Report on SSSS conference

[JesusA (imported)]

Still on the road. I should get home (finally) late Wednesday night, but I wanted to give everyone here a brief report on the annual meeting of the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality that I attended in Las Vegas.

Prof. Richard Wassersug and I gave two presentations on the voluntary eunuch community, based both on the survey that was posted here last year and on meetings with many of the members here. (Two articles based on the survey material have been submitted and will be posted here AS SOON AS they are published. Most academic journals refuse to consider material that is already on the Internet.)

One presentation was titled “Castration Ideation and Its Consummation” and was a Powerpoint presentation delivered at machine-gun pace by Richard. There was a larger audience than we had anticipated and the questions and overall reaction was very positive toward the community.

The second presentation was part of a much more leisurely poster session. We had a 3 foot by 5 foot poster, “Characterizing the Contemporary Eunuch Community,” with charts, tables, quotations from several members here, photographs, and some analytic textual material. All of the posters at the conference were displayed in the same room with the book and toy exhibits. A large number of meeting attendees circulated through and stopped to talk with Richard and/or me about the information. This was probably the more valuable presentation as we got to talk one-on-one or in small groups about the community.

One of the most valuable aspects of the presentations was that Prof. Milton Diamond of the University of Hawaii viewed the Powerpoint presentation and also spent quite a bit of time at the poster session talking with Richard and me about the eunuch community. Mickey Diamond is probably the most important member of the committee that oversees the Benjamin Standards. He seems, now, to acknowledge that Male-to-Eunuch can be a valid reason for treatment under the Benjamin Standards, and he has asked for more information, including copies of the papers that we have submitted for publication. I know that Richard and I will continue to work with him toward a revision of the standards in that direction. That would mean that far more urologists would be willing to perform voluntary castrations.

I would like to thank, here, those members of the Archive who allowed me to use their photographs on the poster. They were valuable in attracting people close enough to engage them in conversation about the material. Sag111 and Plix, especially, received a number of comments about how handsome they are!

Presentations at the conference ranged from the highly technical and scientific to the trivial but interesting to the touchy-feely.

My favorite presentation of the conference was titled “Compulsive Sexual Behavior and Its Relationship to Other Impulse Control Disorders” and was by Prof. Jon Grant of the University of Minnesota. It was both highly academic and very well presented. His main concern is the neurobiology of impulse control. He discussed the “interchangeability” of addictive behaviors – that one can be “cured” of sex addiction only to become an alcoholic or compulsive gambler, etc. and that permanent cures are nearly impossible among smokers. Nicotine enhances addictive behavior – and he’s researched the neurobiology that demonstrates how. Richard and I talked with him and we will be in contact with him about our work.

Of much less interest were presentations such as the one by a prominent sex researcher on his research into the advantages of using sized-to-fit condoms. He has been working with a company that now produces SEVENTY different sizes. At the touchy-feely end was “Manufacturing Fantasy for Sale: The Portrayal of Virtual Brazilian Masculinities” which included far too many photographs of Brazilian males seeking paying partners on the Internet. Quite scary was “Bug-chasing and Gift-giving: The Potential for HIV Transmission Among Bare-backers on the Internet” about men who actually seek to give or get HIV!

Once I’m back to a real computer, instead of this tiny laptop, I’ll post more about the conference.

[tugon (imported)]

Thank you and thank Richard for me. It sounds like great progress is being made. I am glad you met Prof. Diamond and will have a chance to influence the Benjamin Standards.

[Riverwind (imported)]

Yes thank you Richard and Jesus, This is a great breakthrough and I hope something good comes of this and soon.

River

[numnuts (imported)]

Please forgive my ignorance, but what are the benjamin standards? I'll guess they're some sort of medical or psychological parameters used to determine necessity for certain procedures?

And congratulations with getting the ear of this professor. It will be a great day when more doctors are willing to embrace the concept of voluntary castration. NOT that there aren't very real factors for it's consideration.

[tome (imported)]

Thanks Jesus & Richard

The attitudes in the medical circles are old and scary.

Most Doctors don't have a clue on our feelings and in my case I feel Great.

My Doctor understands and i got a clean bill of health.

Milwtom3332

Tome

[homptydumpty (imported)]

was this work? or a vacation for you?

Shounds like alot of fun! I wish one i coulda gone...

Z