[Saije]

Not really sure I see a connection between Petraeus and whether or not porn actors should be forced to wear condoms. But either way, maybe the disparity in the vote between the various communities can be explained with reference to the Black/Hispanic areas being more socially conservative? Not that this translates into votes for Republicans. Maybe they just like the idea of government control over everything.

[Just mythoughts]

Have you not heard/read some people have the need to talk about their sex life. So of course government is going to regulate/mandate/tax any activity they can to increase their spending money. Lust of the flesh is so American, because everybody is doing it. What is the pervert agenda, sex. Our American sex balloon is about to pop.

[ansel12]

Blacks and Hispanics are clearly not social conservatives, not in life, culture, or voting, so the explanation is elsewhere.

[blueunicorn6]

The Christian Right Wingers didn’t play a part with Petraeus or the defense industry guy. There’s way more to the Petraeus story than just the fact that a married man had sex with a married woman who was not his wife. And the defense industry guy was hoodling the help which paves the way for all kinds of legal troubles. Nope. The Democrats would like to paint these as just casual flings, but that’s simply not why they left or were forced out. Again, if a guy will break his marital vows, how can you trust him to be honest about anything? Stephen Covey had it right, we don’t have a little morality/honesty switch we can turn on or off as we enter and leave the office. We either have virtue or we don’t.

[vbmoneyspender]

I live in the South Bay and am one of the horrific whites that Mead refers to in his column. I voted no because I don't think it is any of my business what sort of protection porn actors use or don't use while they are on the clock. Just like I don't think it is any of my business to regulate what soda people drink or the type of cars they drive, or the toilets they flush or the shower heads they use or the light bulbs they light their houses with or any of the other innumerable regulations that are routinely espoused by nanny-staters like Walter Russell Mead.

There is one regulation however that I would support. When columnists propose passing new laws or regulations, those laws or regulations should apply only to the columnist for a period of 10 years so everyone else can see how the regulations works in real life.

[GeronL]

The US is not “puritanical”. I wish it were.

This “puritanical” meme is so stupid.