Inside Gloria's Mind

Dirty species

When I was an impressionable young 7th grader at John J. Pershing in Brooklyn, a substitute sitting in for our biology teacher showed up one day clutching a book she had selected from her own library. I remember she was young and thin and delicately pretty and dressed sexy for a teacher, in a short silk frock and high heels. Nothing like our regular biology teacher, who was decidedly butch in every possible way.

The substitute read aloud a section which described, in hypnotically explicit detail, the sex life of sticklebacks. Our class was not studying fish or any other animals' mating rituals, so it was confusing, especially since the book was clearly not written for 12 year olds.  While my classmates fidgeted and drooled in boredom, I fell under the substitute's spell, fascinated by the incredible depravity and obscenity coming out of her little lipsticked mouth.  It was just so incomprehensibly dirty, the things those fish did. I loved it. And, obviously, never forgot the sub's perverse little game with 7th graders either.

I was reminded of this when I stumbled across this species of mammal, whose male has a four-headed (two heads interchangeable, in case you were wondering) penis. And, yup, that's all I'm going to say.

Behold the spiny anteater.

Four heads, no waiting, and used only for sex (not urination).

The lucky lady.

They have a female-led relationship: she's always on top.

And should the four heads fail, his tongue's not bad either.

Images from Scribbly Gum

What happens in the backyard stays in the backyard

Pole-dancing squirrel courtesy of Quill.

Do you know your nipples?

Be honest.

Have you ever pronounced this like this?

Nipples point to economic woes for UK media

Popbitch observes that flaccid sales are currently making UK print media fixate on boobs to boost circulation. So to speak.

We’ve noticed a strange trend occurring in the daily newspapers since The Audit Bureau of Circulations released their figures for 2008 earlier this month.

Amongst other things, they revealed that The Sun’s circulation is down by 1.43% on last year, The Daily Star’s is down by 7.19% and The Daily Mirror’s is down by 8.3%. That being so, it now looks as though the free London papers are making a play for those wayward smut-hungry readers by introducing a little more filth into their print - one nipple at a time.

Read: A nipple a day

FOUND: Tattoo Sexploitation

Another sexploitation film from the 60s. I guess when Paris Secret was released, the mere image of a tattooed woman caused gasps. If only they knew...

Vanity, thy name is Gloria (and Ginsberg and Gioia)

I decided to create an album of photos on FaceBook for pix of my garden. Having recently learned to use the camera we bought last year (only took me 8 months to get around to reading the doc), I'm now determined to take lots and lots of pix outside. I'm really psyched for spring this year, especially since I added about 300 new bulbs to the garden in the last month.

Was hoping that -- since I designated it as open to everyone -- that you might be able to get there via google, and without having to join FB, but alas, no.   I googled "Gloria Brame Garden" and instead came up with these surprises:  excerpts/reprints of some interviews I did in the 1990s with poets.   Very odd.  Maybe I should've typed "Gloria Brame poetry" to find the FaceBook garden album.

People who only know me since I've been out in the BDSM in the mid-1980s don't know I had a whole other life as a poet and literary writer.  I wrote and published poetry, I taught poetry (at Hofstra and York-CUNY colleges), I edited some poetry magazines.  Somewhere along the poetry line, I also did a series of interviews with poets.  People liked them so much they got reprinted quite a bit.  Still, it was a surprise to see them pop up yesterday -- especially the first one, on a pro-Iran political site (!).  They excerpted some comments from a two-part interview I conducted with Allen Ginsberg.  The first one at his tiny little office on E. 14th Street, where he was incredibly charming and warm, in 1990.  SPIN magazine was going to publish it but backed out at the last minute, so it was gathering dust in my files when ELF (a small literary magazine where I was Editorial Advisor) asked if I'd do a follow-up so they could publish the whole piece.  Allen was very ill when I spoke with him in 1996 but generous enough to grant me some time.  According to his official biographer, it was the last interview he granted before he died.   The excerpt below actually comes from Allen's 1990 interview.  Still relevant, though, isn't it?

Interview with Gloria Brame (1996)

In one of his last interviews, with Dr. Gloria G. Brame in the summer of 1996, Allen Ginsberg proposed that the U.S. apologize for the overthrow of Mossadegh, among other crimes.

