Look, I know that HIV is a serious issue. I've been out of high school barely 5 years, and I'm hearing about kids contracting it at that level. NO ONE I knew back during those years EVER had an HIV scare. They got syphilis or chalmydia; NEVER HIV.

I guess I'm just amazed that teens are being so careless. I know of someone from the Dominican Republic who had no idea that people were contracting it there. Are people THAT naive to the issue???? I am guilty of it myself. I just never guessed that teens or people in general for that matter, were being so risky with their lives and the lives of their partners.

I've always been careful. But I still contracted a lifelong STD. Just goes to show that NO ONE, not even people who are careful, are invincible. It has forever changed my life and I deal with that issue every moment of every day of my life. It has altered the course of my future and the future of my generations to come. But it won't kill me. SO, with that being said, I truly am amazed that HIV is jokingly discussed by our society. We need more up to date sexual education classes in our school system. And we need to start it early; think 5th or 6th grade. Also, we need to educate the parents of those kids. I know that to have such a forward thinking program and newer and more to the point information would scare the pants right off the parents. So why not get them involved as well? We could ALL SERIOUSLY use a refresher course. Let's get it out there... let's get to it!!

~ me