INTRODUCTION by Jim Stewart (Dec 1994)

The aim of this provocatively titled little book is to make information available to men and women who prefer to think for themselves rather than be told what they should or should not be allowed to know or do.

Personally, I'm into bondage rather than the full range of S&M games ... but that distinction may be lost on the general reading public, because where in Britain can anybody with a casual curiosity about such topics find reliable information? Certainly not in the tabloid press or a court of law.

The facts of sexual life are still energetically suppressed in Britain . Recent activities by the Obscene Publications squad, the Vice Squad, Royal Mail and Customs & Excise inspectors all graphically illustrate that prejudice and ignorance still have their champions.

When it comes to introducing Sally and Malcolm Barrett, authors of WE LOVE S&M, this is a special delight. Ever since I read an early draft of their manuscript I've wanted to see it more widely available. In a world full of sexual stereotypes, to meet two genuine originals is refreshing. It is also particularly valuable to have their good-humoured revelations on record.

To a lot of people, players of so-called Bizarre Sex games are characterized in images gleaned from top-shelf “Kinky” magazines. Exactly what such exotic game-players actually do and why they do it can not be learned from the non-stop stream of “Shock Horror” reportage in the popular press where titillation without factual information seems to be the norm. This usually leaves the man or woman in the street mystified, perhaps intrigued, but certainly none the wiser about S&M games played by consenting adults for their mutual pleasure. Sally and Malcolm are the reality behind these often repeated fictions.

When I say that the Barretts are Originals, this doesn't imply that they're unique. Not only are there thousands of SM/Bondage enthusiasts around the world (See Footnote) most are serious individualists. At mutual interest gatherings and annual events such as “DRESSING FOR PLEASURE”, “LIVING IN LEATHER”, “THE BIZARRE BAZAAR ” and “THE RUBBER BALL” , stylized clothes and symbolic SM imagery may suggest a same-ness ... but in reality the people are generally creative, thinking individuals. Whether they are bank clerks or housewives, top-executives or waitresses, mothers or fathers, most of them manage to live “normal” lives while also enjoying private pleasures which too many people think of as being abnormal.

So, the down-to-earth common sense of Sally Barrett should be read by a much wider public than this privately printed little book will reach. My only regret is that in the past three years I have failed to find a mainstream publisher/distributor willing to take it on. Maybe one day.

Have fun and enjoy what you enjoy.

M J Stewart-Addison
Seattle , Nov ‘95

FOOTNOTE
The actual number of SM/Bondage enthusiasts around the world is impossible to prove, but I know for a fact that the FETTERS mailing list of active players currently totals 7,000; “BOUND & GAGGED” magazine has 10,000; and obviously many regular game-players have never heard of either.

 

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