Puttenham, about an hour’s drive from London, has fewer than 2,500 residents and is famous for its ancient church; its friendly pub, the Good Intent; and its proud inclusion in both the Domesday Book — an 11th-century survey of English lands — and “Brave New World.”Read the whole thing.
Unhappily for many people here, it is also famous for being featured on lists of good places to go “dogging” — that is, to have sex in public, sometimes with partners you have just met online, so that others can watch. So popular is the woodsy field below the ridge as a spot for gay sex (mostly during the day) and heterosexual sex (mostly at night) that the police have designated it a “public sex environment.”
Okay, people. I do not object to having sex outside in public areas. I have had sex outside in public areas. I've actually done it kind of recently. However, when your outdoor sex has a voyeuristic aspect, you are including other people in your outdoor sex, and including people in sex with you without asking their permission first is WRONG. I would be all in favor of a world where people could take off their clothes and have sex wherever the mood struck and no one would have a problem with it. But we don't live in a world like that and people do have a problem with it. So let's do our best to respect everybody's bountries. Okay, mates?
Very funny to hear that this is a UK-only phenomenon. I used to live near a 'dogging spot', and it could be hideous. It's one thing to choose a secluded spot late at night, but too often I'd head off for a nice walk along by the river, only to - literally - stumble across a couple having sex at the side of the path. We Brits, repressed? Not a bit of it, particularly after a few cans of special brew. Grim.
ReplyDeleteI have to hand it to you. You are definitely not repressed!
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