FANTASIES PROHIBITED

PP boy Jeremy's take on the HMAS Success yob-gobs two days ago:

The only problem in this one is that it suggests a culture on the part of some sailrs that treats female members of the defence force as sex objects. They might need some counselling as to what’s appropriate in the workplace, but that’s about it.

In today's column Andrew Bolt also sees the scandal as much ado about not much since it's not known if any of the male sailors actually managed to have sex with the "targeted" females. Jeremy's brain, urgently needing to find fault -- something, anything -- with the Bolt piece, homes in like a guided grey matter missile on the sex angle:

Um, because having sex isn’t the offence here? The problem was the lack of professionalism and respect inherent in the ledger idea.

At what point the ledger idea became an "unprofessional offence" is unclear. Is it an offence to appreciate a fellow sailor's looks? Is it perhaps unprofessional to be sexually attracted to a crew-mate? Is it improper to have sexual fantasies about a co-worker? Is voicing these fantasies to colleagues improper? Perhaps the offence occurs when these thoughts are put to paper in a letter to a friend or in a personal journal? Does the offence only occur when a small group of men jointly commit their fantasies to paper in a shared journal? Or do these conquest fantasies only become improper when a value is attached to the propspective "targets"?

Regardless, Jeremy seems to have little understanding of what men surrounded by attractive women think, talk and fantasise about. Go figure.

Update: Since it is their raison d'être (ain't French sexy?), the PP boyz could perhaps take a look at the intellectual dishonesty in this item at mainstream site Crikey.