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Watercooler: Defining sex and other
NSFW activities
365gay.com
03.16.2010 8:00am EDT
What
is “having sex”? Well, it depends on who you ask. According to
a new study done at the Kinsey
Institute, there is no real consensus on the definition. The study
found that 95 percent of people say standard penile-vaginal intercourse
is having sex. But that number drops to 89 percent if there is no
ejaculation.
As definitions of sex differ, so do the perceptions of the
dangers those activities might pose.
“There’s a vagueness of what sex is in our culture and media,” said
William L. Yarber, a co-author of the study. “If people don’t consider
certain behaviors sex, they might not think sexual health messages about
risk pertain to them. The AIDS epidemic has forced us to be much more
specific about behaviors, as far as identifying specific behaviors that
put people at risk instead of just sex in general. But there’s still
room for improvement.”
There is much less consensus on other
varieties of sex. Eighty-one percent of respondents said penile-anal
penetration is sex. But among the respondents 65 and older, that number
drops to 50 percent. And for oral sex, roughly three out of four
respondents agreed it was sex. But those in both older and younger age
groups were less likely to define oral sex as having sex.
***
I don’t watch “Saturday Night Live” much,
partly because I don’t have a TV and partly because I just don’t think
it’s as funny as it used to be. But Bobby Moynihan’s portrayal of former
New York Sen. Eric Massa’s walk down memory lane was
priceless.
Asked if he groped any of his staffers,
mock Massa said: “I’m a congressman. You know how we do. But it wasn’t
sexual. It was just your everyday, run-of-the-mill tickle fight between a
middle-age elected official and his much younger staff.”
Although it lacked a shower scene with Rahm
Emanuel, the skit did provide a definition of “snorkeling,” Massa’s
favorite Navy activity. Good times.
***
Another thing I don’t watch: Suze
Orman. My own finances are pathetic, so listening to financial
advice feels like a guilt trip. But I caught a clip of Orman on “The
Wanda Sykes Show” this weekend. Orman is surprisingly funny. And did you
know she’s hiding at least one tattoo? (I don’t know where or what it
is. Anyone have a tip?)
Orman, who — shocker — had her own
significant debt, offered the best piece of financial advice I’ve heard
in a long time.
“If you really want to start screwing the
banks, do me a favor,” she said. “Do a balance transfer to a credit
union credit card. By law, they cannot charge you more than 18.5 percent
interest.”
That’ll show ‘em.
***
| Roast of Joan Rivers | ||||
| Gilbert Gottfried – On Joan Rivers’ Vagina | ||||
| ||||
One more video clip … because I
couldn’t pass it up. I mean, how can one skip a video called “Gilbert
Gottfried – On Joan River’s Vagina”? The video is from a
recent roast of Rivers.
My favorite line: “In my life, I’d already
had sexual congress with plenty of Joan River impersonators. … And most
were perfect gentlemen.”
***
My favorite Web site to
procrastinate on this week: Lesbians
who look like Justin Beiber. Well, I’m not especially delighted
with all the Justin Beiber pics, but the girls are darn cute.