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Imagine a society where pre-marital sex, pornography, homosexuality, and even contraception were frowned upon by most or a large percentage of citizens - this was the U.S. and most Western societies after World War II. Although there may have been a lot of hypocrisy, out in the open these things were at the least cast in a negative light and, at the most, condemned.
Taboos fell at an unprecedented rate in the post-WWII years. Contraception, already on the brink of being condoned for married couples, became definitively accepted and normalized by 1970 with the introduction of more efficient, hormonal methods, women going to work, awareness of a potential overpopulation problem, and other factors; today, the overwhelming majority of Americans - even religious Americans - not only tolerate, but encourage contraceptive sex. The taboos on pre-marital sexuality were perhaps next to fall, as men and women could now more fully control their reproductive potential, and there was always the option of abortion if that failed. The acquisition of pornography, which previously implied ventures into seedy neighborhoods, was facilitated first by the advent of video rental shops and cable networks, and later became almost ubiquitous with the internet. It too seeped into the mainstream culture, and although the majority of Americans still view it as "immoral", its cultural presence, as well as its potential for great pleasure, portend well for its future acceptance, especially among the male populace. There is now a growing movement against "****-shaming" among "sex-positive" feminists, as well.
Some numbers to prove this phenomenon:
Quote:
Immorality is indeed rising at a rapid clip. A May Gallup poll reveals that Americans’ tolerance of a number of moral issues has risen over the past 12 years:
19 percent increase in acceptance of gay and lesbian relations (59 percent approve)
15 percent increase in acceptance of having a baby outside marriage (60 percent approve)
10 percent increase in acceptance of sex between unmarried people (63 percent approve)
14 percent increase in the acceptance of polygamy (14 percent approve)
1 percent increase in acceptance of pornography (31 percent approve)
So, at what point will this social tide against long-established sexual mores end?
My predictions are as follows:
> A vastly increasing number of American children are born outside wedlock, especially in the minority communities; in some, it is the norm. Marriage and childbearing will become increasingly decoupled; notice the "childfree by choice" movement and the increasing rate of children born to unmarried parents. Those who are more economically secure will probably still marry or get married within some years of the child being born. In this way the United States will resemble Scandinavia today.
> Premarital sex will be increasingly accepted as the oldest generations die off and the "Millennials" and the generation after them (no standardized name has been attached, but they are being born), reaching 80-90% acceptance by 2030. Sex outside a committed relationship will also rise in acceptance.
> The two prior situations, combined with the increased openness about sexual matters, will make it common for a mother or father to bring multiple partners home and later discuss their exploits with their children, at least in some social circles. Parallels will be drawn between their practices and those of pop stars.
> Porn stars will crossover into the mainstream, and mainstream pop stars will cross over increasingly into porn. At times, the works will be largely intertwined. Increased tolerance of pornography and the idea that this is not harmful to minors (or an inevitable practice among them) will cause popular TV shows, movies, etc. to increasingly include sexually explicit scenes, which today would be considered definitely pornographic.
> Bestiality or zoophilia was, in many places and times, a widespread phenomena; in some rare contexts, fully accepted. With fewer Americans living on farms, I do not see this repeating itself; however, an increasing number of broad-minded, intellectual citizens who do not necessarily see a connection between the revolting and the unethical, will come to see a possibility for ethical bestiality as long as no harm is done to the animal. Certain philosophers (i.e. Peter Singer) already hold this view.
> The devaluation of the sexual act will lead to a more tolerant view of consensual sexual activity between adults and teenagers; perhaps the age of consent will be lowered further in some states. The level of "consent" required for a sexual act will be debated in some circles; some will see nothing wrong with relations between a 30-year-old "teacher" and a 12-year-old "student". Declining ages of puberty will also play a role. Note that adult-child sex was widely practiced in some cultures.
The devolution of sexual mores: How much further will it go?
Just watched the latest Miley Cyrus video... the one that has her riding naked on a wrecking ball. It's pretty amazing that kind of stuff is now "mainstream entertainment".
Still, the morality pendulum swings back and forth over time. Things went from crazy-modest in the Victorian era to equally risqué stuff starting back back in the 20's-30's (even to the point the military allowed paintings of naked ladies on their bombers in during WW2) and then back to obsessive morals in the 50s.
Judging by history, I suspect the mainstream "pendulum" will swing back towards obsessive morality in the future yet again... for better or worse.
How do you explain teen births have fallen by more than half in the past 43 years? Sounds at least a little like kids are more responsible than when you grew up. The birth rate is also the lowest its been in recorded history in the US. By the way if there is any bestiality it will be in the RED states. Seriously think about that. Divorces, Porn, Snap, EIC, all of that is very prevalent in the Red States. If there is a Gomorrah I am pretty sure Republicans will be leading the way.
Although there may have been a lot of hypocrisy, out in the open these things were at the least cast in a negative light and, at the most, condemned.
I think that the decrease in hypocrisy is actually a good thing. We should not allow others to determine what consenting adults can do in the privacy of our own homes.
