and she said.. "how you interpret the dream is probably more important than the dream itself"

.. that this really creeped me out.

It sort of goes along with last night's 60 Minutes where they did a bit on porn - they kept calling it the adult entertainment industry so their bread-n-butter 60-yr old viewers wouldn't change the channel, but it was about porn. Their whole report was about how explosive (no pun intended) the industry has been in the last 25~30 years. They were interviewing some guy who started an industry newsletter and he claimed, probably rightfully so, that the whole she-bang (again, no pun intended) could be attributed to the advent of the VCR, and now, to the internet. He talked about how sex was a very private thing for most Americans and how technology in the last 25 years has allowed us to persue it in the comfort (and privacy) of our own home. The interviewee was probably spot on but I think the rest of the report was pretty shabby. They were trying to poo-poo on big corporations like Time Warner, Cablevision, and DirectTV for entering into the foray and for.. *gasp*.. making money off sex. Their pre-show commercials promised how I'd be aghast when I found out how much porn America watches. It was pretty sad, really. I've grown to expect better from 60-Minutes but I guess everyone has their moments one way or another.

Anyhow, I guess my point was that I was pretty unphased by the whole thing. Why is it we're surprised by sex? Why is it that we're surprised sex sells? If you've been paying attention at all you know that we're here on this earth for only a few carnal reasons: to eat and have sex.. and the eating is really just to stay alive and have more sex. I know, sickening really, when you think of that bloody burger you just ate and the partner you're about to.. oh nevermind.

Are we cruising for a bruising, as my father would say? Is our society in a downward spiral of filth and smut? Are we heading for the end?

It's been said that the best art a culture produces comes at the height of that cultures decadence.. I don't know that I disagree, but it seems a pedestrian conclusion. The less people have to actually get up and work everyday then the more people are left to their own devices.. and the more people will produce odd things for no good reason - which is essentially what art is, whether you appreciate it or not (which I do).

It's also been said that a culture's height of decadence is followed shortly by it's ultimate downfall.. The Romans, as we all know, were quite the sex fiends.. or at least the ruling class was - those who were most left to their own devices. They did, despite their lack of VCRs, end up in a pile of rubble so maybe we could learn something from them..

guess I should go rent caligula again.

(did you notice how I sort of called pornography "art"? hehe)