Thursday, September 20, 2007

Sex News from the Sunshine State

Living in Florida is almost never boring, especially for a sex blogger. Where else can you pick up your morning paper and read about not one, not two, but three sex-related stories in the serious news section? That's right, these stories are not fluff pieces, but hard news about events that have been unfolding for weeks and that affect issues such as freedom of speech, civil rights, labor relations, and even religious tolerance.

1. First, is the issue of Master Dave, resident of a small Florida town of New Port Richey, and his 10-page slavery contract, which details safe words, termination of contract and what the slave may wear, do and say, as well as what the Master may do to the slave. The state has charged Master Drew, aka Andrew Michael Kobak (age 34), with 19 felony counts related to prostitution. Authorities said that the contract and activities it detailed were not illegal, but that other activities, i.e. selling the sexual services for money, were. News reports say the 19-year-old slave said she had been sexually abused at age 15 and wanted to stay in the bdsm world but that she had not expected to be pimped out when she signed the contract. My question is, who disciplines a wayward Master and what should his punishment be for violating the trust of his slave?

2. Largo City Council and mayor made a disgraceful decision, based on feeble excuses when they fired City Manager Steve Stanton, after he revealed his plans to become Susan Stanton. Now living as a woman and celebrating her 49th birthday today, she says she has lost virtually every relationship in her life and that those closest to her were the first to abandon her. She appears on Montel Williams today in a segment called "Trapped in the Wrong Body." Those who fired Stanton are intolerant and cowardly at best. But it's difficult to judge the abandonment of her friends and associates. By many accounts, Steve was not a very compassionate supervisor. And, though he's known about his gender preference since childhood, that didn't stop him from marrying and having a child as a man. His gender reassignment would have been something of a betrayal for them even if it weren't so public.
3. The Christian Right is holding a three-day summit in Brandon, Florida, beginning today to address bedrock issues. According to news reports, no politicians are expected to attend. Representatives say that's because they want to keep the event free of politics, and if you believe that, we've got a nice little parcel of swampland in the Sunshine State we'd like to sell you. GLBT-rights activists aren't buying it and plan to hold vigils in front of the church where the event is taking place. They will also host a workshop on Saturday centering on theologian Daniel Helminiak's book What the Bible Really Says About Homosexuality. Predictably, organizers of the summit accuse the activists of being intolerant.

4 comments:

Sally Painter said...

Ah... What is it about this wonderful Sunshine state? Is it all that heat and sexy salsa music? Maybe tropical is just so sultry that it brings out the sexy beast.

Dragongirl said...

The Sunshine State does seem to have its collection of odd inhabitants. Gotta be all the bugs and heat. Makes people crazy. But I do think we can find odd residents in every state...they just haven't been found out yet.

Anonymous said...

Yes, I think every place has its oddballs, but, as my dad used to say, a lot of the loose marbles tend to roll to the bottom. Florida has a history of attracting eccentrics. In Tampa, one of our most famous citizens, who has run for city council several times and almost won, is a strip-club owner.

Anonymous said...

Yikes. More reasons to hug my frozen tundra. (My ex being in Florida is, of course, number one.)