Smoking - part 2

I have never really considered smoking as sexy before but the Being Bad lecture on smoking explained the sexy side of smoking. Ever since then I have noticed the portrayal of smoking as sexy.

Last night I watched about ten minutes of the Vicar of Dibley and the episode was the one where the Vicar is trying to go upstairs to have sex with Simon but different visitors keep popping in. Eventually Simon comes down stairs and explains to those playing scrable with the Vicar what has been going on. Once the guests have gone the Vicar is on her way upstairs and the door bell rings again. It is one of the guests who is offering her two lit up cigarrettes "for after".

Today I was walking through Wolverhampton and noticed a shop that was selling large canvas prints. One of them was of Brad Pitt smoking, another one was of Marilyn Monroe smoking and there was a third actor who I did not recognise who was also smoking.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dIH4pH2tzU

Masturbation - part 3

Masturbation on the television is often depicted in a humourous tone. The League of Gentlemen is typical of this. The character who is obssesed with toads often mentions masturbation to his wife's nephew, Benjamin, who is staying with them. In the first episode of season one after he has explained to his nephew that "In this house we don't masturbate" the wife returns with a cup of tea and says "Everything hunkydory. Good. I'm so glad. Seamen is such a persistant stain."In the second episode the uncle says to Benjamin who is just waking up "Any tissues you need to dispose of?"In episode 4 Benjamin's cousins, Radcliffe and Chloe, who are about ten years of age blackmail Benjamin by suggesting that if he does not play games with them they will tell their father that they caught him "shaking hands with the governor of love" and they know how to make it sound convincing.

The subsequent clip is also from episode 4 of season one and you have to wait right until towards the end of the clip for the punchline on what will happen to you if you masturbate.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNuDlrSMneE

Infidelity - part 2

Tales of Infidelity

When you know the people involved it is difficult to be impartial and say infidelity is good or bad. I know someone who is aged 73 and recently his wife tracked him and his mistress (who is also aged 73) down to a hotel. There was then a showdown and the husband and wife can barely speak to each other now. The husband is under a psychiatrist and he has broken up with his mistress who invited the husband to live with her. The daughter of the couple concerned will not speak to the father. In short the husband, the wife, the mistress, the daughter and the granddaughter are all devastated. There are no winners in infidelity cases - only people whose lives are shattered.

Although there are no winners in the short term perhaps the experiences that occur in such cases makes the people involved stronger to deal with life's disappointments (and hopefully, eventually, without the bitterness.

Infidelity

In the lecture on infidelity the lecturer passed a box round the lecture theatre for the students to put their answers regarding had they cheated on their partners and if yes how did they feel. It was surprising that only a few declared that they had had been unfaithful to their partner. Many said they never would cheat on their partner. One had said that according to the bible lustful thoughts was no different to actually committing the act and therefore everyone was guilty of cheating. Another had declared that he had cheated on his ex-girlfriend with her mother and that he was the father of her half-brother but that she still wasn't aware of that fact.

I know quite a few adulterers and thereforeover the next few days I will post some stories of real life events (obviously without declaring enough information for the persons concerned to be identified) and my reactions to these events and people.

Also I would like to state that just because a person had committed a bad act does not necessarily make them a bad person.

And some websites on infidelity, mainly comedy sites:-

http://www.lhj.com/home/Infidelity.html

http://www.infidelity.org.uk/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YStqxkgjtIc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c7KPUTjp9t0

My Response To StaceyAnn's Repsonse

http://missstaceyannwelsh.blogspot.com/2007/05/blog-post.html

Actually although I am religious I can understand people having lustful thoughts about people who are not their partner's, so long as they do not act on those thoughts. Even if they do act on those thoughts life is short, life's a bitch and then you die. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zo-XM46zu_0

Shoplifting - part 2

Last week I was in Borders in Birmingham and I heard the security alarm go off. As I made my way to the exit I saw one of the staff talking to two teenagers and the one took out of his bag what seemed like a double CD. The member of staff then said to that particular teenager "I don't know where you're going. You're going to be here a long time." The teenager who had been caught shoplifting started to smile smuggly as he went back into the shop with the member of staff but this smuggness seemed to be designed to hide his obvious embarrassment. A third teenager then ran up to the second teenager asking what had happened. May this be a lesson to all those who suggested that shoplifting is not the same as other types of theft. It is still breaking the law and chances are that those who are caught shoplifting will be prosecuted.

