For Your Consideration [A TED Talk]

Hey guys,

I'm subscribed to Upworthy via E-mail, and every day I'll get a list of particularly fascinating, touching, educational, or downright disturbing videos and infographics.

Among the crop today was this Ted Talk:

"This is What Happens When Children Have Unlimited Access to Pornography"

I myself am a bit surprised at this, and curious as to your thoughts on this video.

1. Do you feel you may fall in the category of porn-addicted?

2. What are your thoughts on the research and brain studies he cites?

3. What are your overall feelings on the validity of his claim?

4. Do you feel like this is a real problem for your peers?

I myself do not feel I fall in this category. Internet-addicted possibly, but I actually rarely watch porn, myself. I personally feel that I do not get a rush or high from the internet or related things that overshadow my ability to enjoy true interaction, let alone coitus.

What about you?

Oh I remember this video was linked to a while ago in IB or Random.

Anyway, when I watched it at the time, I was kind of surprised and sort of worried considering I fap, like, typically once a day albeit mostly to hentai (not sure if there's a difference even though sex is usually portrayed differently in each of them). As for being porn-addicted, I might be, considering I frequently download H-flash games just for the sake of downloading them and seeing if they're worthwhile, however, I feel like there are people much worse than me.

As far as the guy's research, I'm no expert, so I dunno, but it sounds like personal testimony is a big part. And for my peers, lol. I actually have a friend who hadn't watched porn for most of his life, I'm pretty sure, until somewhat recently. And out of all my close friends and I, he's the only virgin. So...hmm...

I don't think masturbating once a day, and downloading hentai flash games means you're addicted to porn. Addiction interferes with your life and ability to positively respond to things besides whatever it is you may be addicted to.

For instance, he cites E.D. as a result of constant overstimulation. Porn replaces real sex. If you can easily become aroused and enjoy sex with a real person, and your day isn't mostly comprised of internet porn, I think you're still pretty normal and healthy.

1) No, I hentai is my favorite pass time but I don't fap to everything, but I love watching it.

2) Didn't know anything about those things and grateful he talked about it, the only question I have is just how much porn did the people he used for examples watched?

3) I do agree, it's like anything, you start to feel more bored on the subject in the end until it no longer pleases you.

4) It is a problem since nowadays all sorts of addictions are everywhere, I know someone who pays no attention AT ALL to any girls and they straight up hit on him at times and I have been there to see that all he does is "meh" or gives no favorable reaction.


I'm thankful I stopped, I was getting addicted but now watch it as a pass-time. I still enjoy playing erpoges and watching hentai though and still love natural women I know in real life.

I do not know if i would qualify as an addict but i just watch porn when i need help falling asleep or when im bored or if my 3rd leg as asking for me to rub on out but i dont watch porn everyday and as for my peers 98% of people i know as a friend they dont need porn because they are in a relationship and giving/or getting 8=D
plus i watch porn to see pretty women because there is a lack of available women to fap to in rl unless your a pedo or a gentophiliac

That video was like internet porn cause my mind was getting fucked hard and the kind you pause and stop watching(i did watch the whole vid barely understood it).

hentai dounjin i like schoolgirl/really cute girls in them/good artwork too

Im more of a tv/videogame addict cause i do those things everyday but i do have a job yay

plus i asked my lady doctor how many times can you masturbate she said as long as you arent doing it 10x a day you are good

But i plan to stop watching porn

1. I'd like to say that I once fell into this category. I first started regularly surfing porn at around age 10. Strangely enough, it was mostly to hentai images, flash games, and not really any "real" porn until my freshman year of high school when I started to distance myself from hentai (because a good portion of it was Rule 34 and I felt bad seeing lewd depictions of characters I knew) and focused instead on the "real" stuff. Eventually I phased out from surfing "real" porn and deleted my "collection of folders", not once, but thrice by the time I graduated.

It wasn't until a friend of mine got me back into anime around my 2nd college semester. Of course then, I was still adamant against all things hentai related. But as it turns out, I developed a taste for ecchi anime and gradually accepted all things hentai. Strangely enough, I am now against "real" porn. Sure I check it out once in a blue moon, but it's just not the same for me. 2-D chicks are much more attractive to me. ;D I am still the same old friendly, sociable guy I was before- I just happen become a full fledged otaku. ^_^


2. As for my thoughts on the video, it was quite an eye opener for me. Back in high school, I was always concerned that I may have some sort of porn addiction. I now know better and have a healthy balance with porn- or rather hentai.


