edwardspoonhands:

matthewgaydos:

edwardspoonhands:

Ok, so…sex. It’s the reason why you exist, and also why our species exists. So I think it’s safe to say that, on the whole, sex is a good thing. 

And yet, people don’t /really/ talk about it. Publicly anyway.

The perpetual taboo…it’s bad. It leads to confusion and crappy information and bad decisions and negative experiences. It turns one of biology’s greatest creations into something to be ashamed of.

I dislike this.

Now that the internet has enabled us to say whatever we want however we want to say to whomever we want to say it to it is extremely weird that our response has been to simply perpetuate the taboo. 

Sure, there are people who talk about sex on YouTube, but they do it in the same “giggle giggle, that’s naughty” or shock factor ways that we always have. Somehow, in all the glory of YouTube (as far as I can tell, and please correct me if I’m wrong) there has been exactly one person enabling a responsible, educational dialogue about sex and sexuality. (Check out Sex+ here.)

Very soon, my little studio in Missoula will be launching a new show with the a similar focus. Obviously, it’s going to be much different than Sex+ (which, if you’re interested in this stuff, you should subscribe to now.) But the goals will be similar…to lift the veil and talk honestly about sex and sex-related stuff. 

I’m 100% sure that I’ll catch flak for this. There are people out there who think that the mere mention of the existence of sex is enough to raise teenage pregnancy rates. The Vlogbrothers audience is young and, yes, some are too young to be watching this show (I’ll leave that decision up to you and your parents.) But not only is providing open access to reality and information the right thing to do, it’s also proven to be the best way to put people in control of their bodies and their lives. 

The fact that there isn’t more content on YouTube discussing this stuff is depressing. It shows how deep the taboo goes…even when given a platform we can be completely free with, Laci is the only one (so far) brave enough to take it on in a substantial way.

I’m excited and terrified to take this step. I hope I don’t regret it, and I hope that it helps people…in fact, I know it’s going to help people, otherwise there’s no friggin way I’d do it. Here’s a link…there’s nothing on it yet…there will be soon.

The first thing I thought was, “What sort of merchandise can we possibly sell for a Sexplanations channel?”

I had not thought of this yet, Metthew, but your in-tag suggestion of corndog condoms will be considered. 

Secondarily, I’ve been deep in the notes on this post (6000+ WHAAA?!) and though I haven’t had anybody explicitly make this assumption, I could see how it could be made. I’m /not/ going to be the host of this show. Not only do I not have time, I’m also WAAAY not qualified. It will be similar to The Brain Scoop, in that I’m producing it, but won’t be starring in it. You will meet the host (if all goes according to plan) tomorrow. 

This makes me so happy. When I was 11 or 12 I had gone on an internet binge; researching and reading as much as I could to get answers to the ever-growing questions. Thankfully what I found was good advice, but it took a lot of searching and compiling. 

I think this is what people need. They need people like Laci Green and the Vlogbrothers to sift through and explain taboos, and terminology that I didn’t understand or learn until university (and then suddenly the door opens up to a very sex positive sociology class). I think that the best way to help break down some of this stigma or fear is to teach people to see it. To understand why. 

I can’t wait!