From the super conservative to the ultra free, the view of the human body is as diverse as anything. However, each culture seems to have its own range of acceptable views.

Take, for instance, China; Finding nude beaches or resorts in China is virtually impossible. The Chinese, it seems, see nudity as immodest and immoral (both of which they hold very highly). The first nude beach, or beaches, since there was one for women and a separate one for men, was closed after only two weeks due to local protests about immorality. Another incident in China has sparked debate again (story). This time, a group of men have decided to swim nude because of the heat. The protests over immorality and immodesty have quickly sounded.

On the other side of the continent, however, nude beaches abound. France, Spain, and many of the Mediterranian countries have official nude beaches; Other countries simply have no problems with nudity. Making a beach officially nude would be akin to designating swimsuit beaches in the U.S.

When Janet Jackson’s nipple was broadcast to the world at the end of the Super Bowl half-time show, Europeans wondered what the big deal was (as did most Canadians).

In the U.S., there are mixed (and confused) emotions regarding nudity. Although nude travel is growing in popularity (it experienced record growth during the travel slump after 9/11/2001), it is difficult to find nude or topless beaches in the U.S. There are a few in Florida, California, and scattered along the coasts. However, debate always seems to swirl around them. Local officals and police often harass nude beachgoers randomly while gladly taxing the pants off of them (pun intended).

Nudity on British television is commonplace. The flash of a nipple in the U.S. is subject to hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines.

So, as the world goes, it seems to me that the U.S. is somewhere in the middle of the spectrum when it comes to nudity.

I could write goboodles about nudity in the U.S. However, I won’t bore you with that; I’ll just tell you that I don’t have a problem with nudity. Furthermore, I think that open social nudity is positive for society. I don’t think it’s immoral or immodest. In fact, I believe that it is just the opposite. I subscribe to the ideals that the American Association for Nude Recreation (AANR) promote.

Hopefully the U.S. is moving toward the European viewpoint of nudity.

Mark