Sex Fetishists Barred From Driving

January 12, 2015

Russia is known as a pretty extreme place. After all, last year saw Russia repeatedly making the news for homophobic attacks, and there were many countries willing to shake a finger at Russia during the Winter Olympics. Every week, a new story comes out of Russia to make us stop and go “what?”.

This week is no exception.

When it comes to driving, there are strict regulations in place to ensure that you will be a safe driver on the road and not put others at risk. If you’ve had a history of epileptic seizures, or another illness that may impair your ability to remain control of the vehicle, you may be barred from driving.

In Russia, those restrictions also affect anyone with “mental disorders”. What they mean by “mental disorders” is not what you might expect, as fetishists, exhibitionists, transsexual and transgender people are now no longer able to qualify for driving licences.

Road accidents

The logic behind this (because there is apparently some there), is that a high number of road traffic accidents are occurring and they need to stop them. The Professional Drivers Union have supported this move, with union head Alexander Kotov stating that “we have too many deaths on the road, and I believe toughening medical requirements for applicants is fully justified”.

If you have a foot fetish, or feel more comfortable living as a woman don’t expect to be putting pedal to the metal in Russia!

Backlash

Unsurprisingly, this move has been met with criticism for a huge range of people. To me, it seems to be just another way of reinforcing the act in 2013 of making the promotion of “non-traditional lifestyles” illegal. If you can’t stop people from doing something, start to take away their rights until they obey.

It is a ridiculous idea to me that something like the sex you enjoy can affect your driving skills! In fact, a Russian psychiatric expert, Mikhail Strakhov, suggested that the “personality disorders” definition given was far too vague and could cover a range of things that weren’t really disorders, as well as things that have no effect on someone’s driving abilities.

Another group calling the law “discriminatory” is the Association of Russian Lawyers for Human Rights. They are going to work to get clear guidelines on what is acceptable with this.

Going to extremes

A friend of mine finds it a huge turn on to be watched in bed. If we were to follow Russia’s new rules, she would be unable to drive. Given the fact that she is a bus driver, she would be unable to work simply because she enjoys others watching her have sex. No-one gets hurt from watching her have sex – it is just something she enjoys.

To me, and probably to you as well, it just seems a bit ridiculous. How does something like that affect someone’s ability to drive?

A member of the Russian Psychiatric Association also spoke out about the ban, suggestion that people with mental disorders may avoid going to their doctor and seeking help out of fear that they may be banned from driving.

It’s a perfectly legitimate fear. I imagine that if I were in the same boat, I wouldn’t in case my love of lesbian porn meant I could no longer drive to visit my family on the other side of the country.

Are fetishes bad?

Is having a fetish really such a bad thing? Is it right to punish people who enjoy perfectly harmless fetishes in this way? Honestly, I can’t see any reason why it would be… but maybe you have some other ideas. If you think you can see the logic behind this decision, why not explain it to me by leaving a comment below.

Genevive
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