I know that NNN is a silly Internet thing, but does anyone else see sex-negative tones in it? Specifically:

Anti-masturbation crusades of the past were real, harmful, and had lasting effects. Male sexuality is still viewed with a certain amount of derision, disinterest, and disgust, because society is sick of male sexuality. Society does not understand that it is sick of caricatures of male sexuality. NNN seems to validate these attitudes in the least helpful way, by characterizing abstinence as a form of self-improvement, when really we just need to humanize male sexuality.

Compare and contrast with female sexuality. E.g., my university held a sex-ed/sex-positivity presentation called "I <3 Female Orgasm" and practically everyone attended. Obviously, it's great that people want to learn about female sexuality. The same kind of interest in male sexuality is not there.

If men who participate in NNN are choosing abstinence, some of them presumably view their sexuality as a compulsion and a weakness. But abstinence seems like a maladaptive solution. I would liken it to someone who overeats deciding to go on a crash diet, when really they might just need to educate themselves about healthy eating and figure out what's going on in their emotional life that makes them abuse food.

Or maybe I'm reading waaaay too far into this and I need to chill out. There are probably people doing NNN just because it's a zany challenge, or because they want a physical reset. Thoughts?