Nudity

[Astaroth]

Breaking news: pop star dares to expose a nipple in public. International outrage. "How could this horrible incident happen?" "What a tragedy."

Why is it that our society condemns nudity like that? Why are genitials and nipples considered evil and morally corrupt? Why are they so strictly banned from anyone seeing them? What's the reason for strictly censoring them on TV?

Don't get me wrong - I fully understand the importance of privacy. If someone wants to keep body parts away from the public that's perfectly fine and acceptable. If people wish not to show their private parts, fine with me. I can understand that you possibly don't want to show everything to everyone. However, why does there have to be a ban?
Nuditiy and exposing genitials is put on a level with serious crimes and offenses. But why? Do genitials hurt anyone? Of course not. Are they disgusting? Hardly. Why is something so normal considered 'obscene'? There are over three billion women, most of them with a pair of boobs. However, if you dare to show a single female nipple on TV, then heaven have mercy on you. The hypocrisy of our society is astonishing - most adults have sex, more or less regularly. Every human on the planet has genitials. However, for some reason, nobody must see it! It should always be covered, always be hidden! You can walk around basically naked, you can show naked legs, buttocks, breasts. But god help you if you ever dare showing a penis. But of course, after all it's a penis, the symbol of evil-dom. Nevermind that 3 billion people have one.

Of course you could say that seeing genitials might be bad for children - but why would that be the case? Children have genitials, too, the better if they learn early on that 'private parts' are not disgusting and full of sin. You could also claim that this would lead to a morally corrupt world - but why? What is it that makes genitials and nipples 'evil'? There is no rational, logical foundation for this statement. Genitials are normal, perfectly human, are used every day by every member of the homo sapiens sapiens species. Why would they be symbols of immorality? Obviously one might think that genitials might cause trouble as it would move sex even more into our center of attention. However, long, fully naked legs are not forbidden. Miniskirts aren't. Tight pants showing every detail are allowed. It would be ridiculous to think that genitials or nipples would make any difference. Then there are also those people who don't want to see genitials. Maybe some would consider them irritating or disgustful, despite them being perfectly normal. However, that does not justify banning them. Should we prohibit ugly faces from being shown in the public, should we tell old people not to leave their houses because they 'disgust' others? That would of course be ridiculous. Same can be said about genitials.
Furthermore, nobody would be forced to show anything if he or she did not feel like it. If you do not wish to show them or don't like the way your arms/legs/feet or whatever look, you already hide them nowadays. Same would go for genitials. Another point one could make is that nothing good comes from allowing genitials in the public. However, that's obviously not a valid argument as same can be said about most things. Also, it is of course not a good reason for why they should be banned, as everyone will agree.

Therefore, I think our hypocrisy has to end. Horrible porn is two clicks away on google image search. Our media and minds are full of basically naked people. However, those few extra inches being shown on TV or in public are immediately considered evil and unacceptable. That's utterly pathetic and laughable.

[Zhuge_Liang]

The only problem is that more often than not the only people who want to get naked in front of others are those who aren't often seen naked in front of others and that is usually because they are ugly.

I am totally comfortable with nudity, though I wouldn't really want to see most people in the street naked.

[Ciabhán]

Breaking news: pop star dares to expose a nipple in public. International outrage. "How could this horrible incident happen?" "What a tragedy."

Why is it that our society condemns nudity like that? Why are genitials and nipples considered evil and morally corrupt? Why are they so strictly banned from anyone seeing them? What's the reason for strictly censoring them on TV?

Welcome to a world where outdated religious morals influence modern life.

[vecordia]

Welcome to a world where outdated religious morals influence modern life.

Correct.

[Bongfu]

Welcome to a world where outdated religious morals influence modern life.

Thats what the Irish get for converting to Catholicism

[Ciabhán]

Thats what the Irish get for converting to Catholicism

You again? Let my people go. Stubby little Welsh sheep-shagger. You forgot the picture again......

[Yorkshireman]

Stubby little Welsh sheep-shagger.

On the OP, I think its all just about context.

[Bovril]

There is something to be said forgenerally keeping explicit sexuality out of public life. However, the kind of hysteria that occured Janet Jackson's nipple slipped ou in the US was deeply unhealthy. The UK has many of the same hang ups but insteawd of seeing sex and genitals as evil we have a sort of adolescent embarrassed fascination with them. Over the channel in Europe they have a much healthier attitude.

[Astaroth]

There is something to be said forgenerally keeping explicit sexuality out of public life.

Of course - however, it seems totally out of place when everything but those few square inches is allowed to be shown, including naked legs, buttocks and breasts.

