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As a European I've always found it strange just how deeply uncomfortable Americans seem to be with nudity. How is public breastfeeding a problem? Like just let

As a European I've always found it strange just how deeply uncomfortable Americans seem to be with nudity. How is public breastfeeding a problem? Like just let it happen? Or try to imagine running a public naked sauna ... Or how some movies require a special cut for the US market (to remove some "inappropriate" scenes).

rayiner 6y ago
I suspect Europeans are the odd ones out here. As an Asian I don’t find anything strange about Americans in that regard at all.
- jhgb 6y ago
  But most people in the US are (very recent) descendants of Europeans, not descendants of Asians. Perhaps that's why the difference is interesting.
- rangibaby 6y ago
  What part of Asia? Japanese are far less prudish when compared to USA or UK et al
  - murat124 6y ago
    I've been to Turkish baths and Koren baths before and only in the latter I was told to throw away the tiny towel I was holding to cover Mr Johnson. I don't know why in some cultures it is ok but in some others nudity ignites feeling of shame but after I threw the tiny towel I felt better. I guess peer pressure works both ways.
  - rayiner 6y ago
    Sorry I meant South Asia.
denimnerd42 6y ago
You know the Puritans left for the US because they wanted to enact even more strict religious rules right?
- deleted 6y ago
  [deleted]
- dohnuts1919 6y ago
  Someone once remarked to me that "you can understand a lot about the US by remembering it was founded by people whose religious beliefs were too crazy for 17th-century Europe."
kody 6y ago
As a midwestern conservative [evangelical] christian homeschooled white man, female nudity = sex = sin. As a normal adult married to a woman with a 9 month old baby yeah nudity aversion is ridiculous and actively harms natural processes like breastfeeding. It’s absurd that we parents, along with everyone else, have to pretend genitals don’t exist or some precious thing to hide away and treasure.
- exporectomy 6y ago
  Where do you draw the line? There are lot of sexual crimes that are essentially just nudity.
  - techdragon 6y ago
    Well for starters. Public urinating shouldn’t be a “sex crime” like some jurisdictions have made it. And of course this is assuming the perpetrator isn’t doing it as some kind of personal fetish obviously.
    - vincnetas 6y ago
      Why doing something is ok until you dont get pleasure from it. Whats wrong with experiencing pleasure. Are we so envious of that but on same time ashamed to admit that?
      - netrus 6y ago
        It is not okay to include others in your sexual activities without consent. That's the line. Getting aroused by doing something in the public / been seen doing something means involuntary participation of others, which is not okay.
        vincnetas 6y ago
        Yes so thats the question, why do you not concent to someone enjoying without harming anyone. Lets say i ecstatically enjoy sunsets by the see. Should i be forbiden to enjoy them because i enjoy them a lot more than nearby standing people?
unishark 6y ago
I think almost every state has laws protecting breastfeeding in public. Otherwise the issue in the US focuses overwhelmingly on parents wanting to prevent children from seeing nudity. How "public" can saunas get? There are also saunas/hottubs/showers at gyms everywhere. The only restriction is they are single-sex. Mainly for women keeping the guys out. Or at least that was uniformly the requirement until recent politics with transgenders.
haberman 6y ago
Is it just an American thing? I remember seeing this commentary by a British poet: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/hollie-mcnish-breastfeeding-in-public-embarrassed_n_3557230 https://www.huffpost.com/entry/hollie-mcnish-breastfeeding-i...
Noos 6y ago
Why would you want to be naked in front of a bunch of strangers? What is the special thing we are missing because of this?
- meowster 6y ago
  What would be the downsides of being naked in front of a bunch of strangers? To answer your second question: the sense of freedom, peace, and comfort.
  - Noos 6y ago
    It's much too intimate a relationship, in a sense. You're throwing your imperfections, or maybe for a better word your total presence at a person. It's kind of like those people who when you ask "How you doing?" at a checkout counter really tell you how they are doing, right down to the colonoscopy they are having next week. I mean personal space, man; it's visual too you know? I don't need to know you have liver spots on your left buttcheek or the size of your wang when I don't even care to ask you your name. edit in response to yours: You know what would really make me feel free, safe, and comfortable? If that party of drunk guys staggering dangerously close to me were also naked, too. I think I'm okay with giving up my freedom as not to make people uncomfortable that way, especially women.
    - vincnetas 6y ago
      Yes, but its the same body. Let's think about it, you dont check guys hand size when its naked all the time, why would you care about size of his penis (its also strange how even in comments most peopele feel uncomfortable calling body parts by they proper name). You should not.
    - meowster 6y ago
      It's all in the head and how you perceive the world. They're strangers, the average person is not trying to develop any kind of connection with you (and the unaverage person who is, isn't going to let clothing stop them). When you go to the doctors and have to disrobe, they aren't trying to make a connection with you. Who cares about imperfections? No one is perfect. The models you see on magazines are heavily photoshoped, the actors on screen wear tons of makeup. If you don't need to know, don't stare. Staring is rude, clothed or otherwise. I don't care about the size of anyone's wang, and I'm sorry that you've been conditioned by others to care about penis sizes. I can't make sense of your edit. I'm not saying you're wrong (and I hope that you're not saying I'm wrong), it's just all about perspective. If you're in a sauna, chances are extremely likely no one is wanting to inspect your body just as much as you don't want to inspect theirs, they just want a good sauna time just like you would. Being naked should be incidental, not the goal.
dohnuts1919 6y ago
Fun fact: the Pioneer space probes included a plaque with some information about Earth and humanity, for the benefit of any extraterrestrial being that might find it one day, but the drawings of a naked man and woman didn't include any detail in the woman's pubic area (imagine a Barbie doll) because this was considered too obscene, apparently even for an alien: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_plaque#Figures_of_a_man_and_a_woman https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_plaque#Figures_of_a_ma...