Q: Going back to poetry--will you write another "Howl"?

Allen Ginsberg: Well, it would be impossible. But I'd like to write something that addressed the increasing strangulation of liberty in America, and the corruptions of the government in violating the soul.

Q: By violating individual rights?

Allen Ginsberg: There's the national soul, the national spirit. It has been violated by our government's actions. I think we, as a nation, need to apologize. One of the things we would have to apologize for, which would be included in such a poem, would be the overthrow in Iran, which led to the Shah and then the Ayatollah. That's CIA business. Or the destabilization of Prince Sihanouk of Cambodia, which led to the killing fields. There's the destabilization of Chile, in the early Seventies. We have to apologize for not signing the Geneva Treaty ending the French Indochina War. We have to apologize for maintaining the death squads military in Salvador. We have to apologize for violating international law in mining the harbors of Nicaragua, which was judged by the World Court to be in violation of law. We have to apologize for loosing hyper-industrialization on the world, which is destroying the environment. We have to apologize for the murder of the Native Americans. We have to apologize for maintaining slavery for several hundred years, then denying African-Americans the vote until my lifetime, a hundred years after the Civil War, and for still maintaining a racist outlook and laws. There is a lot we have to apologize for.

Q: You wish to make those apologies in your poem?

Allen Ginsberg: That's a good way of beginning it. "I, America, hereby apologize for..." You gave me a great idea! It would have to be a poem that was full of grief, because I think that's the heart of America at the moment. Not the bravado, and the chauvinism, and the violence--these things are the mask of grief for what we've done to ourselves and to the world.

Allen Ginsberg: Iran Was OUR Hostage For 25 Years, Jack!

Ironically, the very same google searched turned up an interview I did with a poet from the opposite end of the political spectrum, Dana Gioia was who appointed head of the National Endowment for the Arts by the younger George Bush.  Long before he got to Washington, Dana and I were friends, and he kindly gave me an intensive 2-part interview.  It too was published by ELF.  You can read the Dana Gioia piece HERE

(Oh yeah: and if you're on Facebook, please feel free to Friend me -- just remember I am a "for adults only" kinda woman so let your discretion, and your lifestyle, be your guide.)

Microbicide to prevent herpes shows promise

Although the reportage here makes it sound as if this microbicide will work on humans, please note it's only been tested on mice thus far. It will be a while before they test on humans, and that means it may be years (several, even many) before it will be available to the public. The FDA is notoriously slow on approving new medications, and they seldom seem particularly anxious to approve sex-positive ones. (hint, hint, Mr. Obama)

Still, it's great news that scientists may be on the verge of a microbicide you can schmear on like lube to prevent transmission of herpes during intercourse. Wouldn't it be nice if they also, one day, made one in a tasty, safely digestible form to prevent infection from oral sex? (Which, by the way, is probably the most common way people give/receive herpes.) Well, a sexologist can dream.

A new external vaginal treatment works to protect against genital herpes infection for as long as a week, a new study has found.

The topical microbicide works by "silencing" two genes, and was shown effective in mice, the study released Wednesday by Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University and Harvard Medical School found.

The treatment backed by Alnylam Pharmaceuticals Inc. protected mice from simplex 2, which causes genital herpes, according to Dr Deborah Palliser of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, one of the study's co-authors.

Microbicide can help avoid herpes infection: study

My bedogged life

Snapped before dinner tonight.

Fashionista Feh-Pas

Since announcements last year that Scarlett Johansson was going to be the "new face" of Dolce & Gabbana, while Pam Anderson was going to be walking the runway for Vivienne Westwood, fashionistas have been chewing their enameled fingernails, waiting to see how and if these actresses' unique looks would show off the clothing lines to advantage. Not that I'm a fashion maven but IMHO, neither of these efforts work to anyone's advantage.

Maybe the economy is so bad now that D&G hired Joe the Plumber to run creative because the best they could come up with was another Marilyn impersonation. I don't understand the logic behind hiring a unique beauty like Scarlett and then making her look like someone else. She's way prettier just being Scarlett. I've seen better Marilyns in Pride parades.

