Recently in Sexual Ethics Category

I think the Facebook group called "Against gay marriage? Then shut the f*ck up and don't get one" says it best. Here in NY, Governor Paterson (of whom I am not, generally speaking, a fan) has put a resolution calling for a vote on a bill allowing same-sex marriage on the state's agenda. That makes me just a little bit more likely to vote for him.

I'm on the fence about in-your-face public service announcements, as my prior post on sugary soda indicates. But this one, called "Save the Boobs", which you can watch on ABC News, really takes shock ads to a new level. Jiggling breasts, referred to as 'tatas', 'cheechees' and etc. and women in skimpy bikinis make this look more like a beer commercial than the breast cancer awareness spot it actually is.

According to CNN, legendary film director Roman Polanski was on his way to receive a lifetime achievement award in Switzerland when he was grabbed up by police on a warrant issued in 1978. Said the Zurich Film Festival that is now sans guest of honor:

"Roman Polanski, who is one of the greatest film directors of all time, would have been honored for his life's work in Zurich today. However yesterday, on Saturday, he was taken into custody while attempting to enter Switzerland due to a request by U.S. authorities in connection with an arrest warrant from 1978."

And even his victim seems to wish the whole thing would just fade from memory. Says the CNN news article:

If there were ever an area where the little white lie came into question, it would be online dating. Oh, you're not 6' 2" with abs of steel? Or petite with the body of a goddess? Whoops. And funny how you didn't mention that wart. Ew.

Do you blame them (or do they blame you) for these teeny-tiny exaggerations? Yes, yes, yes...lying is lying is lying, and of course, unethical. But what's worse, judgment based on a few stats or a slight fabrication of those stats?

I'm curious - it seems as though it would be an almost irresistible temptation to stretch the truth when online dating. Should one always resist? Or are you merely circumventing ridiculous societal norms on appearance? And this doesn't only apply to physical appearance - is it so awful to claim, say, a love for the outdoors, when you merely hope to find someone who might introduce you to rock climbing?

My friend once sent me an online profile from shaadi.com, an Indian matrimonial website. It was, by far, the most memorable piece of fiction I'd ever read in my life. How did I know it was fiction? Well, his profile described his hobbies a little something like this:

"I love surfing, mountain biking, skydiving, bungee jumping and mountain climbing....(much further down the profile and lost towards the end) I have never done any of these things, but I would like to some day."

I'd love to hear your stories, especially if they involve a bit of ahem, exaggeration. Why did you feel the need to lie? Were the untruths ignored once you met in person? Or, on the other side of the coin, were you shocked, horrified or just plain pissed upon meeting someone who misrepresented himself/herself?
 

One of the fundamentals of ethics is honesty, I'd say. Yet, I'm kind of a dishonest person. I consider myself to be basically morally sound, so why do I say this? Well, I tend to tell people what they want to hear, not what they need to hear.
 
 A couple of years ago I gave into a friend's blind date scheme. I exchanged a few emails with this "friend of a friend" and eventually set a date to meet for drinks. Read on; then tell me, is this not the best worst-date story or what?

Some backstory: A few days before our date, I decided to go chasing after a New York City bus on an icy night and had a very intimate face-to-asphalt encounter with 2nd Avenue.  Strangers behaved quite ethically and picked my unconscious self off the busy street, laid me down on the sidewalk and called an ambulance. One emergency room visit later, I was missing most of my front teeth, had had the shards of those teeth suctioned out of my lips - which, might I add, had ballooned into a grotesque version of Angelina's--and had a nice pattern of stitches decorating my mouth.

Trust me, I didn't look so hot by the time the date rolled around (I mean, who looks hot with a broken face?) so I tried to give the mystery man a pass; he didn't take it.

"When you become a public figure you are held to a different level of scrutiny and ethics."This was the response by Fort Myers' councilman, Tom Babcock, when questioned about the firing of town manager Scott Janke -- fired because his...

People keep sending me the oddest ethical issues. Like this one, which came by way of a pal living in Prague. She stumbled across a blog post written by a guy who had been invited to--get this--an abortion party....

So I have this great doctor. He cured my migraines (well, made them a lot better) when no one else could. My mom, who's suffered similar headaches for decades, swears by him. And he's a really nice guy. He's charming,...