NSFW

When the internet says something is weird, that means something is weird. Not just weird. Internet weird. Thanks, Japan. [Bigredkev]

CHINA'S LONELY MEN

The New York Times has a report on the rise and increased openness of sex culture in China. The Guangzhou National Sex Culture Festival was overrun by men in a country that makes over 3/4ths of the world's sex toys.

I went to China three times in the last year, and I wouldn't say sex is exactly high-visibility there. You do find shops selling adult toys not infrequently, but the stores are more like the sex version of a head shop: random items on shelves manned by bored salespeople.

It's a far cry from the marriage market in Shanghai's People's Park, where I wandered amidst parents camped out with folding chairs and umbrellas to find the perfect mate for their unwed offspring.

[NYT]

CHINA'S SEX TOY STARTUPS

The IBT reports, c/o of a report in the South China Morning Post, that China's sex toys startups are banging out revenue left and right.   

Photo credit: Jason Lee / Reuters

"Demand is huge because most people prefer the privacy of shopping for sex toys online,” Li Chengze, another young entrepreneur, said. Starting her career as a journalist, Li eventually opened her own online store, Xiao Ye, after she realized the sex-toy market’s profitability while working in the advertising industry for a year. Li, 26, launched her store only last October, but says she is already receiving hundreds of orders every month.

[h/t: Tracy Clark-Flory]