Now, Westwood doesn't design pretty. She designs strange. Her choice of Pam Anderson therefore makes sense because it's the strangest possible choice for a designer whose fashions usually make everyone look like gothic third-world ragamuffins (as opposed to the whole Big-Titted Beach Barbie look that Ms. Anderson favors). The combination of the two?  Well...let's just say that if this crew ever hitched their way out of the trailer park, I'd be scared.

Klum golly golly golly

Heidi Klum showing off her many exquisite assets in Jordache's new SM-chic, BDSM-themed ad campaign.

BDSM, Irish-style

A lively account by a non-kinky Irish writer about her first visit to a BDSM event, starting with her difficulty in getting through the front door:

'Come on, I look much sluttier than she does!" I found myself arguing the odds with the doorman of a city- centre nightclub last week, while jealously pointing to an unsuspecting individual who had just gained access.

I was attempting to get into Nimhneach, a fetish and BDSM (bondage, domination and submission, sadism and masochism) night held regularly in The Academy on Abbey Street. Nimhneach has an incredibly strict dress code -- presumably in order to keep out spectators like me -- and I had just been informed that neither I nor my companion fitted the bill.

"She has pink hair," the doorman said, in defence of his decision to let the less sluttily dressed punter in. "What!" I screeched. "Is this some type of elitist snobbery? Am I too normal looking?" He nodded in acquiescense. "Yes. Too vanilla."

The slave trade.

FOUND: Vintage voyeuristic humor

Leggo My Dommo

Thanks to T. for sharing this!

And now the dirty details (more on Ted Haggard)

The young man who recently revealed he had a sexual (or sexual-type) relationship with Pastor Haggard has spilled the beans to a radio station, providing details of their sordid contretemps.

The only thing even more impressive than Haggard's delusional creepiness is this young man's Dorothean naiveté.  Honey, that wasn't God you saw: it was an oversexed man. Yeah, I know: sometimes they look the same to me too.

The latest revelations involve Grant Haas, who told the TV station that he met Haggard in 2005 when he was 22. 

He said he told Haggard that he had been kicked out of a Moody Bible Institute in Chicago for his "struggles with homosexuality."  "It seemed like at that moment his eyes lit up and his whole attitude towards me changed," he told KRDO.

.... "I'm like, 'This must be God,'" said Haas, who described wanting to be a pastor himself. "Why would this big guy, this big evangelical leader, be taking such an interest in me?"

Haas told KRDO that one night in Cripple Creek, a casino town west of Colorado Springs, Haggard "asked me if we were going to be godly or bad that night." He said he told Haggard that he wanted him just to be his friend and pastor — but Haggard masturbated in front of him.

Haas also said Haggard at certain times sent him between 1,000 and 2,000 text message a month, some describing his sexual experiences and drug use from the road.

Haas described how church fathers tried to buy his silence.

The church has said it struck a legal settlement with the man — it has not named Haas — in 2007 that paid him for college tuition and counseling as long as he did not speak publicly about the relationship. Brady Boyd, Haggard's successor as pastor at New Life, called it "compassionate assistance — certainly not hush money."

According to documents Haas provided KRDO, he is to be paid $179,000 through 2009. Haas claimed the church didn't follow through on promises to pay for counseling and medical treatment.

"Their main focus was, you know, cover it up, don't say anything," he said. "You'll regret it if you come forward."

Haggard Faces New Sex Allegations

Blooming Now: January 27th in the Garden

Just quickly ran outside to take these.  It's still winter and a bit dismal in the garden though I'm so happy to have my evergreens to brighten things.

Some things are already beginning to wake up, like this shyly blooming camellia.

The hillside whose daffodils always bloom early is starting its annual show

We divided and replanted some of the early-blooming daffs, so they now dot the landscape.

A potted daphne has been setting buds for weeks, and the flowers should be opening very soon. The fragrance of this briefly-blooming shrub is intoxicating.

Heavenly bamboo is so reliable, it looks good in every season. The bright berries are especially welcome in a winter landscape.

Hellebore (also known as Lenten Rose) is now poking flower heads through layers of fallen leaves.

And infinite numbers of wild birds and squirrels are foraging. Except for the female squirrel which claimed sole possession of our corn feeder and fights bitter territorial battles with intruders. On the other hand, Will saw the squirrel get totally pwned by a tag-team of brazen cardinals who wanted some corn too.

