Stupid kids...

I lay the blame for this squarely on the Bush Administration and the Holy Terrors.

Teens often skip condoms, regardless of partner

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Many teenagers and young adults fail to use condoms consistently, regardless of whether they have sex with a serious or a "casual" partner, a new study suggests.

Researchers found that among more than 1,300 15- to 21-year-olds, those with casual sex partners had unprotected sex just as often as those in serious relationships -- about 20 times over the previous three months, on average.

Those who had casual sex were more likely to use condoms at least some of the time, the study found. But because they had sex more often, they ended up having unprotected intercourse just as frequently as their peers in steady relationships.

I confess I wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer when I was a teenager, but I was smarter than this!

I hit puberty when HIV/AIDS was first making big news. Back then, we were so scared of dying from sex we wouldn't look at a Playboy without a rubber on. Okay, maybe I was the only one that did that, but still...

The Powers That Be's refusal to adequately fund sex ed programs, and to push "ignorance only" sex ed have to bear responsibility for this.

Here's a section I found interesting...

For study participants in relationships, one of the problems seemed to be their perception -- correct or not -- that their partner did not want to use condoms.
It's important, Lescano's team writes, that teenagers be taught that consistent condom use is necessary, regardless of who their partner is or how long they've been in the relationship.

They say young people who worry their partner will be turned off by condoms need to be reminded that most people accept condom use -- and that consistent use lowers the risk of sexually transmitted diseases for both partners.

Again, maybe things were different when I was a kid, (DAMN, I sound like my father), but we'd had it drilled into our thick skulls to not even dream of having sex unless somebody was packin' protection.

Hell, I thought it was kind of arousing the first time I was with a girl and I admitted, "Sorry, I didn't bring a condom," and she said, "It's cool, I brought my own." Ready for sex at a moment's notice! I liked that.

Of course, from that point on I was always prepared. Didn't keep them in my wallet, because they made that tell-tale ring. Kept some in the glovebox of my car, in the back of my locker, (stashed in an old gym sock,) and I actually had a couple taped to the underside of the frame of my bed, next to my stack of vintage Playboys.

Ah, memories.