The topic was a challenging one.  We seldom talk directly, think out-loud about the meaning and practice of the sex act in the lives of our peers.  In past times, such discussion was taboo, unacceptable.  Presently, mores have relaxed.  A frank public discussion is possible.  We yet lack sufficient vocabulary, and I am aware of my unease as the topic is explored.  All the more reason why such discussions are important and and are generally helpful.

Kate Julian, a journalist for the Atlantic asserted that American teenagers and young adults are having less sex.  The more one considers that possibility the more alarmed one becomes.  If so primal an activity, nothing less than the drive to reproduce, and moreover, activity widely celebrated as universally pleasurable — is truncated by dystopia of our modern way of life —- the canary in the coal mine doesn’t sing.

Here are some factors potentially relevant to the “sex recession” offered by Julian.

1. 1. I was told it might be a consequence of the hookup culture,
   2. of crushing economic pressures,
   3. of surging anxiety rates,
   4. of psychological frailty,
   5. of widespread antidepressant use,
   6. of streaming television,
   7. of environmental estrogens leaked by plastics,
   8. of dropping testosterone levels,
   9. of digital porn,
   10. of the vibrator’s golden age,
   11. of dating apps,
   12. of option paralysis,
   13. of helicopter parents,
   14. of careerism,
   15. of smartphones,
   16. of the news cycle,
   17. of information overload generally,
   18. of sleep deprivation,
   19. of obesity.

Name a modern blight, and someone, somewhere, is ready to blame it for messing with the modern libido.

Without arguing affirmatively for the healthful, natural strategy of face to face engagement between humans, encounters of verbal exchange, allowing two individuals with distinct histories to develop trust, which may or may not advance toward a tactile contact expressing mutual care…..

I offer a better argument: this tune by Fleetwood Mac.  Enjoy the angelic voice of Christie McVie.  The lyric which follows the video — a standing invitation to find ourselves through engagement with others.

You Make Loving Fun

Sweet wonderful you,
You make me happy with the things you do.
Oh, can it be so?
This feeling follows me wherever I go.

I never did believe in miracles,
But I’ve a feeling it’s time to try.
I never did believe in the ways of magic,
But I’m beginning to wonder why.

I never did believe in miracles,
But I’ve a feeling it’s time to try.
I never did believe in the ways of magic,
But I’m beginning to wonder why.

Don’t, don’t break the spell.
It would be different, and you know it will.
You, you make loving fun,
And I don’t have to tell you, but you’re the only one.

You, you make loving fun.
It’s all I wanna do.
You, you make loving fun.
It’s all I wanna do.

You, you make loving fun.
It’s all I wanna do.
You, you make loving fun.
It’s all I wanna do.