166 Archway Road, London NG
Obsessed with sex
Sir: Now that Britain has become a member of the Common Market, we, two teenage English girls living in France, have been leafing through English journals, including one or two girlie magazines. The first thing that strikes one is Britain's obsession with sex. We are amazed at what must possess the minds of the average English teenager. Pointing this out to English teenagers gets one nowhere — to them this filth is normal. They have been wallowing in it now since early childhood and know nothing better. To discuss it with the English is like asking a herring what time the tide comes in at Brighton, or quoting Kipling, "What do they know of England who only England know?"
The English press is full of pornography, its definitions, court cases, and so on. Why doesn't the press dish up the realistic aspects and consequences of all this heartless exploitation of the young — abortions, misery, illegitimate births, drugs? We read about the debate in the House of Lords and thought their Lordships were out of touch. A lot of them and the parents cause the rot. As teenage girls ourselves we are convinced that women in the final analysis are stronger than men without women's lib, etc. When the values of a nation's women disintegrate the nation falls apart. Women seem now to be no more than rubber dolls for the amusement of men.
Britain has imported all this muck from America. Journalism is always slanted and therefore contains lies. But has there ever been such a flood of harmful lies before published round the sexual organs? When we were in England we were amazed at the number of miserable looking mini-skirted tarts running about after in articulate long-haired guitar-twang ers with their pills, their drugs, their silly big-shot talk about being with-it. The ' groups ' making a din where you can't hear yourselves speak. The loutish gangs of skinheads, hell's angels, etc, ought to be doing military service like other members of the Common Market. Sometimes one feels like telling the English teenagers to hire double rooms and get it off their chests and hang their girlie magazines in the WC.
Parents are financing their children and making fortunes for drug pushers, pop absurdities, cosmet ics, the medico-abortionists. Is it that the parents themselves have been caught up in the porny gutter and feel guilty about pointing a finger at the children? This is wrong — parents as adults should be free to choose th..ir own sexual life, quite another matter for unformed youngsters. Parents are the only ones who can raise a barrier against this merciless exploitation of the teenage market. Oh yes, we know the standard answer — this is also happening in France. But this is simply not true. There is nothing like the stream of filth here. We can walk about safely without whistles from louts or being attacked by cowardly gangs. And there is no violence in the schools. There is no danger of England exporting her obsession with the sexual organs to the continent. It's old hat here. There never was any hypocritial puritan ism tc react against. There's a sex shop in Perpignan, No one titters about it. We've never known anyone who has visited it — it's just there. If only English girls knew what a terrible reputation they've got on the continent. This might change with the Common Market.
Wake up, Britain, get moving in here, or are you still going to be too busy masturbating? The French were selling cauliflowers in Britain ' on New Year's Day. Cheer up, there's sex here, too. But will you be able to cope with it — it's the real thing!
Anne-Louise de Verteuil Nicola Brooks
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