A random mental walk.

Monday, April 21, 2025

Fair-trade, ethically sourced and cruelty-free

The Times Ethicist (https://www.nytimes.com/2025/02/07/magazine/porn-habit-bisexual-polyamory-ethics.html) responded to a married man with "mismatched libidos" with his being much higher.  The man dealt with it by watching amateur and homemade pornography, and masturbating to it almost daily.  The man chose amateur and homemade porn wanted to avoid commercial products which were produced by preying on the vulnerable.

The Ethicist response characterized what the man watched as "basically fair-trade, ethically sourced and cruelty-free" porn. 

It made me wonder how often that phrase has been used humorously.

Sunday, February 23, 2025

XIAFLEX Commercial

I was listening to Brian Eno' Ambient 1: Music for Airports while preparing an exercise for my class.  A commercial with a bunch of men in a pool hall talking about their concerns about a medical treatment. The commercial drew my attention because:

It was a bunch of guys:

  • not talking about beer.
  • the "natural-ness" of the discussion,
  • the questions and answers seemed sensible/realistic, and 
  • what really got my attention was the methodical reading of counter indications and side effects. 

The commercial was about Peyronie's disease (new to me). It's essentially a curvature of the penis caused by "fibrous scar tissue".  It can make erections painful and other delightful symptoms.

Even if I forget the name of the disease and the name of the medication I will remember the calm methodical tone of the announcer.  I didn't listen to the whole commercial, but any guy who does will have been treated to a seminar-equivalent discussion of the disease and treatment.  It's a marked contrast to the breakneck speed at which other drug commercials race through the side effects and counterindications at breakneck speed.

I wonder if a curved carrot (as seen on /peyronies-disease.xiaflex.com/patient/) is the international symbol for the disease.



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