How do you explain teen births have fallen by more than half in the past 43 years? Sounds at least a little like kids are more responsible than when you grew up. The birth rate is also the lowest its been in recorded history in the US. By the way if there is any bestiality it will be in the RED states. Seriously think about that. Divorces, Porn, Snap, EIC, all of that is very prevalent in the Red States. If there is a Gomorrah I am pretty sure Republicans will be leading the way.
Few societies ever forbid men from having premarital sex - certainly American society never did. The ban was just for women, so men would leave the "good women" alone in their inevitable adventures outside of marriage.
I don't see bestiality making a comeback, and I don't see adult/teen sex becoming any more widespread than it is now let alone as widespread as it was in the 1950s-80s. I don't see ages of consent coming down. I certainly don't see true pedophilia ever being acceptable, unless the US turns to Sharia - and if that happens, there would be a host of other radical changes that would go along with it.
Its hard to predict the direction of immorality, except to say that it will almost certainly continue to increase. I think the birth rate will continue to decline, and intact families with a husband and wife and THEIR children will become a smaller and smaller percentage of the population. For most, sex very early in the dating relationship will continue. Marriage will become less popular, and swinging will become more popular and more mainstream. Other than that, I have no idea.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tvdxer
Imagine a society where pre-marital sex, pornography, homosexuality, and even contraception were frowned upon by most or a large percentage of citizens - this was the U.S. and most Western societies after World War II. Although there may have been a lot of hypocrisy, out in the open these things were at the least cast in a negative light and, at the most, condemned.
Taboos fell at an unprecedented rate in the post-WWII years. Contraception, already on the brink of being condoned for married couples, became definitively accepted and normalized by 1970 with the introduction of more efficient, hormonal methods, women going to work, awareness of a potential overpopulation problem, and other factors; today, the overwhelming majority of Americans - even religious Americans - not only tolerate, but encourage contraceptive sex. The taboos on pre-marital sexuality were perhaps next to fall, as men and women could now more fully control their reproductive potential, and there was always the option of abortion if that failed. The acquisition of pornography, which previously implied ventures into seedy neighborhoods, was facilitated first by the advent of video rental shops and cable networks, and later became almost ubiquitous with the internet. It too seeped into the mainstream culture, and although the majority of Americans still view it as "immoral", its cultural presence, as well as its potential for great pleasure, portend well for its future acceptance, especially among the male populace. There is now a growing movement against "****-shaming" among "sex-positive" feminists, as well.
So, at what point will this social tide against long-established sexual mores end?
My predictions are as follows:
> A vastly increasing number of American children are born outside wedlock, especially in the minority communities; in some, it is the norm. Marriage and childbearing will become increasingly decoupled; notice the "childfree by choice" movement and the increasing rate of children born to unmarried parents. Those who are more economically secure will probably still marry or get married within some years of the child being born. In this way the United States will resemble Scandinavia today.
> Premarital sex will be increasingly accepted as the oldest generations die off and the "Millennials" and the generation after them (no standardized name has been attached, but they are being born), reaching 80-90% acceptance by 2030. Sex outside a committed relationship will also rise in acceptance.
> The two prior situations, combined with the increased openness about sexual matters, will make it common for a mother or father to bring multiple partners home and later discuss their exploits with their children, at least in some social circles. Parallels will be drawn between their practices and those of pop stars.
> Porn stars will crossover into the mainstream, and mainstream pop stars will cross over increasingly into porn. At times, the works will be largely intertwined. Increased tolerance of pornography and the idea that this is not harmful to minors (or an inevitable practice among them) will cause popular TV shows, movies, etc. to increasingly include sexually explicit scenes, which today would be considered definitely pornographic.
> Bestiality or zoophilia was, in many places and times, a widespread phenomena; in some rare contexts, fully accepted. With fewer Americans living on farms, I do not see this repeating itself; however, an increasing number of broad-minded, intellectual citizens who do not necessarily see a connection between the revolting and the unethical, will come to see a possibility for ethical bestiality as long as no harm is done to the animal. Certain philosophers (i.e. Peter Singer) already hold this view.
> The devaluation of the sexual act will lead to a more tolerant view of consensual sexual activity between adults and teenagers; perhaps the age of consent will be lowered further in some states. The level of "consent" required for a sexual act will be debated in some circles; some will see nothing wrong with relations between a 30-year-old "teacher" and a 12-year-old "student". Declining ages of puberty will also play a role. Note that adult-child sex was widely practiced in some cultures.
The age of consent has actually gone up since the 1950s (check out the ages allowed for marriage for an example), and awareness of child, sexual, and domestic abuse has also risen since the 1960s. Spousal rape is now illegal; it wasn't in the 1970s. There are a lot of factors influencing pre-marital sex rates, especially the rising rates of high school students going to college rather than getting married right out of high school.
So one way to look at this is that sexual liberty has increased for people who are adults or are almost adults, while the de jure right to hurt others physically and sexually has decreased. If people are delaying marriage compared to the past, it makes sense that they would be sexually active at roughly the same time that they would have gotten married before. I don't think the sky is falling here.
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The devolution of sexual mores: How much further will it go?
