fetish filter

[helenic]

I explained in this post that I am in the process of putting together an informative website on BDSM, which a number of you have very kindly offered to contribute to. I realise you all have busy lives and therefore asking you to write essays or articles for which you will not be paid is possibly a little over-optimistic. I'm therefore taking a slightly different approach. I will be posting a series of polls, asking questions about your own approach to BDSM. Answers can vary between simple yes/nos, short explanations, or greater detail if you want to give it. Partly this is to make it easier for you to contribute (it's simpler to answer a direct question than to write something that stands alone), which means I will have a greater (and more realistic) range of perspectives than simply my own, and partly this will enable me to compile a "FAQ" answered by a range of individuals, which is a feature I'm keen to include on the site.

I would really appreciate it if everyone could fill out the poll below letting me know if you're interested in taking part. This doesn't mean you're agreeing to actually contribute, just that you want to read the posts and have the option.

[Poll #265476]

If you aren't on my friends list, you won't be able to be on the filter. If you want to take part, leave a comment and I'll add you.

Comments

[borusa.livejournal.com]

I have a feeling I've managed to vote twice in your poll. Sorry. Blame proxies.

[libellum.livejournal.com]

nope, as far as I can see it only went through once :)

[borusa.livejournal.com]

I feel less rubbish now!

[mazzarc.livejournal.com]

Drop me a line :)

[libellum.livejournal.com]

sure. what's your email address?

(are you a cambridge person? I only ask because you're on duncan's friendslist ...)

[strangeglitter.livejournal.com]

i've added you to my friends list

xxx

[libellum.livejournal.com]

Are you mentioning that because you want to be included in the filter, or just because it was my most recent post? If the former, it'd help me keep track of things better if you filled it out :)

hi, by the way!

[ixwin.livejournal.com]

Any idea how many polls etc. there might be? BDSM is something I'm somewhat curious about, but more from an isn't the diversity of human behaviour interesting? point of view than a wow that really speaks to me one - it's not a scene I'd consider myself part of, so I suspect if I were on the filter and completed any of the polls I'd be ticking the 'haven't done this' box most of the time, and be a bit of a bias on the results if you're trying to collect a sample broadly similar to the demographic that would most likely visit your website.

[libellum.livejournal.com]

there'll be quite a few. I'm allowing for the fact that several people (it isn't just you!) have opted to be able to take part even though I know they aren't into BDSM beyond occasionally being tied up. In a way, I'd quite like to have this sector included - one of the points I want to make through this subject is that BDSM is normal, and just because people make a lot of noise about the more extreme side of it doesn't that's all there is. At the moment there seems to be a social divide between "vanilla" and "fetish" which the scene seems actually to be proud of - although they welcome people into it, they want you to admit you're a "perv". I'd go the other way: rather than saying "it's okay to be pervy!" I'd say "doing what we do isn't pervy", and actually most people do it, and actually having sadistic or masochistic fantasies is a normal part of the human condition. It's not universal, but it's part of the normal spectrum of sexual expression - like bisexuality, for example. Just because not everyone is bisexual doesn't mean it isn't normal and natural to be bisexual.

So. What I think I'll do is have as the first question to each poll "how integral to your life do you rank BDSM?" or something similar, getting people to state how seriously/regularly they practice it/fantasise about it. Then I'll be able to say "xx% of regular BDSMers had fantasies about pain during childhood" or "out of all the people who expressed enough of an interest in BDSM to take part in this survey, only xx% considered themselves to be definitely either dominant or submissive". And other stuff. So for some of the polls i'll only use the people who are in the scene, but it'll be wonderful to have participation from the less extreme sector, if only to acknowledge it exists and is a good thing - which a lot of BDSM sites fail to do.

[ixwin.livejournal.com]

*nods* Yes, all that makes a lot of sense.

Okay, count me in *fills out poll*

But...but...but...

[mazzarc.livejournal.com]

"although they welcome people into it, they want you to admit you're a "perv". "

....I am! at least.. that's what my friends say!

Re: But...but...but...

[libellum.livejournal.com]

was that ironic?

[meirion.livejournal.com]

i'd like to take part.

-m-

[(Anonymous)]

i am not unique. you are.

[libellum.livejournal.com]

I don't even know who you are, but if this was intended as a compliment, thank you. Although I disagree; I am no more or less unique than anyone else, by definition. Still, the sentiment is very sweet of you.

[emperor]

I'd like to take part (I'm here by way of atreic). Can I be added to your filter, please?

[libellum.livejournal.com]

of course. Although it's all been moved to libellum_bdsm now; I'll add you.

[envinyata.livejournal.com]

i am very definitely interested.

i wrote most of the essay i promised you quite awhile back but my comptuer crashed...i swear i will work on it this week or next week...i am SO sorry i've been late getting back to you on this. *hugs*