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**good times** · 04-25-2008, 06:18 PM

Wow, you beat me to it Julie, Due to the recent threads you refer to I was planning on posting a similar poll today.

I agree with your conclusions, and feel that we probably have pretty much the same view as you do.

The only thing I would ad to your excellent list is,

4. Based on the fact that testing is notorious for false positives and tagging people who are positive for antibodies but are not contagious, testing could potentially do more harm than good in many cases. Nothing will make someone shunned more than a rumor that they have something contagious, whether it is true or not.

Frankly, if someone suggests to us that they require testing we run to the nearest exit. For the life of me, I can't figure out why someone who is that paranoid wants to try swinging in the first place.

As someone who has spent a lot of time reading and studying research studies regarding std's and their transmission, it constantly amazes me how misinformed people in the lifestyle really are. Almost every time we go to the club we run into folks who say things like, "safe sex only". I just can't help myself when I say to them, "so if you abstain from sex, why are you here?". Of course, they go on to say that they meant that they use condoms. It is funny how they get this glazed look on their faces when I tell them that, of the four incurable std's one can get, condoms have been shown effective at preventing the spread of only one of them (AIDS), and it is the least likely one you would encounter. And most folks flatly refuse to acknowledge that for the two most common ones one would encounter (HSV and HPV), condoms, while slightly more effective than nothing, are considered by experts to be largely ineffective at preventing their spread.

The fact is, testing, condoms, or any other scheme to limit your risks, are much less effective than getting educated enough to recognize the various signs of std's when you see them. Sadly, that is not as easy a task as it could be, as the internet is crammed with misinformation and downright lies about STD's.

04-25-2008, 06:18 PM	#6 (permalink)
good times Mod Squad Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Posts: 6,403 Location: Reno, Nevada Status: Married to Mrs Good Times SLS Name:randp	Re: STD Testing Wow, you beat me to it Julie, Due to the recent threads you refer to I was planning on posting a similar poll today. I agree with your conclusions, and feel that we probably have pretty much the same view as you do. The only thing I would ad to your excellent list is, 4. Based on the fact that testing is notorious for false positives and tagging people who are positive for antibodies but are not contagious, testing could potentially do more harm than good in many cases. Nothing will make someone shunned more than a rumor that they have something contagious, whether it is true or not. Frankly, if someone suggests to us that they require testing we run to the nearest exit. For the life of me, I can't figure out why someone who is that paranoid wants to try swinging in the first place. As someone who has spent a lot of time reading and studying research studies regarding std's and their transmission, it constantly amazes me how misinformed people in the lifestyle really are. Almost every time we go to the club we run into folks who say things like, "safe sex only". I just can't help myself when I say to them, "so if you abstain from sex, why are you here?". Of course, they go on to say that they meant that they use condoms. It is funny how they get this glazed look on their faces when I tell them that, of the four incurable std's one can get, condoms have been shown effective at preventing the spread of only one of them (AIDS), and it is the least likely one you would encounter. And most folks flatly refuse to acknowledge that for the two most common ones one would encounter (HSV and HPV), condoms, while slightly more effective than nothing, are considered by experts to be largely ineffective at preventing their spread. The fact is, testing, condoms, or any other scheme to limit your risks, are much less effective than getting educated enough to recognize the various signs of std's when you see them. Sadly, that is not as easy a task as it could be, as the internet is crammed with misinformation and downright lies about STD's. __________________ R (He is R, she is P)