Found an article about this here which got me to wondering what the general consensus is.

You can pick up to 3 choices</font>

[ 06-18-2003, 02:17 PM: Message edited by: MagiK ]

I voted Natural, which i think is the same as good.

We were all born naked, so i guess it's only natural. :D

[ 06-18-2003, 02:18 PM: Message edited by: MagiK ]

I selected both good and bad just because there's some ppl I'd rather not see nude LOL

</font>[/QUOTE]damn i thought they were radio buttons.. ok.. it's natural AND good. :D

ain't that the truth!

There's nothing whatsoever wrong with nudity and it should never be a matter of shame for people, but like all things there's a time and a place for it. I don't think anyone would consider it OK to go to a funeral in your birthday suit [img]tongue.gif[/img] or go to the first meeting with your future parents-in-law with literally "nothing to wear" :D
I don't think nudism promotes lewd behaviour though - if anything, it gets people used to seeing nakedness, and will therefore decrease the sexual connotations it has. What cannot be seen is often more alluring than what can be.
On the topic of nudist parents and their children - that's a bit more difficult. Nudism should be a choice, not an obligation, so I think if teens are uncomfortable going on nudist holidays with their parents, they shouldn't have to. Not sure at what age children should be able to decide that though - young children don't feel self-concious and there's no taboo on their nudity (at least not where I live - it's normal to see toddlers on the beach naked).

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Harley you silly goose. Im talking concept here not actuality [img]smile.gif[/img]
We all know that most americans are too hungup on skin exposure for it to be an accepted norm [img]smile.gif[/img] </font>

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I agree with everything you just said :D 100% no exceptions [img]smile.gif[/img] cool! </font>

I just couldn't resist [img]tongue.gif[/img]
Besides, you just know TL's going to come into this thread and moon us all sooner or later. I was hoping my comment would deter that. Don't need to be seeing any muppet butt, LOL.

Good and natural for all ages.

Like Pavlov's dogs, we have been conditioned to respond to nudity in a variety of ways. Be that lust, disgust, or the pleasure of looking at something beautiful. Because of this, I can't blame anyone for finding nudity as a bad thing.

[img]graemlins/moon.gif[/img]

For me, the answer is "it depends." Also, you didn't include the "only for young adults" which is also often true, IMO. In fact, I would readily support a law allowing 18-27 yr olds to run around nude all they like. :D Of course, I'd also likely die an early death due to coronary, but boy it'd be worth it.

[img]graemlins/moon.gif[/img] Where I live, it's common for muppets to run around in the buff and no one minds. [img]graemlins/moon.gif[/img]

Had enough muppet butt, Harley? [img]graemlins/moon.gif[/img]

[ 06-18-2003, 02:38 PM: Message edited by: Timber Loftis ]

Good, Discusting and Natural... Discusting is for those individuals who'd make you throw-up if you saw them naked.

[img]graemlins/moon.gif[/img]

For me, the answer is "it depends." Also, you didn't include the "only for young adults" which is also often true, IMO. In fact, I would readily support a law allowing 18-27 yr olds to run around nude all they like. :D Of course, I'd also likely die an early death due to coronary, but boy it'd be worth it.

[img]graemlins/moon.gif[/img] Where I live, it's common for muppets to run around in the buff and no one minds. [img]graemlins/moon.gif[/img]

Had enough muppet butt, Harley? [img]graemlins/moon.gif[/img] </font>[/QUOTE]I think I've gone blind [img]graemlins/biglaugh.gif[/img]

Wheres the "cold" option?

its natural
of course humans are often in an environment that is not on par with what the body would naturally find within its tolerance.
thats why clothing was developed in the first place; cuz we were freezing our butts off without it.

i agree with most all said above tho too.

To quote our felt covered ambulance chaser:

It is simply rude to make people gufaw while they are at work Harley! [img]graemlins/whackya.gif[/img]

To quote our felt covered ambulance chaser:

It is simply rude to make people gufaw while they are at work Harley! [img]graemlins/whackya.gif[/img] </font>[/QUOTE]That'd be true, if he was working, which the shoe prints on the desk will tell you different. [img]tongue.gif[/img]

i suppose its natural, maybe even good, but i couldnt really imagine me running around buttnaked(or anyone else who lives in my home town, for that matter. not that i would mind, though... :D ).

Untrue of late. I can't even see the impression of my well-loved imprints anymore. :( Lately, I've been getting my ass kicked. :(

hahaha! silly poll. i voted good and bad simply because imaging some people might get a, um, boner in public. heehee! i'd be embarassed as hell. also bad if the nude person is butt ugly. ewww! if nudity is allowed, then there should be a clause that says only good-enough looking can go naked. :D

good and deffifinatly not only for older people. i mean who wants a world of naked 60 year olds? eww.
also nudism isn't for me. my arse is just too hairy.
also i'm all for nudism in the 18 year old bi-sexual female group. well *HOT* 18 year old bi-sexual female group.
*wanders off to take a cold shower*

Just to put it in perspective, Cher is pushing 60.... Not a lot of "Ewww" factor there, IMHO. Leastways, as long as you enjoy slender bodies in good shape with the appropriate parts in the appropriate places... [img]tongue.gif[/img]

It's definitely very cultural. Americans are hung up on it substantially, and Europeans are much less hung up on it. I'm trying to raise my kids so it's less of an issue (especially since my son's favorite clothing is "nakey-boy" [img]smile.gif[/img] ).