The only one who doesn't enjoy the meager pleasures of the winter garden is Apollo. He can't stand getting his little paws wet OR cold. Give him his bed, his blankets, and his stuffed piggie, and he'd just as soon hibernate all winter.

FOUND: Sweet Set of Silhouettes

Found this charming pair of erotic silhouettes somewhere a while back.  Hard to tell if they are genuine vintage erotica or a modern return to the form.  Can't quite make out the artist's signature either, so once again, turn to my erudite readers: anyone know the artist or whether these were part of a larger series?

 

Yoko Ono, Sexier than Jessica Alba

How many of you remember when this photo first appeared in the late 60s?  It was shocking to people then and stirred enormous public criticism.  I think this classic image of Yoko Ono and John Lennon remains as intensely erotic and powerful today as it was 40 years ago.  It is also a powerful feminist statement.  Yoko looks like a goddess and John obviously worshiped her.  It feels emotionally real.

Decades later, someone spoofed it, using Bruce Willis and Demi Moore (can't tell if this was a real cover).  Not to take anything away from Moore's beauty, but Willis' smirk and possessive hand on her ass (note his gleaming wedding band, sanctifying his ownership) turns it into idiot kitsch.   Lennon's photo was revolutionary.  Willis' is propaganda.

The complete degradation of Lennon's artistic concept came a couple of years ago when someone thought the poster below would make people want to see "Good Luck Chuck."  Hard to believe anything could make Jessica Alba look unsexy, but Dane Cook cloned to her side succeeded.  She looks like she's gone to her happy place, which is somewhere miles and miles away from her co-star.

Fearlessly Fanciful Fashion for Men

Men, if you've been wishing for something to jazz up your wardrobe, fashion designer John Galliano offers a collection to make a metrosexual's toes twinkle. 

You'll look smashing in these new patriotic girl-garters, with non-matching black socks and boy-garters.  Don't forget the pink swim cap for that extra je-ne-sais-quoi.

Nothing beats the urban chic of a Faustus wig with extra fuzz you can glue to your chest.

Unless, of course, you go for the whole goatboy/Day of the Dead/Big Bird look. 

(Is that a Minnie Pearl-style pricetag on his head, or is he just not playing with a full deck?)

Portraits of Kink

Thanks to N. for pointing me to this NY Times review of what promises to be an engrossing read. Anyone familiar with this author or his previous work? 

Daniel Bergner, 48, the divorced father of two teenage children, is what sexologists would call a straight, vanilla teleiophile. He is attracted to adults, that is, prefers the opposite sex and doesn’t shop for lovemaking accessories — clothespins, clamps, carabiners, rubber gloves — at Home Depot. He has never allowed himself to be basted with honey, naked except for a leather jockstrap, and roasted on a spit over glowing coals.

A man who did just that during an S&M orgy, however, figures in The Other Side of Desire: Four Journeys into the Far Realms of Lust and Longing.  So do a couple who pick up sex toys at the hardware store and a man who, all things considered, would just as soon have sex with a horse as with a woman. “The trust factor,” he said, explaining his preference to Mr. Bergner. “I find that I’m closer to horses.”

More Haggardly Schadenfreude

...comes with the news that Pastor Ted Haggard -- the gay anti-gay apostate -- didn't just do it with a male escort:  he also had an "inappropriate" relationship with someone who is so young that Church officials are insisting that they're sure the kid was legal at the time.  Because, you know, a man who'd preach hate against homosexuals while hiding his secret life as a gay meth addict would never do anything wrong.

What world do these people live in? I regret to say they live in a Christian Fundamentalist world where you are told never to question, never to doubt, and simply to place your faith in stuff, including things that don't make a lick of sense.  The fact that they paid off the kid to silence his claims proves this Church hasn't learned a thing from The Haggard Homosexual Experience. It's business as usual: conceal, deceive and pretend.

Teddy Boy is not responding to the "overwhelming proof" that the affair occurred, and instead forwarding queries to some poor beleaguered PR person for an upcoming HBO documentary about Haggard.  Morever, coming at a time when Haggard's trying, once again, to pretend he isn't gay and has been "cured" of his natural sexual orientation (that's right, color me Dubious), and pick up evangelism where he left off, his young beau's plan to tell all to a radio station must be inconvenient.  After all, why think about unpleasant things like personal accountability when you're spreading the Lord's word?

