Economics of SEX

This video caught my eye, since I posted on the sidebar that I was reading Jay Richard’s Money, Greed, and God: Why Capitalism Is the Solution and Not the Problem (which the people who helped Francis write Evangelii gaudium could benefit from).

There are a few limitations to the video’s argument, because it lacks a couple important starting points, but it is nevertheless useful.  After all, economics describes a great deal of human behavior.  We assign value to things and we exchange things of value with others according to our circumstances and needs.

NB: I especially liked the pesticide analogy and unintended consequences, and the technical aspect of the drawing is very cool.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cO1ifNaNABY&feature=player_embedded

About Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

Fr. Z is the guy who runs this blog. o{]:¬)
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12 Comments

  1. Lurker 59 says:

    For those that are interested, the artwork in the video is done by David Leiberg. He is a rather talented up and coming Catholic artist. Some of his work can be viewed on his website here http://www.leibergart.com . David’s style is imbued with dream-state characteristics which makes his pieces a real treat to for the mind to ponder. His religious works, many of which are not posted, are meticulously orthodox, which is rare for a fine artist these days. He does a lot of his work by commission and his contact info is as listed.

  2. Lurker 59 says:

    This video is an important piece of creative orthodoxy — something that is sorely needed in the culture wars. An orthodox message is needed by the Church, but so too is creative means of presenting it to a culture that has lost a sense of the radical nature of truth. I am very impressed by this piece and, as part of the Action Institute’s larger program, it will go a long way to helping to promote discussion in the public forum and hopefully a return towards a society that sees and promotes true dignity in intimacy and human sexuality.

  3. Lurker 59 says:

    typo — the video is by the The Austin Institute.

  4. Stephen McMullen says:

    FORD! (Think Aldous Huxley’s “Brave New World”)……Some of this is SO depressing. Really puts men in a bad light.

  5. ReginaMarie says:

    Interesting video, really well done. I also appreciated the pesticide-pill analogy. After all, hormonal contraceptives are in fact human pesticides (the World Health Organization has named some of them class I carcinogens). Not only do they pollute a woman’s body (at times, killing a developing human being in the process)…they pollute our ecosystem & waterways when they are flushed out of a woman’s body & into our water systems.

  6. teomatteo says:

    simple economics: “why buy the cow when the milk is free”

  7. MB says:

    One thing that I think lots of Catholic folks are missing in the equation is the fact that we are being manipulated by cultural marxists. They use the sexual impulse as a means to control people. So, although the “market forces” tell some of the story, there are also things going on behind the scenes too. We need to know our enemy if we want to win the war.

    http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/cultural-marxism-new-threat-to-society-says-brazilian-commentator

  8. AgricolaDeHammo says:

    @Stephen… You could also say it puts feminists who wanted the pill in a bad light.
    Rather, I’d just say it’s being real about human nature.

  9. AgricolaDeHammo says:

    Related to the topic of sex and economics, I find it fascinating that we’re seeing a supposed upswing of libertarianism, but really there has to be a distinction between social & economic libertarianism. This excerp from an interview with James Poulos foretells the sort of thing we’re seeing today, when folks will sacrifice their liberties if they can pursue pleasure at all cost. That certainly seems to be the trend today with apathy about religious freedom.

  10. wmeyer says:

    My objections to may of their badly worded claims were coming too rapidly to note. But it’s a cue video,and their eventual conclusion I cannot dispute: contraception is the root cause of it all. Following closely, however, is society’s lack of concern these days with casual sex and children born outside of marriage. Removing the pill would remedy part of the problem, but attitudes have become so permissive–not exactly forgiving, more like uncaring–that if all pills and abortion were made unavailable tomorrow, we would still see a relatively slow move back toward a greater level of responsibility.

    When I was in high school, there was a real stigma attached to having a baby outside of marriage. In my small town, it included a good deal of shunning. Any who think that was not a factor have no idea how painful such things can be for those on the receiving end.

  11. Faith says:

    teomatteo “Why buy the pig when the sausage is free?”
    This video is excellent, assuming the modern women want marriage. I have the impression more and more “girls just want to have fun.” Also, I see more and more marriages are childless. Married couples would rather buy puppies than have children.
    I think it is economics. Children all the way through college are too expensive. Financial advisors often advise not to get married. Creditors can go after the debtor’s spouse’s income.

  12. AvantiBev says:

    Hi wmeyer,
    I loved the video. Shame, shunning and stigma were once the white blood cells of society and women were the primary enforcers as this video slightly alludes to. Women crave the society of their fellow women and when punished by lack of such, most will quickly fall in line. So without a majority of just and virtuous women, a society’s young girls will flounder.

    Now we have non-judgmentalism and tolerance of any behavior being touted – even by some clergy — as the highest virtues. No one who passed a basic H.S. biology course would pray for their white blood cells to become non-judgmental and tolerant of every microbe. But we wonder why their is a cancer on the Body Politic .

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