Final ThoughtsI recommend the shortstory 'Wicked, Deliciously so by John Mulcreevy from the book 'Loffing Matters' (2006). This is a tale of two pensions behaving badly, including shoplifting.

As usual some websites on today's theme, shoplifting:-

http://www.beyond-the-pale.co.uk/shoplifting.htm

http://www.shoplifting.com/

http://web4health.info/en/answers/bipolar-shoplifting.htm

Masturbation - part 2

In the lecture on masturbation it was mentioned that this topic has been a focus of discussion for thousands of years but that at some point it seemed to become a taboo subject and has only in recent years started to become a focus of discussion.

The purpose of this blog entry is to discuss masturbation as depicted in the book 'Against Therapy' by Jeffrey Masson (1992) in the chapter on 'Dora and Freud'. Masturbation by his clients is used by Freud to hide incompitent medical procedures and to try to regain popularity after his theories on sexual assault (which Freud refers to as 'seduction') and incest was not well received by his colleagues in the field of psychology.

Freud uses phrases such as "Among the pains which derive from masturbation, I would like to emphasise one in particular, because of its importance: neurologic stomach pain. One sees it very early on in the case of women who masturbate, and it is to be found among young ladiees as frequently as masturbation itself." Freud also states that "It is well known that gastric pains occur especially oftenin those who msturbate."

In this chapter there is also a quote from Felix Deutsch who was a physician who communicated with Freud and in the case of Dora stated "The inability to clean out her bowels, her constipation, remained a problem to the end of her life. ..... Her death from cancer of the colon, which was diagnosed too late for successful operation....". Deutsch agreed with Freud regarding masturbation being the cause of Dora's various illnesses rather than admit their own failings as medical practitioners or admit that Dora has been sexually assaulted as a child by her father.
There are also references in this chapter to other cases that masturbation was used to explain medical conditions. "....when Freud handed over an earlier patient, Emma Eclstein, to Fliess for nasal surgery because of masturbation, she nearly died from the bungled operation". This occured in 1897.

If one was to believe the types of theories that Freud and others developed regarding masturbation then why do G.P.'s not prescribe medication to stop masturbation and why do G.P.'s not suggest "stop masturbating" as a credible solution to people's illnesses.?

If such theories were to believed then surely illnesses such Irritable Bowel Syndrome (of whom approximately 20% of the population suffer) may well have been caused by masturbation.

I don't believe in the above two suggestions that I have made but for those who do then perhaps the world is just full of wankers.

And finally some more comedy videos on masturbation:-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WiwYNyCkuCk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aC-GVWYi4jA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=keWnhtZmRu8

Masturbation

Recently there was a Being Bad Lecture on Masturbation. This is very much a taboo subject usually. The lecturer requested information from students anonymously regarding their age, the first time they masturbated, the frequency that they masturbate etc. I do hope he is just collecing data. Myself and my fellow students to my right and to my left decided not to submit the information requested due to the three of us being much older than the majority of students and therefore could easily be identified by our age. Or perhaps that was just an excuse. Perhaps because of our ages (33, 34 and 39) we just grew up in a generation that never discussed masturbation where as the subject matter is less taboo for the next generation due to comedy via the media (television and radio) and also due to modern day comedy routines (e.g. stand-up-comedians).

I do remember years ago listening to a Bishop discussing the forgiveness of sins in front of an audience. Although the Bishop never mentioned the term 'masturbation' he did go on about the one sin that is not forgiven under any circumstances is self-abuse. The way he was refering to self-abuse I do believe he was refering to masturbation.

