When I was a teenager, sex was terrifying. The specter of AIDS was everywhere, even when the actual disease was a very long way off. And we didn’t have Tinder.
Today, HIV infection rates (and the danger of AIDS) are way, way down, and Tinder makes sex seem easy, but kids these days just aren’t doing it that much. The Atlantic says there are a number of reasons: Less willingness to settle for bad or coerced sex; more access to pornography and social media as a substitute for human interaction; teens being so over-scheduled that they don’t have any nonprofessional social interactions and reach their 20s without ever getting into bed with someone; a decline in childhood sexual abuse leading to a decline in pathological promiscuity; pornography creating incredibly skewed ideas about what sex is supposed to be…
Critics of the article, rightly, point out that the surveys are unreliable and the fluctuations are pretty close to being within the margin of error, and also apply mostly to heterosexuals, so the article is mostly just a subjective exploration of how sex and dating and romance are different from the way they used to be, better in some ways and worse in others. Just another Atlantic trend piece, in other words, but kind of interesting.
Politics Roundup
Look, I’m not saying Trump’s a racist, but white nationalists think he’s a racist. (Actually, I’m also saying he’s a racist).
White working class Democrat can’t get support from unions, for reasons.
The 4-H club tried to be more welcoming. It didn’t go over well.
Twitter Curation
Republican gerrymandering and voter suppression let them take elections. Should we pretend that didn’t happen to boost confidence in the system?
Under Trump, international students are avoiding the US. This is bad for numerous reasons detailed here.
Ohio legislators just passed a new anti-abortion bill that’s blatantly unconstitutional (also absurdly branded as “pro-life” despite implying a potential death penalty for doctors who perform abortions). Why on earth would they do that? It’s not just virtue-signaling for the base:
If this goes to the court, Kavanaugh is going to decide the fate of Roe & Casey. https://t.co/rnnnpPVVv8
— Jeet Heer (@HeerJeet) November 19, 2018
The New York Times article titled Teenager Claims Body-Cams Show The Police Framed Him sounds pretty bad. A Twitter thread from his attorney illustrates just how much the Times is soft-pedaling a vulgar display of power. I encourage you to read the whole thread, in which the attorney points out about a dozen common injustices, including adding charges when the suspect makes claims in his defense and alleging gang affiliation where none exists. And of course, locking a kid up for 2 weeks because he can’t make bail.
Today @nytimes published this story about our client, including police body cam footage, which shows how a cop planted weed in his car. Our client spent 2 weeks on Rikers Island, the cop lied on the stand, was never disciplined & still works for the NYPD. https://t.co/3eEXplpz5D
— Rebecca J. Kavanagh (@DrRJKavanagh) November 19, 2018
I’m taking economics 101 here are my hot economics takes
This is not a totally normal functional economy.
Today’s adults are stuck in their parents’ car-obsessed transportation system.
Cultivating joy
Baby llama (Or alpaca? Adorable camelid of some sort).
Corgis & hose.
Ted Danson learning a new dance.
CHICKENSLACKS.
Cat vs. rat… rat wins.
Frog on rocker.
Secretly Ironic 