BDSM is a blanket acronym that includes diverse areas of interest such as Bondage & Discipline, Sadism & Masochism, Domination & Submission, and maybe something else that I can't quite remember. But at any rate, it covers a wide umbrella of activities and interests.

Confusion results when people from one group try to talk to people in other groups but they all use one term to mean many different things. Particularly, people seem to want to equate submission with masochism or bottoming, which it is not. In the interest of clearing up some of this confusion, I offer the following individual term definitions which I would love to see spread like herpes:

Topping and Bottoming describe the physical act or position.

Top = gives sensation, Bottom = receives sensation

Sadism and Masochism define what sort of sensation (pain).

Sadist = gives pain, Masochist = receives pain

Sex is another sort of sensation (pleasure).

Person on top = gives sex, Person on bottom = receives sex

Domination and Submission describe attitudes or roles.

Dominant = in charge, Submissive = supportive

Master and Slave denotes ownership.

Master = makes rules, Slave = obeys them

Dom/Sub and Master/Slave always involve power exchange - but Top/Bottom, SM, and sex by themselves do not. Neither do fetishes.

Power exchange is an attitude, not an act.

Acts do not equal attitudes.

Thank you for listening. This has been another free broadcast of the Sunshine SM Awareness System. Be sure to tip your BDSM provider on the way out the door and always remember that if it don't make your dick hard or your pussy wet - don't do it!