So to me, it's neither good nor bad. It just is, it's natural, and good for people of all ages.

Cher is not the best example dude, how many times did she have plastic surgery and at what age did she start with it ?

Hell, i bet even you and i would still look hot at 60 after that many visits to Tom's Rhinoplasty. :D

What if everyone would walk around naked [img]graemlins/1drool.gif[/img] *slap myself* naah that wouldn't work u'd just had watch it so u didn't bump in to anyone [img]tongue.gif[/img]

I think nudity is a natural state, and it should be allowed. There is nothing wrong with seeing naked bodies, we've all got one under our clothes after all! Clothing was initially primarily about keeping warm rather than preserving notions of decency I guess. I've seen plenty of nude bodies in my time, and it ceases to be shocking after a while.

There are pretty strict laws on nudity here compared to some places in Europe - If I wandered around topless I would be arrested for indecent exposure, which in my view is wrong - what the heck is there to be scared of, it's just a body!

If people cannot view nudity as seperate from having sexual connotations, then that should be their problem IMO. All babies see their mother's naked breast and no-one would argue that there are sexual connotations there, and toddlers can run around unclothed without anyone batting an eyelid. It's only when we get older that we are taught that nudity is wrong - whereas I think it should be natural.

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I got a major laugh out of this, both my kids went through that phase [img]smile.gif[/img] couldn't keep a thing on them [img]smile.gif[/img] Im hoping they grow up a bit less repressed about it than my generation did.
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I agree with you, Epona. Clothing started out being a means to help humans adapt to their invironment. I believe, at least in the past, the indigenous peoples of hot climates, wore little to no clothing at all---and I doubt if the men were going around with a constant erection.

I think it is what you are conditionned to. Also, what is taboo. We, and especially men, in our western culture are conditionned to respond sexually to the nude female body. I believe that if women were to, say, run around naked but with their faces veiled, then men would get aroused by seeing an unveiled female face.

It does disturb me that some people are all for nudity if the people are young and good-looking. In my opinion, it is either natural and good for everybody or it isn't for anybody. Again, if you were used to it, you would think nothing of it.

Americans are particularly repressive about it. I think it goes back to our Puritannical background where anything that could even remotely be associated with sex was considered wrong and should be hidden.

Exactly! the problem with people is they assume that if you see people naked your instantly a unrestrainable sexual animal. would that this were true i would walk around naked ALL the time :D . truth is its completly cutural thing. in some tribes people are naked all the time, as it has always been to hot for them to need clothes. just because people now CAN wear clothes doenst mean it should be a legal requirement to. where is the sense in that?

:D my 2c

For many years I have had the pleasure of attending the Pagan Spirit Gathering which is (like many Pagan gatherings) clothing optional. This means that clothing is an option.

Let me just share a couple of insights.
First of it is an incredibly UNerotic situation. There really is nothing sexual about the whole thing. If fact wearing clothing tends to have the opposite effect, since I am rather shy I tend to take the option of reaming clothed and the result is that I would get more than my fair share of propositions from members of the opposite (and same) sex. The meaning being that if your naked you are not in the mood to cuddle

Second when you spend a week with several hundred typical Americans, most of which wander around starkers at some point, you get to see a heck of a lot of body types. After the initial shock wears off you find yourself not judging others by their appearance. My first time in this situation it took about two days to realize that beauty is really more than skin deep. Age, a few extra pounds, some additional body hair (or lack of body hair), really makes no difference in how attractive someone is.

Third: As Melusine posted children should not be obligated to go nude if they don’t want to. Teenagers at the gathering are usually always fully dressed, small children never wear anything. Some of the parents I’ve talked say that when they go home they have a hard time getting their kids back into clothes.

I really wish I could have gone this year but other concerns kept me away.

