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I think it is because sex is a very private and personal thing. I have no problem with sex education being taught in the school systems because long before the school ever thought of bringing it up to my children I had been talking about it with them for years.
I don't know how effective "sex education" is in school. Children are not very likely to ask important questions when subjected to this information in front of the entire class, even if they do seperate by gender. I truly feel bad for the kids that don't have parents that talk to them. And I'd like to say that I respected those parents wishes with the friends of my own kids, but when they asked (and in some cases even when they didn't) I educated them. Not on the morality, I did give my base line opinion which is that if you are too embarrassed to talk to your partner about what feels good, birth control (and what you would do in the event of a failure), previous experience etc, then you ought not be having sex with them; but more on things like diseases and birth control failure.
It was truly amazing that they didn't know if Susie or Johnny was walking around with a big ole cold sore on their mouth that could be transmitted through oral sex. Then you're stuck with a STD the rest of your life. Or that men can transmit genital warts without even know that they're carrying it, or that you CAN get pregnant the first time, or that single time you don't use protection.
I've been thinking about another topic a great deal, and perhaps the two are related. My youngest son is in a very serious relationship. He is the first of my children to entertain the thought of marriage. His father and I did get married when I was his age.
So here's what I'm pondering: what makes a person decide to get married, and perhaps more importantly what makes them remain committed to that relationship for the rest of their life in spite of the hard times? Mentally speaking men and women are entirely different species, we often times do not even speak the same language. So when my son asked how we knew that this was the person that I wanted to spend my life with, my husband and I have the same response "I just knew" but it's not a very good one, how do you qualify that statement? Sure I can list all of my husband good qualities, but how do I explain how I knew? How do I explain what made him different then the ones before him?
Perhaps one of the reasons we are so anti prostitution as a society is because we are afraid somehow it will make that delicate relationship between a man and a woman more fragile. We still seem have this archaic belief that men marry for sex and woman marry for security. If we offer men sex for mere money, are we afraid that they will not take the plunge into marriage? We also don't seem to be comfortable with women having sex with whomever they wish, even if they don't charge for it. If men have many partners that's normal, if women do then there is something wrong with them mentally or morally.
I'm guilty of this myself to a degree. I have a niece that isn't very selective about the men she sleeps with. When her grandmother made comment about it I read her the riot act, why the hell is she held to a different standard than the grandsons? If she's doing this because it's what she wants and she's taking the necessary precautions, the more power to her! Outwardly... But deep down in my soul I want her to find a nice man to settle down with.
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I've been married for 24 years and have four wonderful children.
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