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 Even less than a decade ago, the fact that a top-ranking United Nations weapons inspector was a major player in the world of bondage, discipline and sado-masochism (BDSM) would have caused quite a stir. He would have been beaten (pun intended) by the mainstream press. His resignation would have been expected, and accepted. I am happy to say that at the end of the year 2002 that is no longer the case. Harvey John "Jack" McGeorge, a former U.S. Marine and Secret Service weapons specialist, is also a co-founder and former president of Black Rose, a Washington D.C.-area pansexual S&M group, a former chairman of the board of the National Coalition for Sexual Freedom and a founding officer of the Leather Leadership Conference Inc.  You would think that being a natural "top" who knows a lot about ropes, bondage, discipline, and psychological mind games would be the perfect candidate to go into Iraq and hunt down weapons of mass destruction.The UN agrees; McGeorge offered his resignation as soon as the Washington Post "outed" him all over their paper. Hans Blix, chief of the inspection team charged with uncovering biological and chemical weapons, refused to accept it. "As a general principle, we are not concerned about people's private lives, provided they have done nothing that is illegal, and that their activities do not interfere with their duties as inspectors," said Ewen Buchanan, spokesman for Blix. "Mr. McGeorge is an expert in warheads and weapons delivery systems." If being a man is standing up for what you do, what you believe in, and basically who you are, then McGeorge fits the bill. His extracurricular activities have long been available on the web. And while he's (as he told the Post) "not ashamed," his private life is being used for everyone else to further their own agendas. In England, The Guardian headlined its story about McGeorge, "UN team faces smear campaign," with a story claiming that the BDSM stuff "provides a convenient target for critics of Mr. Blix, particularly aggrieved former inspectors." Naturally, the BDSM community was ready to fight. The National Coalition for Sexual Freedom issued a "call to action" urging sympathizers to "Please support the SM community and Jack McGeorge by dropping a note to the various news agencies covering this story. McGeorge's sexuality is a personal issue and should have no bearing on his qualifications for any job."  Suggested text for the protest note: "It is irresponsible for a news organization like The Washington Post to attempt to discredit Jack McGeorge as a weapons inspector simply because of his sexuality. Many millions of Americans engage in SM according to a 1990 Kinsey Institute report. These people are doctors, lawyers, teachers, and news reporters, as well as professionals like Jack McGeorge. As a former Chairman of the National Coalition for Sexual Freedom, McGeorge ably assisted our national advocacy organization in fighting this sort of discrimination and persecution. McGeorge has also volunteered his valuable time to educate adults about safe, sane and consensual sexual expression."The NCSF bulletin noted helpfully that letters to the press are "an effective way to convey a positive image of alternate sexual practices such as SM, swinging, or polyamory. You can help to correct negative social myths and misconceptions about these types of practices." Are we getting to a time when sexuality is treated like affirmative action? Where there are so many people ready to drop everything and march on Washington that Washington doesn't even want to bother with pissing them off, no matter how much it bothers them?  The simple fact is most people do not care that Jack McGeorge is involved in BDSM. They don't even care that he's a major player. Taboos are changing. BDSM and fetish are everywhere. Sitcoms make jokes about spanking, haute couture is constantly stealing from hardcore fetish wear, and you can buy SM101 in your friendly, neighborhood Borders.As someone working as a sex activist, this is terrific. It's something we've dreamed of happening. But, on the other hand, it's a bit bittersweet, like sending your first child off to college. Sure, you've wanted her out of the house since she turned 13 and into a spawn of Satan, but it's sad, you miss her, you miss fighting with her, worrying about her, and bonding with her. Is our fight ending? What did the NCSF do with all the letters they received in support of McGeorge? They sure don't need them. Of course, there is always more to do. If McGeorge was going on a UN outing of grade school teachers there might have been more of an uproar. Perhaps the world just realized that criticizing a man who is supposed to be a specialist in pain-inflicting weapons of mass destruction for doing a little bit of personal consensual pain-inflicting may have been way too hypocritical. The fact that BDSM can be talked about without the entire country shivering in repulsion but instead shaking their fingers at the Washington Post for not minding its own business, is huge; especially during the reign of a family-values Republican government. And yes, there will always be isolated cases of injustice, but overall, I think we may be winning. If so, the victories are quiet, but in the case of any great social change, there is no ticker-tape parade, just the improvement of one life at a time.
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