However, the kind of hysteria that occured Janet Jackson's nipple slipped ou in the US was deeply unhealthy. The UK has many of the same hang ups but insteawd of seeing sex and genitals as evil we have a sort of adolescent embarrassed fascination with them. Over the channel in Europe they have a much healthier attitude.

I can only agree.

[sephodwyrm]

Being naked in winter is bad for the public health service.

[Gaidin]

Being naked in winter is bad for the public health service.

Better than in the summer. I prefer hypothermia to skin cancer.

[the_mango55]

I don''t get how people can be nudists.

I have to have pockets or I go crazy.

[foxnds]

I don''t get how people can be nudists.

I have to have pockets or I go crazy.

Same here. lol

[sephodwyrm]

I don''t get how people can be nudists.

My position about nudists:
It's ok to have saggy boobs or man-boobs.
But exposing that is transgressing on my rights. Please cover up.

[Garrigan]

My position about nudists:
It's ok to have saggy boobs or man-boobs.
But exposing that is transgressing on my rights. Please cover up.

I think that about them really ugly people, or women with moustaches. Just wear a paper bag, seriously.

[Samuel Adams]

Another topic that's gotten out of hand.

Nudity, the human form, unadulterated, is art. The curves of the human body, the various anatomical proportions and placement of muscle mass, has been appreciated for millenias by mankind. There is Michelangelo's "David," just to name one, that is a widely loved sculpture.

I think there's a big difference in artistic nude form and pornographic material, in that art doesn't require your legs to touch down in LA and NYC; The 18th century paintings that are studies of full-figured nude women are tasteful and wonderful pieces.

I remember there was a guy that got a ToS infraction right here for posting a picture of Katherine Heigl with no shirt on and sheets covering her bum. She was by no means in a 'slutty' pose, you couldn't see her nipples or anything, for that matter, yet his appeal was [DENIED] by the tribunal.

I could have taken that, worked some photoshop magic, and made it into an 18th century-type painting and nothing would have been said (as long as it had actually fooled them). It's a syndrome that moral-high horses employ while they hide their Hustler mags in their desks. (not the TWC staff, most people etc, etc).

In a game I play a lot now, Pirates of the Burning Sea, there is a User Content submission system where you can create flags and/or sails for your 1720's vessel. It really ruins the game when you can't have historic pieces because they expose the human body. Ship's figureheads are never women, they are non-existant or they are lions/tigers, etc. All because of this nude phobia.

So in short, I have nothing against nudity, as long as it's not in a "SEX SEX SEX!!!" portrayal.

[C-Rob]

it's the suggestion of sex. Think of the days long ago when they first enacted clothing. It wasn't for protection from the elements when it was on the equator, yet people still covered up.
Not to mention- I don't want to see an old woman's... yeah.

[Copperknickers II]

Nudity is a fact of life. We cannot go through life without seeing nakedness (unless we are blind, of course). This ridicoulous modern aversion to it comes, imo, from the Puritanistic belief that abstinence is the key to spiritual contentness.

As a result, sex is not viewed by Abrahamic (and some other) faiths (and therefore cultures) as being life-giving and enlightening, but obscene and vulgar. So the parts of the body associated with it, the genitals (and for some unfathomable reason the female breasts) are kept hidden. Of course this makes perfect sense up here in Scotland for us males, they are rather fragile and you do not want them exposed to a mad berserker with a claymore or a massive freezing blizzard, which is also a factor, but in most primitive tribes, and old civilisations on general, this is not as noticable.

I am not used to the naked form (being unnacustomed to it, at my young and tender age ) therefore i am uncomfortable with things such as michaelangelo's David, but i feel this is purely a product my upbringing in this western culture. The female breasts thing, especially, is outdated, sexist, not to mention un-PC, and should be scrapped.

[boofhead]

It always depends on context. There is nothing wrong with nudity in itself. But if it was permitted across the board, the world would be a flasher's/exhibitionist's paradise. You'd get loads of perverts everywhere walking naked through girl's schools etc. Weirdos would be hiding around corners :wub: at naked women blah blah blah.

There needs to be limits. However I don't really think a nipple slip is the limit worthy of hysteria.

[Playfishpaste]

I disagree, boof. I don't think if nudity were allowed people would just be naked all the time. Clothes keep us warm and at the same time are useful. If you're naked and need to go through some brush, it's gonna suck, especially if you're a guy. The only times people would be naked would be at beaches or early in the morning walking around outside, or just on their porches. I don't see a problem with that, some may find it uncomfortable now but that's only because they aren't used to it in public, though they have certainly become used to seeing themselves naked whenever they step in the shower, so they'll get over it. :wub:, or any other kind of lude activity would still be illegal in public, it's a very different thing.