted by: David Cohen at February 7, 2004 4:27 PMDavid:
None in particular. Choose your own metaphor for self-denial. I have no beef with abstinence either.
Papaya:
And they all conquered the urge for casual sex and went off to lead faithul, fulfilling lives and sire many children? That must have been some film. I knew the U.S. army was good, but little did I appreciate just how good.
I think modern youth is generally about as influenced by this sort of stuff as boomers were by Reefer Madness.
Posted by: Peter B at February 7, 2004 5:20 PMExcept Reefer Madness was ridiculously inaccurate and hysterical, which is why it's so funny to anyone who's actually smoked pot. Of course the Army VD films weren't 100% effective, because nothing is, but I'm sure they were more effective than, say, a tasteful poster campaign. Another example: I never saw one, but there are some driver education films that show gory pictures of accident victims. Some before and after pictures of people with AIDS might well be scary enough to some that they would take better care of themselves.
Posted by: PapayaSF at February 7, 2004 7:47 PMTo most people today, LIFE is the sexually transmitted disease which they are most repulsed by. Herpes is a mere annoyance in comparison.
Posted by: Judd at February 8, 2004 7:49 AMSublimation. And cold showers. That ought to do the trick.
By the time kids need to make decisions about sex, they have already learned that it is supposed to be fun. Except maybe for Marabel Morgan, very seldom do the people who want to make it sacred remember to bring along the fun part.
Posted by: Harry Eagar at February 8, 2004 6:44 PMHarry:
That is exaggerated. Both men and women have sought marriage since the year dot and attributed transcendental qualities to it far beyond any material advantages, which can often be obtained with more freedom and less hassle elsewhere. Civilization is built on sublimation.
The best sex education I ever heard of was the priest who told a bunch of teenaged boys they were going to have difficult, disturbing urges and that, when that happened, he wanted them to play basketball.
Posted by: Peter B at February 9, 2004 6:28 AMThe urges are pretty much 24/7 and nobody can play basketball around the clock.
Same with using basketball as an alternative to street crime.
Many years ago, a reporter I worked with wanted to do a story about muggers. Being a kid from the slums, he knew where to go -- the local basketball hall that was run for the down-and-outers by a reformed criminals.
My friend Harry Williams: "Mike, you got any muggers here?"
Mike: "Take your pick."
Posted by: Harry Eagar at February 9, 2004 3:24 PM