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Old 03-26-2006   #19 (permalink)
headbang8
headbang8 is offline

Quote:
Originally Posted by alex8
"Safe sex" is a misnomer, and as I'm sure you know, it was long argued (and still is) that "safer sex" would of course be a better name for it, since the best one can ever hope for is to make sex as safe as possible. You can never expect 100% safety or a world without condoms that fail/come off, etc.
True. Nothing is ever 100% safe.

The food I eat might be contaminated with salmonella or some other bug. Does that mean I shouldn't eat anything?

No. I wash the food (and/or cook it at high temperature) and buy it from a reasonable source that obeys the health and hygiene laws of the land. And that for all intents and purposes, is a "safe" way to eat. Practice "safe" sex, and you'll be "safe".

Using the phrase "safer" sex implies that all sex is inherently dangerous, dirty, and morally stigmatised. It's about as useful as talking about "safer" eating or "safer" breathing. Is breathing a bad thing to do? Is eating? You might as well say all living is dangerous.

I feel quite strongly about this. I can feel a new thread coming on...