Do You Have Sexual Encounters?

In this sixth installment of A Special Place In Hell, Sarah bows to “white supremacy urgency” and powers through her illness, which is either COVID or Monkeypox. Meghan talks about attending a screening of the film Jihad Rehab, a “controversial” documentary that made it to the Sundance Film Festival, only to be deemed “a truckload of hate” and effectively wiped out of existence, leaving the first-time filmmaker without work or any financial or community support. As she watched the film, Meghan couldn’t figure out what the problem was. But Sarah guessed it on the first try!

The girls/women then revisit the main subject of last week’s episode: pornography. Listeners left some candid feedback in the Substack comment thread (available only to paid subscribers) and the co-hostesses discuss these remarks, especially one from a man who described becoming so desensitized by porn that he no longer finds most real life women attractive. (Obviously he’s never met a female podcaster!) Sarah hypothesizes that porn addiction will eventually lead to human extinction.

Sarah and Meghan (or S & M) then move on to a problematic evergreen, the subject of sexual consent. Citing a recent New York Times opinion piece suggesting that saying “yes” to sex doesn’t necessarily make it totally consensual, Sarah wonders why it’s so hard to just say “ick” and move on. Finally they delve into the subject of (trigger warning) cuddle parties, asking why anyone would go to such a thing and whether wearing footie pajamas constitutes “asking for it.”

Extra Juicy Bonus Content (for paying subscribers only!): Prominent New York literary figure creates merchandise line inveighing upon another prominent literary figure to “Retire B***h.” Sarah is appalled. Meghan, who was an English major, explains how literature works.

Relevant links:

* Emma Camp’s New York Times Op-Ed on consent

* Melissa Febos’s New York Times Magazine article on consent

* Interview with Jihad Rebab filmmaker Meg Smaker. FAIR newsletter post on the screening.

* Meghan’s op-ed writing class, running four Mondays, Aug 8-29 (learn to write an oped about consent!)

* Sarah’s Substack newsletter, Hold That Thought

* Meghan’s project-in-progress, The Unspeakeasy

Opening music by Mia Dyson. End music The Cuddle Song by Jae Seven.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit aspecialplace.substack.com