This is a post that appeared on the CHRISTIA list some months back. I'm posting it here not because I endorse its contents, but because it's important for us to know what sort of "information" is being used against us by members of the religious right. I have quite a few articles of this nature, but I'll try to limit the non-current ones to only one or two per day so as to not flood the list. --Julie ----------------------------Original message---------------------------- "Homosexuality is misrepresented as essentially the same experience as heterosexuality. Children are told that homosexuals typically make love 'when they care about each other.' While this may be true in some cases, it is not the norm. The most reliable studies about and by homosexuals show that the typical homosexual is quite promiscuous. In fact, the largest study done of homosexual males (Homosexualities by Bell and Weinberg, 1978) finds that nearly half have 500 or more sex partners and that 28% have more than 1,000 partners. A recent American Medical Association study shows that homosexual youths are 23 times as likely to have a sexually transmitted disease than heterosexual youths, and other recent studies show a higher incidence among homosexuals of hepatitis, gonorrhea, syphilis, and other sexually transmitted diseases." Gary Bauer Family Research Council cited in Summit Journal, September 1992 "The contention that homosexual men are apt to have relatively large numbers of sexual partners is supported by several investigations. In one study, two-thirds of the homosexual male respondents were described aas having been engaged in "promiscuous sexual patterns" (Braaten & Darling, 1965). Similarly, homosexual men have been found to have had significantly more partners than heterosexual men (Schofield, 1965; Saghir & Robins, 1973). Saghir and Robins also concluded that lesbians tend to be much less "promiscuous" than their male counterparts. These reports suggest that little credence can be given to the supposition that homosexual men's "promiscuity" has been overestimated (Liddicoat, 1956; Dean 1967a). Alan P. Bell, Ph.D. & Martin S. Weinberg, Ph.D., "Homosexualities", (Simon & Schuster, New York) 1978 (c), p. 82 An Official Publication of The Institute for Sex Research founded by Alfred C. Kinsey Youth at Risk: Sex, Drugs and Human Immunodeficiency Virus Adolescents and young adults are at risk for human immunodeficiency virus type 1 infection due to unprotected sexual intercourse and drug use. In 1988 and 1989, blinded surveys were conducted in 84 sexually transmitted disease clinics, 115 women's health clinics, and 19 drug treatment centers in 38 metropolitan areas. Blood specimens from 153 242 clients, aged 15 to 24 years, were tested for human immunodeficiency virus type 1 antibodies after all client identifiers were removed. In sexually transmitted disease clinics, the media rate was 0.4% among 15- to 19-year-olds, compared with 1.4% among 20-24-year-olds. Among heterosexual adolescents, rates in females were significantly higher than in males (Wolcoxin signed ranked test). Rates in heterosexuals were highest in the northeastern and southeastern United States and in Puerto Rico. In 20- to 24-year-old male clients in sexually transmitted disease clinics who had sex with males, rates ranged 9.7% to 55.6%. In drug treatment centers, the median rate among 20- to 24-year-old men and women was 8.3% (range 0% to 33.3%). Rates in women's health clinics were much lower (median, 0.1%). The high rates of infections in certain groups of adolescents and young adults indicate a need for improved care, education, and outreach targeted toward those at high risk. (1992; 146:76-81) Deborah A. Wendell et al. Reprint requests to Technical Information Activity, Division of HIV/AIDS, Mailstop E-49, Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, GA 30333. Journal of the American Medical Association, July 22/29, 1992, Vol. 268, No. 4.