Chicago, IL – Generally, it's not my practice to respond to bitchy queens and bitter fucks who make nasty, mean spirited blow hard posts or comments (and I most certainly will not be linking to them here). It seems, however, that some play that my boy Derek da Silva and I engaged in while at our home bar in Seattle has sparked a little debate about playing in public. Apparently, a little rope bondage and chest punching in this leather bar was enough to offend the delicate sensibilities of at least one sensitive former-Marine, who was inclined to post a particularly ignorant and insulting blog entry on the subject, which was in turn picked up by some in the blogosphere prompting a debate. While I refuse to invest any energy on individuals who are motivated to tear others down or to resort to name calling, I do believe that further contribution to the debate is in order. Luckily, my boy Derek has already done the groundwork. I offer for your consideration, the "Top 10 Reasons to Play in a Leather Bar"...

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Bitch if you will, but when we are in a leather bar we like to play. Some take issue with this, but they can go fuck themselves. We're gonna keep on playing when we are out in our spaces. And we want you to do this too.

Here are 10 good reasons why:

1. Turf. It's our fucking space. We aren't gonna be shoved out by people that can't even be bothered to look the part, let alone play it. It's SM not S&M, the difference being the "&". There is no ampersand in Sadomasochism - but there is in Stand & Model.
2. Advertising works! We're not just living the life, we're spreading the lifestyle. Lots of guys are curious about this stuff and fantasize about it. Seeing that others are into this stuff is a huge life changing revelation for lots of guys. Public play validates people's sexualities and helps them out of the BDSM closet.
3. 24/7 means 24/7. We live this life all the time. We aren't going into the closet because we are in a leather bar.
4. Teach safety. We can show this stuff and when people ask we can show what we do to make this edgy play safer. It's called leading by example.
5. It's safer to play where others are around. Every single BDSM death I know of has occurred behind closed doors.
6. Exhibitionism is a valid fetish. And thank god cuz the best porn is made by guys that love showing off.
7. Public Humiliation is a valid fetish. Don't be ashamed that you like being ashamed.
8. Voyerism is a valid fetish. Some people whine about show offs, but even they seem to enjoy watching. Hmmm...
9. We're topping all you fuckers!! BWAHAHAHA!
10. Out of the bedrooms and into the leather bars - or else the leather bars die.

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You can read Derek's entire post here for more insight. Please feel free to add your own reasons by posting a comment to this entry or simply add your own play to the atmosphere of your own local Leather bar. And with that all said, I will now return to my regularly schedule programming of "I don't give a fuck what they think."