However, there's an opinion piece in the SMH today by Gabriella Coslovich that sums Tony Abbott and his creepy attitudes up pretty nicely:
But in its own way, the Opposition Leader's description of virginity as ''the greatest gift you can give someone, the ultimate gift of giving'' was nauseating.
The comment both fetishes a woman's virginity and reduces her value to the presence of a hymen, to the unpenetrated state of her vagina. Why is that the greatest gift a woman can give someone? What about her mind? Her actions? Dare I say it, her soul? If I were one of Abbott's daughters I would be furious to have my value reduced to the state of my hymen. Is that really the greatest gift you can give? And if it is, what does this say about relationships between men and women? It's a pretty superficial exchange.
Somewhere here there is an important discussion to be had, about Western capitalist society's obsession with sex (so gently explored in Sarah Watt's recent film My Year Without Sex), about the exploitation of women's bodies as marketing tools, about the rise of raunch culture, about the pressures on young women to live up to ''porn-star'' stereotypes, about the differences between lust and love, about respect, and how to safely explore one's sexuality, when one is ready to do so, not when one's peers or politicians say you are ready to do so - but it is discussion to be had for both genders.
It's funny too that Abbott, who professes to be a Catholic, is so selective in his application of Christianity, although I should not really be surprised - that's been the way of religious fanatics throughout history. On the one hand, Abbott promulgates the need to safeguard a woman's virginity until marriage. On the other, he thinks nothing of pushing asylum seekers back into the sea, thinks nothing of resurrecting the divisive politics of hate of his beloved former leader, John Howard.
Abbott, as a devout Catholic, would know Christ's teaching: ''Whatsoever you do to the least of my brothers, that you do unto me.'' Or does that not apply to desperate people fleeing persecution?
If I had to pick what is the 'greatest gift', or at least the most difficult thing to give to a partner, it would be trust. You can have a great sex life and a superficially functional relationship without ever giving that away. Despite the misconceptions of Tony Abbott, George Brandis and pretty much every man of any religious persuasion out there, the intact hymen is not a woman's most precious and vulnerable area.
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