Tony Snow's 1989 column, "Sex Is Only Fun When You Do It Right"

[Bush_Eats_Beef]

New WH Press Sec. Showed His Softer Side In 1989 Column Called "Sex, Sex, Sex"... "Sex Is Fun Only When You Do It Right"...

The Huffington Post | Tony Snow | Posted April 26, 2006 12:28 PM

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2006/04/26/new-wh-press-sec-showed-_n_19852.html



The following are excerpts from a column that the new White House Press Secretary, Tony Snow, wrote for the Washington Times on October 26, 1989.

Post-Woodstock Americans have destroyed the old taboo about discussing sex but they haven't disturbed the taboo's essence, which is to avoid mentioning any of the important stuff. More words about sex probably have been printed since 1980 than in the previous history of mankind, but those words haven't added a pamphlet's worth of new truth.

...most of this verbiage and imagery concern nothing more than technique. There's no mention of sex's weird emotional impact. There's no mention of passion. There's no mention of the fact that sex is fun only when you do it right.

This brings in the subject of relations between men and women, which is more complicated and inscrutable than the relations between interlocking body organs. If you want to make sense of real sex, you have to think about people's feelings, including the unexpressed and ineffable emotions that often give rise to sex. You need to admit that sex produces bewilderment, wonderment, fascination, confusion, elation, depression - virtually every imaginable emotion. Most of all, you need to screw up the courage to talk about love, if only to expose how shallow, pitiful, vicious and desperate loveless sex can be.

...Most studies now confirm that sex education has helped encourage sexual activity among youth. That's probably because the classes have focused on technique without addressing matters of the soul. If we really want to encourage people to behave sensibly when they're naked, why not dwell on the scary (and funny) aspects of sex - the late-night headaches, the early-morning heartaches, the vulnerability, the hilarity, the dangers of passions requited and unrequited?

[juajen]

1. Dare I admit that I'm beginning to give

him a new looksee?

[warrens]

2. He screwed up the line

it's "Sex is only dirty if you do it right."

[shain from kane]

3. Hey, Tony. Why don't you ask Scooter Libby about how to have sex

with a bear?
Or Lynne Cheney on how they used to do it back in the saddle in the Old West?
Or Rick Santorum about man and dog sex?
Or maybe Starr can enlighten you about sex in the White House.
These people are only interested in someone having sex without their participation.

[npincus]

4. Delay's about to get some...

[NoPasaran]

5. Don't forget my favorite...

Hot Cornyn-on-turtle action!

[myrna minx]

8. Box turtles have the power to drive any man wild.

:rofl:

[Initech]

7. Or John Cornyn about man and box turtle sex?

[American Tragedy]

6. Um... headaches?

Like, literally, headaches, as in cranial pain?

I've yet to experience that as a side effect, nor have I ever heard of such a thing.

[shain from kane]

10. Aren't headaches supposed to come before sex, or to delay sex?

I don't know anything about headaches after sex. Of course, normally I am sleeping.

[American Tragedy]

14. I just looked it up.

Coital Cephalalgia. It is fairly rare; about 1% of the population will experience it in a lifetime.

Interesting. I'd never heard of it before.

[zcflint09]

9. wow

Yea, never had the headache experince either, Tony may want to get that checked out. But, actually, I kind of agree with Tony on the aspect that sex does mean alot more and it can be better when you're with someone you actually care about. Hmm...

[newyawker99]

13. Hi zcflint09!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[jsamuel]

11. I don't disagree with a lot of what he says, however this is just plain wr

ong

"Most studies now confirm that sex education has helped encourage sexual activity among youth."

That is where he places his value judgment above the data. Sex education has reduced pregnancies and sexual disease transmission. Abstinence programs increase them.

[Perky]

12. Both might actually be correct

Sex ed might both reduce Pregnancy and STDs but it might alos have increased secuall experimentation and intercourse. I think it is pretty clear that more teens are hving sex now then even twenty years ago. The correslation between sex ed and increased activity is probably specious.


If he is saying that sex ed is directy responsible for more sex he is wrong. I suspect it is directly responsible for safer sex

[eissa]

15. Bingo

I took sex ed in jr. high a lifetime ago. I was shocked that even a deprived, naive child like myself knew more about basic sexual activity than certain kids who had "gone all the way." To this day I recall one of the girls -- who I knew was sexually active -- ask the teacher if it was true that a girl could not get pregnant if she was on top. God only knows how many other kids had similar misconceptions. I'm sure that teacher helped many kids prevent unwanted pregnancies/disease. And the class had no bearing on weather kids were sexually active or not -- the ones who wanted to remain virgins did (to the best of my knowledge), and those that were active (or planned to be) continued, but were more informed of health issues.