Texas and the Sex Toy

Texas does seem to love a bit of case law about sex toys. Any why not? Back in 2008 I blogged about the case applying Lawrence v Texas so as to enable inhabitants across the great state of Texas to reach for their dildos, vibrators and butt plugs without fear of breaking the law. Now, intellectual property law has come to the forefront of the Texas sex toy jurisprudence - yes, never have patents been this interesting!

According to this story, a company invented a massager (this has SATC overtones) which it turned out could be used as a sex toy. So, like any sensible business they started selling the same product re-packaged as a sex toy. The trouble was that it was patented as a medical device and so when cheaper imitations started popping up in the sex toy market, the original company found themselves in an intellectual property maze. It's not yet clear whether the case will proceed to trial.

You too can own your very own Aneros here. Is this a good time to mention that I'm always open to freebies being sent my way? Address on the contact Chris tab ;-) That said, this might make an unusual end of module student prize.

Racy Relic

NY Daily News has a rather wonderful story about what it describes as a 'racy relic'. It shows and details a 30,000 year old dildo. It's a reminder that sex toys are not an invention of the twentieth century. Read the full story here.

Sex in the Jobcentre

Jenni Russell wrote an interesting piece in the Guardian on Tuesday about adverts for sex and personal; services industries that can be found in jobcentres. She concludes: 'Listing sex work next to jobs in hospitals or bars makes it look normal, but anyone who takes it up is not only being pushed towards the criminal world, they're immediately acquiring a shameful past. If neither law nor government can find a way out of this, then both law and government are an ass'. The full article can be read here. Once again the piece casts men as the exploiters and women as the victims. Even if you bought the absolute truth of sex = exploitation (which I don't), to then further assume that female strippers or dildo sellers (she seems to have an issue with Ann Summers) are helpless victims of exploitation whilst male strippers and sex toy salesmen are apparently unworthy of comment is myopic to say the least.

Recession Hits Pink Pound?

It seems to Pink Pound is also affected by the recession. Well maybe, maybe not. It may be that the credit crunch has made life more difficult for the chain CloneZone but the Pink Pound angle makes it more of a story for sites such as Pink News which reports the chain has gone into administration. The opening of a Newcastle store relatively recently was taken by some (including me) as a positive development of the gay 'scene/village' in Newcastle. It's closure will leave another derelict building when the area should be getting it's act together. Their site is still operating and promoting a 50% off sale.

It may be that even with £37.48 off, people are less inclined to buy a genuine cast of Gage Weston's 10" penis.

Texas Sex Toy Ban Defeated

Back in February I blogged about Lawrence and Garner v Texas decision on a sex toy ban. Well the subject was back in court last week. Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has two areas of focus on his web page - killing people and sex. It seems he hates sex and loves killing people. That may be an exaggeration but there do seem a lot of press releases about executions and it is reported that he's just tried to appeal against a decision that prevented him from banning dildos, vibrators and a host of other sex toys. He attempted to overturn the previous Lawrence decision and ensure there was a ban on sex toys. Luckily for the million of Texans who were desperately thinking of a hiding place for their deluxe rabbit, they don't have to because the AG was defeated. Take a look at the judgment here.