I also remember the comedy 'Birds of a Feather' where a father tells his son at a restaurant to stop playing with himself under the table or he will go blind. Dorien (the neighbour) thinks the boy is masturbating and says "surely not". However, the boy is merely playing with an electronic game under the table. The reason I mention this is because this was shown on television about ten years ago and the punchline of that particular comedy scene would indicate that certain myths, such as going blind if you masturbate, obviously is still a firm belief in some peoples minds.

Here are some information sites on Masturbation:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masturbation

http://www.coolnurse.com/masturbation.htm

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/3072021.stm

http://www.med.umich.edu/1libr/yourchild/masturb.htm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4g_QwiYxvkY

And some comedy sites on masturbation:-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FWzOQTFwRBE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9cvIB5F7lw8&mode=related&search=

Stalking

When does a concerned interest in someone's activities become stalking? I would suggest that either when the interest is unwanted by the person being followed or when the interest is being done in secret. For example if it was a healthy interest in someone then surely there would be no need to hide the facts on what that person is doing.

Are some kinds of Observance allowable and appropriate? Which one's aren't? I would suggest not unless permission by the person who is being watched has been obtained. Not even for research purposes. It is an invasion of Human Rights.

I once had to interview someone aged in their late 80's who was stalking his ex-fiance. He was hidding in bushes and in his car and following her trying to get to her alone away from her family. What was more embarassing was when he started to tell me about his sex life during his engagement. I usually like the variety of my job but this was one weird interview and I just couldn't get him to stop giving intimate details. This interview was conducted over ten years ago and I only remembered whilst doing this entry. Pardon the pun (entry which was one of the client's main areas of monologue).

Here are some informative links on stalking:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stalking

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio1/onelife/personal/safety/stalking.shtml

http://www.antistalking.com/aboutstalkers.htm

And finally Dawn French shows us why stalking is BEING BAD:-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMxJ7AHvSNo

Prostitution

Another topic of conversation during one of the lectures at 'Being Bad' was regarding prostitution. A video clip from the Audrey Hepburn film 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' was shown and two questions followed:-
Question One:- Is it prostitution to take money from someone who is expecting sex, but then does not supply sex?
Only two students vocally said that it is prostitution to take money from someone who is expecting sex and then not to deliver sex. Most of the students were silent on the matter. However, when students were asked to raise their hands there was an overwhelming majority that said it is NOT prostitution in these circumstances.
Certainly it seems that prostitution is associated with the concept of delivering sex for payment. From a consumer point of view in order foe a contract to be made there are three factors which have to be satisfied:- an offer, consideration of the offer, and acceptance of the offer. In the video clip this did not occur in an expressed form but could be argued to have occured on an implied form.
In a more modern example than 'Breakfast at Tiffany's' a similar example occured on Celebrity Big Brother 2007. Now I must admit that I do not watch the ordinary Big Brother but do dip in and out of the Celebrity Big Brother. This year Jade Goody's mother (I think her name was Jackie) admitted that she used to take money from men in her younger days for sex and then once she had the money she used to run away and escape. Now in this situation I would argue that an offer had been made, the offer was given consideration and finally the offer had been accepted. In these circumstances it is easier to argue that prostitution has occured because the terms have been more apparent and no misunderstanding could have occured.
In both examples (the Audrey Hepburn character and Jackie Goody) sex was not actually delivered and so perhaps it could be argued that they are both con-women rather than a prostitute. Another word that could be thrown into the debate could be the word 'Bitch' but then that would start a whole new argument as to the definition of bitch and so lets just not go there just yet.
Question Two:- If it is prostitution, then how much is a reasonable chrage?
Having done an MBA I will suggest the answer is what ever the market forces can sustain. For example a recent newspaper report on Faria (whose surname I cannot remember but she is the one that was shagging Sven Gorgan Erikson) is charging thousands for sex as a prostitute for just a few minutes because of who she is.
Final Thoughts on Prostitution.
In the examples of the Audrey Hepburn character and Jackie Goody I will suggest that they were con-women rather than prostitutes and so they were behaving badly. In regards to prostitutes who do supply sex for money I would suggest that that is their chosen profession and that they are not necessarily behaving badly. Although it is fair to say that not all prostitutes have chosen that as their profession. There was a case in recent months on the News where illegal immigrants were being held against their will and forced to be prostitutes. Perhaps the area that should be looked at in deciding whether a prostitute is behaving badly should be to to with what is their reason for being a prostitute, and what 'acts' do they provide.
Finally, I have today just finished reading Paul McDonald's 'Kiss me softly, Amy Turtle' in which there is a humourous portrayal of prostitution at Penny's Pleasure Palace. I recommend you read it.