Cher has been modified a bit much to be considered natural. How about Tom Selleck as an older individual you wouldn’t mind seeing nude.

other than I voted good natural and for young people I will keep my mouth shut less it gets me in trouble here in IW :D

But clothes are important, without them we wouldn't have winter!

well i picked Natural but as DeathKilla said the winter would be a pain

Reeka, good post, but especially this bit. I was biting my lip yesterday and decided to let it slide, but I have to make some comments.
I know people just say those things in jest, thinking it's "cool". I mean, whenever I see nudity discussed, it is inevitable that people will start with the "only if their not butugly and young and girlz hehehe" (does my spelling convey what I think about such comments? [img]tongue.gif[/img] )
Hello people, that kind of commentary is getting old! [img]graemlins/yawn.gif[/img]
Funny how some people cannot discuss a topic like this without displaying exactly the kind of giggly or repressed behaviour that is still attached to nudity.
Anyway, I find it weird that apart from Reeka, no one fell over that comment. To me, it's only a small step away from "ugly people shouldn't be allowed to show themselves AT ALL". How is that different from "fat people shouldn't be allowed to visit a beach", "black people not allowed on this bus"..... yes, I am exaggerating, of course, but the point I'm trying to make is that you're discriminating when you say "young/pretty/bisexual people should be allowed to go naked, old/ugly/fat people shouldn't". Hellooo, everybody is naked underneath their clothes. :D This type of response demonstrates precisely the weird attitude towards nudity that people still have. I'm not saying people can't have a preference for young or pretty. I happen to prefer looking at my boyfriend to looking at an elderly guy, duh! :D But there's a difference between preference and saying "such and such should be FORBIDDEN to do that"

Oh, and I'm not even going to go into the problem of who decides what's ugly -judging by which stars are popular I probably would find many of these "attractive" people unattractive myself. I would feel pretty rotten if this "pretty people only" rule was adopted - I'm not at all happy with how I look sometimes, and would not feel comfortable on the beach if I feared the "bikini police" was filtering out anyone that "could be offensive to the eyes". Beauty's a subjective thing.

Oh and BTW, I'm not at all for adopting nudity - I like my clothes and yes, especially in the winter in some countries, you'd be crazy not to wears your wools :D . Just saying people shouldn't be so hung up on the issue... as I said before, there's a time and place for nudity.
(Magik - agree 100%?? [img]graemlins/wow.gif[/img] should I be insulted or flattered?? ;) :D )

[ 06-19-2003, 05:45 AM: Message edited by: Melusine ]

Reeka, good post, but especially this bit. I was biting my lip yesterday and decided to let it slide, but I have to make some comments.
I know people just say those things in jest, thinking it's "cool". I mean, whenever I see nudity discussed, it is inevitable that people will start with the "only if their not butugly and young and girlz hehehe" (does my spelling convey what I think about such comments? [img]tongue.gif[/img] )
Hello people, that kind of commentary is getting old! [img]graemlins/yawn.gif[/img]
Funny how some people cannot discuss a topic like this without displaying exactly the kind of giggly or repressed behaviour that is still attached to nudity.
Anyway, I find it weird that apart from Reeka, no one fell over that comment. To me, it's only a small step away from "ugly people shouldn't be allowed to show themselves AT ALL". How is that different from "fat people shouldn't be allowed to visit a beach", "black people not allowed on this bus"..... yes, I am exaggerating, of course, but the point I'm trying to make is that you're discriminating when you say "young/pretty/bisexual people should be allowed to go naked, old/ugly/fat people shouldn't". Hellooo, everybody is naked underneath their clothes. :D This type of response demonstrates precisely the weird attitude towards nudity that people still have. I'm not saying people can't have a preference for young or pretty. I happen to prefer looking at my boyfriend to looking at an elderly guy, duh! :D But there's a difference between preference and saying "such and such should be FORBIDDEN to do that"

Oh, and I'm not even going to go into the problem of who decides what's ugly -judging by which stars are popular I probably would find many of these "attractive" people unattractive myself. I would feel pretty rotten if this "pretty people only" rule was adopted - I'm not at all happy with how I look sometimes, and would not feel comfortable on the beach if I feared the "bikini police" was filtering out anyone that "could be offensive to the eyes". Beauty's a subjective thing.

Oh and BTW, I'm not at all for adopting nudity - I like my clothes and yes, especially in the winter in some countries, you'd be crazy not to wears your wools :D . Just saying people shouldn't be so hung up on the issue... as I said before, there's a time and place for nudity.
(Magik - agree 100%?? [img]graemlins/wow.gif[/img] should I be insulted or flattered?? ;) :D ) </font>[/QUOTE]as I said, I was going to keep my mouth shu on that one,lol but I do agree with you 2 on that, everyone should be allowed to chose what is right for them, the only reason I did not chose older people too, is because I ran out of clicks

It would be interesting to see if any studies have been done regarding children brought up in this environment, to see if they suffer more or less slimming / diet fads or illnesses. One would think that they would grow up with a more balanced view and be more cynical to the fashion beauty industry.

Melusine, if you'll notice i never say that people should go naked (apart from the over 60 group but thats partly becuase they'd probably freeze) i'm just saying that i'm all for hot bi-sexual 18 year old girls going around naked. and you can't blame me, i'm 17, its the hormones talking [img]smile.gif[/img]

[ 06-19-2003, 07:07 AM: Message edited by: Bruce The Aussie ]