Must be quite the emotional roller-coaster for the publicist, the producers, the director and everyone associated with the production.   On one hand, if Haggard lied to HBO about having only one that one tawdry affair with a hustler, this latest revelation fucks their script (and if the documentary's in the can, they are really fucked).   If they did a "true story" type of documentary, this news now puts into question everything Haggard told them: just how many other gay skeletons lurk in Teddy Boy's creepy closet?  On the other, what could beat this sensational buzz for free PR in advance of the airing, and the knowledge that a far bigger audience will now tune in, if only to see how HBO handles the latest development.

Ah, the modern world.  If you don't love it, you might feel like killing yourself over it.

FOUND: Barrel of Love

No information about this antique bronze erotic plaything.  Doesn't seem to have any practical use, other than to delight the person who looks inside.

Thank you, Mr. President

For doing another good deed.

Officials: Obama to reverse abortion policy

In a long-expected move, President Barack Obama plans to sign an executive order ending the ban on federal funds for international groups that perform abortions or provide information on the option, officials told The Associated Press on Friday.

Liberal groups welcomed the decision while abortion rights foes criticized the president. Known as the "Mexico City policy," the ban has been reinstated and then reversed by Republican and Democratic presidents since GOP President Ronald Reagan established it in 1984. President Bill Clinton ended the ban in 1993, but President George W. Bush re-instituted it in 2001 as one of his first acts in office.

A day in the life of a sex toy seller

For a while now, the Oxygen channel has been running infomercials for sex toys late at night.  It's been interesting to see nubile hairsprayed ladies pimp buttplugs the way matronly hairsprayed ladies push jewelry on QVC.

Now The Learning Channel is taking adult toys to a new level on TV, with a reality show about the owner of a sex-toy company. Might be worth setting up the DVD for this one.

TLC has a new reality show called "Mother Knows Sex." Sounds titillating!

The show chronicles the daily life of Patty Brisben, the matriarch of family business, Pure Romance, which sells sex toys through a network of independent distributors similar to Tupperware -- except with dildos.

TLC launches reality show about sex toy business.

FOX News fists the Obamas

via Susie Bright

Presumably, she's referring to their habit of bumping their fists together but O.M.G., where does Fox find them???

FOUND: What day is this?

Oh, yeah, it's Sin Day!

Looks like it's from the 1940s. 

A little confused: is it a two dollar love novel or a twenty-five cent nudist novel?  What is a nudist novel, anyway-- a story about people taking off their clothes?  And if she's a nudist, why is she dressed?  Oh, yes, so many questions!  In fact, one more:  anyone out there familiar with this funky old pulp series? 

I love her fabulous peep-toe, ankle-tie shoes.

Death by pheremones

Long ago and far away, in another time/space continuum, I worked on Wall Street as a junior financial analyst, following the chemicals industry. I can't believe it either, but there it is. Anyway, I used to attend these swank analysts' luncheons at NY's 21 Club hosted by Hercules, Inc. (now Ashland).  At one of them, they screened a film about their latest method of protecting crops from locusts.

I was only partly in attendance: a very significant part of me was staring up at the grotesque death-heads on display. Not sure if it's still there, but back in the 1980s anyway, the 21 Club had a dining room upstairs whose walls were lined with mounted animal heads. We're talking buffalo and moose and other sad gigantic beasts, all staring accusingly through glass eyes at you as you timidly sliced your filet mignon.

At one event, I broke their death-gaze to look up at a film some VP was screening and it was crazier than kink.com.  Thousands of locusts were fucking leaves they mistook for mates because scientists had recently invented a jim-dandy pheromone-based spray that tricked them into involuntary leaf-rape.   The idea is not to kill but to keep them from successful reproduction.  I was particularly impressed when I heard the sound of thousands of wings flapping.   Until that point, it had been a silent movie. But then I realized that the noise wasn't coming from the screen. Coffee had just been served and all around me, white men in dark suits were shaking their sugar packets simultaneously, their synchronization better than the Rockettes down the street. 

Anyway, that was in the mid-80s, and since then, the use of pheremones for bug/insect control has become almost commonplace.  Less common, though, is attempting to use this technology to control the spread of other species.   Scientists are now working to vanquish the vicious lampreys who are threatening the eco-system of The Great Lakes.