Here are some intereting websites on prostitution:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prostitution

http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/documents/cons-paying-the-price/

http://observer.guardian.co.uk/magazine/story/0,11913,1306267,00.html

http://www.unesco.org/courier/1998_12/uk/ethique/txt1.htm

And now for some comedy on prostitution:-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XbEtkreB_J4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MzRIXALcb1o

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Id49Q-qOYXI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7tB8hcd5Vk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKDtp1YR1L8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5eSflbxXeoo

Shoplifting

Let Wyona's trial face warn you of the repercussions of shoplifting:-

Is Shoplifting any different to any other kind of Theft? This one one of the questions that was asked at the second 'Being Bad' subject based lectures. Many students expressed the view that shoplifting is different from other kinds of theft. The reasons given included that shoplifting does not hurt anyone and that the shoplifter is stealing from a company that can afford it. Bullshit!What about when the employee has to pay for missing stock out of their wages? What about the fact that reduced profits for the company might result in people loosing their jobs and all the stress that the dismissed person will suffer? What about when an employee gets in trouble (e.g. gets a warning at work) because of missing stock or even worse what if the employee gets the blame for the missing stock and therefore the employee is accused of the shoplifting. Shoplifting is theft. Perhaps the more appropriate question to ask is why has the person committed shoplifting.

The other factor that surprised me was how many students admitted to shoplifting and did not consider it as bad. Perhaps from a philosophical point of view people want to think of themselves as good and so even when doing bad things excuses are given to give less of a bad meaning to the act that has been commited and hence the bad action of shoplifting is justified by shoplifters saying things like "I am not actually hurting anyone. It's just a company."

Why do people who can afford to buy things shoplift? This was the second question that was asked at the lecture. Reasons given by the students included Attention seekers, the rush of committing shoplifting, fulfilling an empty life, committing shoplifting due to illness, and because the shoplifter can get away with it. Some of these answers do not take account of factors such as the social stigma of being caught and the stress of being prosecuted.

Some final thoughts on shoplifting is that the reasons behind the shoplifting should be looked at when deciding whether the act that has been committed is bad. After all is a person who has shoplifted food for their children because they have no money left a bad person compared to someone who shoplifts to show off infront of their friends?

The following link gives an interesting perspective on shoplifting:-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoplifting

Smoking

The first subject based lecture in Being Bad Module was on smoking. I used to believe that smoking was up to the individual and did not mind others smoking. I used to defend the rights of smokers that I knew. However, then friends, relatives and a next door neighbour all died of smoking related diseases. I now realise that smoking doesn't just create a horrible, slow, and agonising death for the smoker but also has an effect on those left behind. Most importantly sympathy from others which can be exploited and of course that all important early inheritence.

Other thoughts on smoking is the fact that thousands of people die from smoking every year. That's a FACT. Another fact is that the Government obtains over a billion each year from the taxes on cigarettes and cigars etc. Lets not forget the fines on shop keepers selling cigarettes to those who are underage. Therefore, had it not been for the directive from Europe would the forthcoming smoking ban come into force in Great Britain. I don't think so.

Final thoughts on smoking:- The thousands of people who die from smoking related diseases are contributing to the society of Great Britain for two main reasons. Firstly, it keeps the staff in the National Health Service in a job. Secondly, it keeps the Pensions crisis to a minimum due to all the premature deaths. So why the hell is the Government planning to extend the pension age. Also if you want an early inheritance then buy your loved one boxes of cigarettes for their birthday, Christmas, Valentine's day etc.

A link to a Youtube video showing the sexy side of smoking follows:-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OB1R_R-P0r8