3. I believe his claims as valid. Time will go by as more continued research is published and I would like to know the results the next time he or anyone else brings this up again.


4. I would say this is a problem since our generation is the information age and almost anyone and look up anything at any given time anywhere. But as for my circle of friends that I personally know, no, not a real problem as far as I can tell. We all have our hobbies, tastes, and balance when it comes to porn, if any.



And what I would like to know is if any of it was hentai. xD

That's where the theory hits most, is that you go from straight sex to lesbian sex to gangbangs to orgies to who knows what else. Then you lose complete interest in straight sex, then lesbian then gangbangs, etc. thus losing any sexual attraction BESIDES your latest fetish. However, I seem to not be affected by such a thing and doesn't sounds like you are either.

I think people get too traumatized of "what if they find out I like tentacle hentai/porn?!??!?!" and lose track.

1) I seriously dunno. Maybe, I mean, I read a lot of hentai and fap at least one time a day, except when I'm busy with work and all that. I admit that I've felt depressed and void of motivation at times but I kind of always stirred myself up every time. So I'd say, I might be starting to be an addict, but I don't think so.
If I had to say I'm an addict to something it would be manga( maybe a little anime, but manga really is the best ). I have actually felt high reading manga sometimes. High kinda like pot, but without the numbness, and if anything it made me want to draw manga myself.

2) I think they look pretty serious, and they don't shock me. I had noticed most of these things in myself and friends. The only thing bothering me is the 4-5 months of wait until you get rid of E.D and become a pussy magnet. I think this part goes a little too far. I really don't imagine that happening to many people. Becoming less socially awkward, yes. Pussy magnet, I have my doubts.
The part about the novelty addiction is the one that I can most relate to, I love new things, discovering interesting stuff with only a few clicks is what makes the internet so uber cool.

3) I think they are well-reasoned and valid for a majority of people, but like said before me, I wonder if these studies touch the hentai populace.

4) I don't see why it would be, except if you really really want to become a hunk. I mean, if you want interaction with people IRL, your only solution is to go out. And if you're serious about it, I'm pretty sure you'll naturally end up watching less porn, you'll go out more often, come back home too tired to fap, be busy outside of your room, meet people, get a social life, etcetera.
At least it's been like that for me, but at some point, most of social life components bored me so I went back home to read my manga cause it's freaking awesome and interesting.
But I do have a friend that's struggling right now to get a girlfriend, I guess I'll tell him to stop watching porn^^




I see what you mean and I am not affected either by that cycle. I consider my fetishes to be mine alone and if they were discovered, well, it's not like I can change it. Plus, some of these fetishes seem to me to be completely impossible irl, like they only exist in hentai.
Kind of like what I think about Loli. The girls in loli hentai just aren't real at all. There is not a single girl irl that looks like a girl in a hentai actually. And artists with really realistic drawings are very rare.


I really think hentai is in another category altogether :/

1. No. I classify addiction as anything that impacts your life heavily enough that it harms the other aspects of your life. Me watching porn/hentai has never negatively affected the rest of my life so I am not addicted.

2. I haven't heard any specifics about porn addicts brain, but I have heard that addiction in general rewires your brain. I am not too surprised.

3.I think its probably pretty valid. I mean addiction changes people in all kinds of ways I would not be surprised that porn addiction can lead to ED.

4. Not for anyone that I know in real life. Sometimes I worry about some of the fakku members but I also wonder if all there stories are just bullshit.

Throughout history children were exposed to sex all the time. This was because they weren't considered children, toddlers would be in the same room as couples making love and child sex slaves were not uncommon in society. 12 year olds were married to 50 year old men and became pregnant on their wedding nights. It was only in the 19th century that the concept of a child or a childhood even existed.

We can't pretend that the past was more wholesome because this is obviously untrue. From the palaces of French kings to the Harems in the middle east perversions have always existed and children were always exposed to them and often part of them.

The detrimental effect on male development such as erectile dysfunction was obvious in the victorian era as they thought masturbation would make themselves infertile often and had the pressure of making children both causing erectile dysfunction. Psychologists also believe this is due to men being brought up to believe they should be superior in every way to women and often feel inferior when intercourse begins.

I have seen porn since I was twelve in 2003 yet I have a serious healthy sexual life and have no extreme fetishes, mental trauma or an inferiority complex. Society cannot accept it has problems so blames everything else. This time it's porn.

I get the feeling you didn't watch the video at any length, and just decided to reply with your own opinion.

While it may be rooted in arguable degrees of historical fact, the video was part of a scientific study on porn addiction.