Funny, I thought that, as a “fad”, D/s peaked in the late Eighties or early Nineties.
This reminded me of an old Emo Phillips routine:
Emo: Do you want to come back to my place?
Girl: Do you have cable?
Emo: I’m sure the ropes will be plenty strong enough.
I came into this thread all ready to bring up Marquis de Sade to show that it isn’t just a fad, and someone already beat me to it. Damn you! 
Anyway… It seems most of the people I know well enough seem to have at least some sort of violent fantasies (I sure know I do…), some which are well beyond what would be acceptable to do in real life. They don’t even come close to that stuff IRL, and only one seems like he would do stuff more rough than most people would consider fairly normal. (And then, not by too terribly much).
Being a bisexual female who likes to hand out the slappings, whippings and ritual humiliation, I’m so pleased to be surfing the wave of hip.
::watches Tansu surf::
Awwwwww yeeeeeeah. All ya need is a flail. Just ask Arden Ranger, TruePisces, hamster, …
Ah, I’ve been wondering how that was spelled. Now I know.