Casey and the others who are insinuating that vaginal sex is just as dangerous to women as anal sex is to male and female recipients, you have to know how ridiculous those claims are, don’t you? Vaginal sex between two people who are not carriers of HPV or other viruses is statistically IMMENSELY less dangerous than anal sex between two clean people–the simple mechanics involved make this so. The very fact that human-made lubricants are needed for anal sex is an indicator that the ‘parts do not fit’ (how long before someone makes the same goofy exceptionalist argument that Casey makes above and goes ‘but what about the women who need lubricant for vaginal sex?’–do you not understand the difference between ‘very few women need lube for vaginal sex’ and ‘ALL anal sex recipients need lube’?).

The ability of people to ignore facts as large as the iceberg that sunk the Titanic when their simplistic ideologies are at stake continues to amaze and confound. Let’s try to *think* first, then ideologize with the facts in mind.

Amen!

STD’s are not transmitted by gay sex. They are transmitted by having sex with an infected partner in such a way as to allow that transmission. Period.

Yet, anal and oral sex has never caused me any problems.

It’s not “grody” but it would be pointless to deny that it is kind of… “smelly”.

Perhaps every stereotype contains a grain of truth — I’m willing to acknowledge that much.

But beyond that — I don’t see the problem.

From the King County (Seattle) Department of Public Health:

Recently, cases of gonorrhea among gay and bisexual men in King County more than doubled from 1997 through 2000, and chlamydia cases increased by at least 50 percent. The rate of gonorrhea in gay and bisexual men in King County now is at least 10 times higher than in heterosexuals.

Even more dramatically, the rate of syphilis infection in the gay population has skyrocketed, from virtually no cases in 1995 and 1996 to 80 or more cases per year at present. The rate of syphilis in gay and bisexual men in King County now is 150 times greater than for the heterosexual population.

- studies show that straight people have around as much anal sex as gay people do, which is to say “more straight people than is usually assumed, and fewer gay people.” And yet there’s this crazy assumption that every gay man is doing it in the butt, all the time, all night long, etc.

- even if some other studies were to show that there’s more anal sex amongst some kinds of partners, to some extent that’s undoubtedly because of these stereotypes that anal sex is something certain people do and others don’t;

- anal sex isn’t inherently unhealthy any more than any other kind of sex. Safe sex, which includes more than just protection from STDs, but also things like “don’t mess up your partner’s insides” is a good idea for everyone.

Hell, I identify as straight, and it freaks me out.

Three cheers for “Mind your own fucking business!”

Can I get two cheers for all-by-yourself masturbation?

Why stop at two!

I will confess that homosexuality and the question “why do gays exist� is a mystery to me.

I will confess that the amount of time straigh people spend focusing on this is more than a mystery to me. It freaks me the hell out.