Powerful men do a lot of mean things in the workplace.
But what really annoys Harry Lieberman in all the stories that have come up recently is that former "Today" show host Matt Lauer used to give his colleagues a sex toy, it's written to use it on her.
Lieberman is committed to studying sex toys and their positive impact on people's lives.
This is a topic she discussed in detail in her recently published book, Buzz.
"Vibrators and other sex toys can help people to be more comfortable with their bodies and to be happy, which is a great thing," Lieberman said --
In personal life
"I really like giving sex toys as gifts," she said in a telephone interview at her home in Atlanta . ".
"But don't send them to your staff.
"Lieberman's book may have the same advice, which is based on her doctoral thesis at the University of Wisconsin and has been working on the subject a long time ago.
"Before humans invented words or wheels, we invented the penis," Lieberman said . " He explained that archaeologists had discovered the penis --
Objects of shape can be traced back to the ice age.
In a chapter that investigated about 30,000 years, Lieberman noted that dillos appeared in ancient Egyptian paintings and in several works by Greek playwright aristofen,
Packaging page of Kama Sutra.
In the 17 th century, they appeared in British poetry and Japanese woodcut prints.
In the archives of the Smithsonian National Museum of American history, Lieberman was also a member of the museum a few years ago. she discovered the beginning of the 20 th century.
A century device that attracts male pleasure.
Despite a long tradition, sex toys try to stay relatively hidden (s).
The taboo attracted Lieberman first.
The preface to "Buzz" tells about a family vacation when she was 10 years old, and she finds a strange zip bag on the hotel dresser.
She showed off the "pencil sharpener" to her parents, who immediately took the pencil sharpener and asked her to wash her hands.
Lieberman left a deep memory during his 1990 s in Florida.
One day, then16-year-
Old Lieberman glanced at a shop called "adult fun" and the black screen in the store attracted-
Window from the dilapidated shopping center.
Inside, she saw a wall of pornographic goods with unprintable publications on the shelves --
And an employee of her school district.
Lieberman is as confused as she is.
"Shouldn't sex just work? ” she wondered.
Why does anyone need to spend money on extra stuff?
Still, Lieberman decided not to leave. handed.
Her charm is lingering, less than academic interest.
At the beginning of 2000, as a graduate student in advertising at the University of Texas at Austin, Lieberman became a sales representative of a company that launched Tupperware-
Like a party at a customer's house.
In addition to selling beautiful plastic products, they also sell sex toys.
But there is a big problem: it is illegal to sell these items in Texas.
In order to avoid arrest and fines, Lieberman had to stick to the code jargon and say that the products were sold strictly for "artistic, educational and scientific purposes.
The situation in Lieberman is strange, which is why she began to delve into how the law ended in the book.
Soon she began to look at the rise of the sub-Crusaders, the role of the government in regulating sex toys, and the development of key toys.
Toy technology including rubber vulcanization and electricity.
Initially, her "Buzz" plan was to provide
Lieberman said that it is objects, not people, that are studied in depth.
But the reader will find that most of her books are devoted to plastic characters --
Toy industry in the United States since 1950
One of Lieberman's favorite works is Ted Marche, an expert in oral skills, who, as she says, "has changed from a dummy to dildos ".
Marche is also an engineer,
In his 60 s he wants to make a device that can help a man with impotence.
This is a dangerous adventure, pre-
But Marke found out that his demands for his "marriage"
Aid "equipment is very high.
As of 1976, Marche sold nearly 5 million vehicles;
He also donated artificial penis to the Children's Hospital for the treatment of young boys with abnormal genitals.
If March is an angel of sex
At the toy scene, the devil is Reuben Sturman, whose dominant position in the industry has risen, involving suspicious Swiss bank accounts, extortion, and even conspiracy to intimidate opponents with bombs.
However, Lieberman is most concerned with those who use these devices as part of a larger cultural movement.
"These people want to change the world and use sex toys to change the world," she said . ".
There's also Gosnell Duncan, a paralyzed man who started making sex toys for other disabled people. (
He also pioneered the use of the body.
Safety silicone rubber. )
Duane corglazer of the company
Founder of the happy chest chain, launched a gay
When homosexuality is a crime, it is business-oriented.
Betty Dodson is a personal hero of Lieberman, and he advocates masturbation tirelessly --and vibrators —
Feminist
It's not always a popular idea for the leaders of the organization, who worry about prioritizing the optical principles of happiness.
"It's radical," Lieberman said, "women can control their sexuality ".
"This is still radical.
Former Washington Post columnist Vicky Hallett is a freelance writer in Florence, Italy.