Sexual Sin--It's not Just for Gays Anymore
A new study just came out that says that 95% of Americans have had premarital sex. I had no idea. Let's just say I was blown away.This leads me to two questions. The first one relates to the gay issue--If nearly everyone in this country is committing sexual sins, why is there so much of a focus on gays and their sexual sins? The study makes the "plank in your own eye" theory look even more true. It's just too easy to look at what other people are doing and condemn or question them than it is to look at ourselves. I wonder if a study like this will help people realize that.
The second question is about the Bush Administration's focus on abstinence-only sex education. If 95% of the country is having sex before marriage, I'm thinking we should teach abstinence-only and safe sex lessons side by side. It just doesn't make sense to cater to 5% of the population and let the other 95% learn it on their own.
posted by Brady @ 1:19 PM
6 Comments:
yep yep yep...
love ya!
pam
Thanks, Grace ;-)
Its always easier for people to condemn that which seems odd or foreign to them. So they'll make fun of guys then go home and wank it to porn...
In college I took a class on statistics. One of the first things I learned was that people can make statistics say anything they want. 2 interesting things about this study that says 95% of people are having premarital sex. 1) it was done by an organization that is anti-abstinence which brings their results into suspect because of ulterior motives and 2) in this study premarital sex included oral-sex where as most studies dont include oral sex in their statistics. I work with youth and alot of them believe oral sex is not "sex" so they do that in place of.
Knowing those 2 things makes the results a little different doesnt it?
Pomoprohet: That information does change my perspective regarding the high numbers.
However, abstinence-only education programs in our schools not only means that teachers aren't allowed to discuss ways for students to protect themselves from disease when engaged in acts of "full-on" sexual intercourse (i.e. vaginal, anal)but also means educators are not allowed to discuss with students on how to protect themselves when engaged in other sexual acts like oral sex.
STDs are still spread through oral sex. It seems to me that these high numbers show a really scary threat: our young people are holding off on "full-on" sexual intercourse, understanding the threat of STDs, unwanted pregnancies, and emotional hazards, but they are oblivious to the fact that oral sex and other sexual activities carry the same weight (except for unwanted pregnancies, obviously).
I volunteered at a youth organization in the past, and that was definitely a trend I witnessed. People were not having "sex" but were freely engaging in other activities.
Our leadership and our government need to relax our Puritanical ideals, hold-overs from days gone by, and realize that we need to educate our youth in frank and innovative ways. We can no longer, as a nation, leave that responsibility up to the parent. It's just not enough anymore (and probably never was!), and we need to realize our young people need our help--help that doesn't come from a "good girls don't" mindset.
Hey pomoprophet-
I agree with the premise that you can make statistics say almost anything you want to say. I'm a big advocate at looking deep into studies to see how the numbers were generated, and I admit that I didn't do that before posting this because of time.
I think both the inclusion of oral sex in the study and the fact that an anti-abstinence-only (which is different from anti-abstinence) group did the study are important facts to bring up.
As for the oral sex part--that is a big distinction for me, and the study should have made the distinction clear up front. However, from an abstinence-only standpoint, oral sex does count as sex. I feel like both the abstinence-only folks and the anti- folks can't have it both ways--either it counts or it doesn't.
As for the group that did the study, it is something to note, but I don't think it automatically invalidates the study, provided their methods were sound (which I admit again, I haven't looked at deeply).
So yes, they both are important notes, but how much they change the findings depends on your personal worldview.
Sparky- very good points. I agree with them.
The title of the blog is 'Sexual Sin -- It's not just for gays anymore'. Sin is sin. If you are having premarital sex (straight, gay, or oral), you are sinning. If you are cheating on your wife/husband, you are sinning. If you are an alcoholic, prescription drug abuser, or pedophile, you are sinning. Sin is sin is sin is sin. We all battle our own demons. Christians sin. God loves all of us the same - in spite of ourselves!
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