A synthetic "chemical sex smell" could help rid North America's Great Lakes of a devastating pest, scientists say. US researchers deployed a laboratory version of a male sea lamprey pheromone to trick ovulating females into swimming upstream into traps.

Sex smell lures 'vampire' to doom.

If they succeed at a high level with this, one has to wonder whether they will continue to experiment up the evolutionary chain.

Deidre does oral

A remarkably straight-forward, friendly little guide to performing oral sex, penned by a British sex therapist.

My favorite line:

At this point it is important not to move away from the clitoris.

Dear Deidre

I want a t-shirt that says that.

I looked through several other of her guides, and they all strike the same note, a mixture of graphic detail and motherly comfort.   Check out what she advises about fetish sex., for example.

Domme De Dogs

Sure, everyone knows about Cesar whats-his-face, the Dog Whisperer, who can magically transform misbehaving mongrels into mild-mannered mama's boys through soft vocalizations and sweet, gentle correction. Yeah, yeah, a regular Mr. Rogers for dogs, how vanilla.  But do you know about the dominatrix of dogdom, Victoria Stilwell?   The dog trainer who can really make viewers (well, kinky ones, anyway) sit up and beg is the woman in charge of "It's Me Or The Dog."

From a cheeky little Aussie review of the show.

Mistress Victoria herself is a revelation. With severe black fringe, long leather boots and a habit of striding into rooms with a no-nonsense frown and a worryingly sexy paddle, she's like Nigella Lawson meets Anne Robinson from The Weakest Link and she's absolutely wonderful. If you were a dog you'd do what she said without question.

I want her to come and live at my house and boss me around and make me behave. After she's finished with me I'd just like her to hang about in her big boots looking a bit foxy and draping herself provocatively over my furniture, but that's neither here nor there.

Mistress Victoria plays at the fox and hounds

Go on, admit it: you'd wag your tail for her.

Doubletree caves to Conservative Christians

With all the hype and excitement over the inauguration, you may have missed this depressing bit of news about an SM event that was cancelled because of pressure from ring-wing Christian groups.  Spear-headed by the always profoundly disgusting Peter Barbera -- a right-winger so obsessed with SM that he constantly infiltrates events so he may report back the most scandalous details to his followers -- a Doubletree hotel in the DC area issued a last-minute cancellation of the event.

Follow the link below to read the full story. Excerpted here is the cancellation email sent to party-goers.

"As many of you know, extreme Christian groups have been pressuring Doubletree to cancel the "Obama Inauguration Pig Sex Orgy." For two days, the hotel stood firm while the accusations and falsehoods kept coming in. Just this morning, I told the management of Doubletree how impressed I was that they resisted the calls to shut us down. Unfortunately, the matter escalated to Doubletree Corporate, and the word has come down that they will not allow our event to go on as planned. To say that I am pissed would be an understatement. We have a right to privacy and sexual freedom. I appreciate the efforts of the Centaurs in helping us set this up and fight the cancellation. I want to apologize to each of you who, some who have been with me for 9 years, for having to disappoint you at the 11th hour."

read the whole story

Sweden gets SM right!

Fantastic, exciting news from our friends in Sweden, from the mailing list for the group "Revise F65" which has been dedicated to educating and motivating the medical community to stop treating kinky sex as if it was a disease. They've succeeded! Kinky sex will no longer be viewed or treated as pathological in Sweden, and European activists are getting closer to convincing doctors in Norway to do the same.

Below, the full history on this victory for rational thinking:

Fetishism and Sadomasochism, along with four other sexual behaviours, has been struck from Sweden's official list of medical diagnoses since January 1st, 2009.

