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How the New Culture (from early 1998) The willingness of the public to support Bill Clinton is fascinating in terms of what it tells us about the attitudes of the American people. What it reveals is that a significant change has taken place and sex has lost its shock value for a majority of people. One cause of that is clearly the media, which depicts almost every possible expression of sexuality, which it turns into forms of entertainment, Another cause can be found in the fact that those who were members of the 60s generation and those who came after now make up a majority of the population. There has been a changing of the guard in America and the values and norms of the more traditional culture no longer hold the sway they once did. Social conservatives are angry, organized and vocal, but their claims to represent the majority culture don't seem to be true anymore. Instead, we seem to be becoming more like the pagan America. celebrated by the writer, Camille Paglia, or like a mix between that and the more traditional culture we once were. Indeed, a majority of people today are undoubtedly themselves full participants in this new culture of less traditional lifestyles. They have had relationships outside of marriage. They have viewed adult material on the Internet or elsewhere. They have had numerous partners and engaged in some experimentation. And many are clearly interested in the subject of sex, which evokes excitement far more than it does a reaction of anxiety, guilt or shame. When they hear someone being denounced for reasons of lifestyle, many now react not with agreement but paranoia -- "If they can go after him, they can go after me, as well." They identify with the accused, not the accusers. What this portends for elections is anyone's guess. It may be that people will be ready for someone more traditional, after all the craziness. But it will likely also mean that people will no longer be automatically discredited because of their sexual lifestyles. Candidates who try to denounce their opponents on these grounds could find that the larger negative reaction is against them. And that opens up all kinds of interesting possibilities. The ultimate nightmare of social conservatives -- Barney Frank in the White House -- is no longer beyond imagining, sometime early in the next century. As for what it means about attitudes on sexual harassment, well, it would appear that the public's feeling about that has never run as deep as many believed. Once the shock value of sex and cheating wore off, the remaining issue of harassment just didn't evoke people's passions. Out of sight, out of mind, people thought, particularly since another value -- that of a prosperous, peaceful, economy -- seemed to trump this issue. It's still there as a concern but it takes a back seat to many other issues. Kenneth Starr could still overturn all this, of course, with documented charges of wrongdoing. But if he is going to do it, he had better do it soon. Either way, it is fascinating the way Clinton has managed to stay one step ahead of changing public tastes while Clarence Thomas endures a continuing aura of disgrace for things that are now no longer considered a significant source of discredit. Bill Clinton in the sunglasses, playing his instrument, may well be the symbol of the new age. He's the "let's get it on" president for an age that is ready to rock. ____________________________________________________
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