David

Sexmantics.com; Sexmantics: The Philosophy of Sex

by Preston Brady III

David

A school principal in Florida was forced to resign after his staff allegedly failed to notify parents of sixth graders that photos of Michaelangelo’s famous nude statue of David would be shown to the students. The beauty of the artwork was not in question. Some parents felt it was too soon for their children to see a penis. It can be observed that possibly half of the students had already been exposed to a penis, and not just a photo of one but rather half way down their own bodies they had one of their very own. Philosophically, it could be somewhat counterproductive to future mental health, to shield youngsters from images of a natural body, even if it is of the opposite sex. It could transmit an alarming signal to the youngster that something is gravely wrong about human anatomy. It could result in psychological issues, say for a young adult woman about to consummate her marriage to a man. While it is true and valid, a parent’s right to monitor their children’s exposure to such things as art and the human body, it would seem fit for the exposure to be controlled by considering homeschooling for the child, or a private school that adheres to your own personal philosophy. 

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To Pee or Not to Pee

Sexmantics.com; Sexmantics :The Philosophy of Sex

by Preston Brady III

It has become more clear especially over the past few decades, the box people are asked to check on certain forms and applications - male or female - does not apply to everyone. Most people check a box without any thought, as they should. But across the world, millions of people do think about it, and they wished there were another box, such as nonbinary. 

And consider what should be a very simple concept: public bathrooms. The very design of most public bathrooms is wrought with societal design flaws. There are exceptions in some countries, where bathrooms are individual water closets with full doors and complete privacy. The concept of bathroom stalls which leave users exposed to the public, is a privacy concern. If bathrooms were designed properly, there would be no issue or concerns about who uses which bathroom. It could be said that keeping public bathrooms status quo, helps reinforce religious and political beliefs of those who are prejudiced against nonbinary and trans people. In the state of Arkansas this week, a governor signed a law mandating bathroom usage to anatomical sex at birth. Presumably, the fear is that a heterosexual man could dress in women’s clothing and stalk female bathrooms. The law prohibits authentic people in gender transition - or who have even surgically completed transition, from using a public bathroom other than their born physical sex. In other words, some people are being stopped by law from using public restrooms. This law, which is being implemented in other states as well, is misguided, flawed, and fails to solve the real problem: the layout and designs of most large, public bathrooms. It should not matter who walks into the main area of a public bathroom, if adequate privacy is provided in the individual stalls or rooms. I firmly believe that in the future, when most of us here are gone, people will chuckle or wrinkle their brow in puzzlement at the concept of our outdated design of public bathrooms. Privacy can often come at a monetary cost, and in the case of  redesigning bathrooms it seems it would be hard-earned taxpayers money well spent. 

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