Monday 17th of November 2008, the Swedish National Board of Health and Welfare (Socialstyrelsen) announced that six diagnoses of sexual behaviours will be deleted from Sweden's official version of medical ICD diagnoses. The six diagnoses include sadomasochism, fetishism, transvestism, fetishistic transvestitism, gender identity disorder in youth, and multiple disorders of sexual preferences. http://www.thelocal.se/15728/20081117/

It all started 23rd of November 2006 when Mika Nielsen wrote an article in the biggest Gay and Lesbian swedish online newspaper QX. She encouraged the Swedish sexual political movement to follow the example of the Norwegian "Revise F65" pioneer group and start the work to remove transvestism and BDSM-diagnoses from the ICD-10.  http://www.qx.se/nyheter/artikel.php?artikelid=4727 [Sorry. Swedish text only]

A working group was established after the model of Revise F65 with members from Swedish gay, lesbian and heterosexual fetish and SM groups (Club Sade, LASH, Club Sunrise, Dekadance and RFSL). Mika Nielsen wrote a new article in "Ottar", the newspaper of RFSU (the Swedish Association for Sexuality Education). Once more she referred to the Norwegian Revise F65 efforts. http://www.rfsu.se/smisk_eller_vanilj_hur_gor_du_det_.asp - [Sorry. Swedish text only]

The winter of 2007 the congress of RFSU for the first time in history decided to work for education about fetishism and BDSM and to work for abolishment of the same diagnoses as is on the agenda of Revise F65. The Swedish Lesbian and Gay Organization RFSL was however not willing to support this agenda in the same way as the Norwegian Gay Organization LLH did in 1997.

Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, celebrated Europride in July/August 2008. As the leader of Revise F65 I was invited to have talks with the RFSU BDSM group and give a presentation about the Revise F65 work 29th of July 2008. I shared all our information, arguments and experience with the RFSU group and also participated in two BDSM panel discussions.

Revise F65 is very happy to have supported Sweden in their important work. Now we really feel the Swedish decision as a big support and encouragement to bring about the same changes in Norway. The Norwegian Directorate of Health has announced that they will take a decision before May 1st 2009.

The Norwegian Directorate of Health attended a professional lecture from psychologist. Odd Reiersøl in Sidney 2007 about the F65 diagnoses and the Revise F65 group have for several years argued with The Norwegian Directorate of Health to remove the diagnoses in question. In 2003 we also delivered an open letter to The Norwegian Ministry of Health and Care Services asking them to remove fetishism, transvestism and sadomasochism as diagnoses from the Norwegian version of ICD-10. We never got any answer from them.

In the June issue of 2008 psychologist Odd Reiersøl got an article published about the ICD diagnoses of Fetishism and Sadomasochism in the Journal of the Norwegian Psychological Association.

After the good news from Sweden on the radio 17th of November, I phoned one of my press contacts in the online newspaper "Nettavisen". Very soon he received a pretty good statement from the leader of The Norwegian Directorate of Health, Bjørn-Inge Larsen. And one of the most well known Norwegian psychologists, Thore Langfeldt, for the first time supported the Swedish changes. http://www.nettavisen.no/jobb/article2402153.ece [Sorry. Norwegian text only]

After some communication with the Directorate of Health for a couple of days, I was told that key persons in the Directorate of Health now for the first time were reading the Revise F65 article "The ICD Diagnoses of Fetishism and Sadomasochism" publised in The Journal of Homosexuality and in the book "Sadomasochism, Powerful Pleasures".

Revise F65 also released a press statement with our point of view, and the Norwegian BDSM Organization SMil sent a letter to the The Norwegian Ministry of Health and Care Services asking him to remove the fetish and SM diagnoses. In an answer December 19th the Ministry of Health and Care Services said they had given the Directorate of Health the responsibility to take decision in the case.

Revise F65 has now finished a paper which we will present to The Directorate of Health with health-political and profession arguments to remove the diagnoses.

This is the situation in the Scandinavian countries for the moment. As you know, Denmark removed their diagnoses of Transvestism and Sadomasochism already in 1994/1995.

We really hope that we can celebrate a victory regarding these diagnoses during Christopher Street Days in Oslo in the end of June 2009!

Sincerely,
Svein Skeid,
Leader of Revise F65

So what does this mean to the average kinky person in Sweden? It means that if they go to a therapist because they are depressed or having relationship issues, the doctor won't look down his or her nose and say "it's because you are sadomasochist." Instead, they will treat the problem you really have instead of acting as if BDSM is the root of all your woes.

This is a victory for kinky people all over the world. It gives me hope that doctors in other nations will begin to see the light on this issue -- including in the US where activists (most notably Dr. Charles Moser) have been working diligently to get our DSM revised along similar lines.