rayiner 6y ago

I suspect Europeans are the odd ones out here. As an Asian I don’t find anything strange about Americans in that regard at all.

jhgb 6y ago
But most people in the US are (very recent) descendants of Europeans, not descendants of Asians. Perhaps that's why the difference is interesting.
rangibaby 6y ago
What part of Asia? Japanese are far less prudish when compared to USA or UK et al
- murat124 6y ago
  I've been to Turkish baths and Koren baths before and only in the latter I was told to throw away the tiny towel I was holding to cover Mr Johnson. I don't know why in some cultures it is ok but in some others nudity ignites feeling of shame but after I threw the tiny towel I felt better. I guess peer pressure works both ways.
- rayiner 6y ago
  Sorry I meant South Asia.

denimnerd42 6y ago

You know the Puritans left for the US because they wanted to enact even more strict religious rules right?

deleted 6y ago
[deleted]
dohnuts1919 6y ago
Someone once remarked to me that "you can understand a lot about the US by remembering it was founded by people whose religious beliefs were too crazy for 17th-century Europe."

kody 6y ago

As a midwestern conservative [evangelical] christian homeschooled white man, female nudity = sex = sin. As a normal adult married to a woman with a 9 month old baby yeah nudity aversion is ridiculous and actively harms natural processes like breastfeeding. It’s absurd that we parents, along with everyone else, have to pretend genitals don’t exist or some precious thing to hide away and treasure.

exporectomy 6y ago
Where do you draw the line? There are lot of sexual crimes that are essentially just nudity.
- techdragon 6y ago
  Well for starters. Public urinating shouldn’t be a “sex crime” like some jurisdictions have made it. And of course this is assuming the perpetrator isn’t doing it as some kind of personal fetish obviously.
  - vincnetas 6y ago
    Why doing something is ok until you dont get pleasure from it. Whats wrong with experiencing pleasure. Are we so envious of that but on same time ashamed to admit that?
    - netrus 6y ago
      It is not okay to include others in your sexual activities without consent. That's the line. Getting aroused by doing something in the public / been seen doing something means involuntary participation of others, which is not okay.
      - vincnetas 6y ago
        Yes so thats the question, why do you not concent to someone enjoying without harming anyone. Lets say i ecstatically enjoy sunsets by the see. Should i be forbiden to enjoy them because i enjoy them a lot more than nearby standing people?

unishark 6y ago

I think almost every state has laws protecting breastfeeding in public. Otherwise the issue in the US focuses overwhelmingly on parents wanting to prevent children from seeing nudity. How "public" can saunas get? There are also saunas/hottubs/showers at gyms everywhere. The only restriction is they are single-sex. Mainly for women keeping the guys out. Or at least that was uniformly the requirement until recent politics with transgenders.

haberman 6y ago

Is it just an American thing? I remember seeing this commentary by a British poet: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/hollie-mcnish-breastfeeding-in-public-embarrassed_n_3557230 https://www.huffpost.com/entry/hollie-mcnish-breastfeeding-i...

Noos 6y ago

Why would you want to be naked in front of a bunch of strangers? What is the special thing we are missing because of this?

meowster 6y ago
What would be the downsides of being naked in front of a bunch of strangers? To answer your second question: the sense of freedom, peace, and comfort.
- Noos 6y ago
  It's much too intimate a relationship, in a sense. You're throwing your imperfections, or maybe for a better word your total presence at a person. It's kind of like those people who when you ask "How you doing?" at a checkout counter really tell you how they are doing, right down to the colonoscopy they are having next week. I mean personal space, man; it's visual too you know? I don't need to know you have liver spots on your left buttcheek or the size of your wang when I don't even care to ask you your name. edit in response to yours: You know what would really make me feel free, safe, and comfortable? If that party of drunk guys staggering dangerously close to me were also naked, too. I think I'm okay with giving up my freedom as not to make people uncomfortable that way, especially women.
  - vincnetas 6y ago
    Yes, but its the same body. Let's think about it, you dont check guys hand size when its naked all the time, why would you care about size of his penis (its also strange how even in comments most peopele feel uncomfortable calling body parts by they proper name). You should not.
  - meowster 6y ago
    It's all in the head and how you perceive the world. They're strangers, the average person is not trying to develop any kind of connection with you (and the unaverage person who is, isn't going to let clothing stop them). When you go to the doctors and have to disrobe, they aren't trying to make a connection with you. Who cares about imperfections? No one is perfect. The models you see on magazines are heavily photoshoped, the actors on screen wear tons of makeup. If you don't need to know, don't stare. Staring is rude, clothed or otherwise. I don't care about the size of anyone's wang, and I'm sorry that you've been conditioned by others to care about penis sizes. I can't make sense of your edit. I'm not saying you're wrong (and I hope that you're not saying I'm wrong), it's just all about perspective. If you're in a sauna, chances are extremely likely no one is wanting to inspect your body just as much as you don't want to inspect theirs, they just want a good sauna time just like you would. Being naked should be incidental, not the goal.

dohnuts1919 6y ago

Fun fact: the Pioneer space probes included a plaque with some information about Earth and humanity, for the benefit of any extraterrestrial being that might find it one day, but the drawings of a naked man and woman didn't include any detail in the woman's pubic area (imagine a Barbie doll) because this was considered too obscene, apparently even for an alien: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_plaque#Figures_of_a_man_and_a_woman https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_plaque#Figures_of_a_ma...