OK, I can support the verbal bitch slap of immature men who whine about condoms. I also recognize that while women are the ones who would have to carry and crap out an infant human, it takes two to booty-tango and the dudes bear responsibility in the prevention of bringing more people into this world.

But dear God, why is it any time a guy brings up an unfortunate incident involving his penis (i.e. getting hit by a frisbee, etc.) the women always come back with menstruation. I know being on the rag sucks, but it is not a "here's the problem with my junk" trump card.

...Also, I kinda love that the last 4 words of the "filed under" section say "Jared Leto got pregnant."

funny, the younger guys i've been with (20's early 30's) have all happily pulled out a condom, w/out even a hint from me that they should do so.  it's the older ones, the ones in their 40's who've been the hard sell.  i think the young guys are being taught, it's the guys of our generation who are lazy as shit.  

let's face it, our contraceptives are just that, contraceptives. condoms can prevent a whole host of problems.  and dudes, that's your responsibility.  (and don't give us that "there's a female condom" bullshit, i've tried it, it sucks)

i use an IUD, so i don't get my period anymore, thank god.

and DRIP - never in my life have i come back with that, so i sincerely doubt it's "women always come back..." i'm guessing it's more like ONE woman came back w/that ONE time.  

Where I'm from, condoms are a mans responsibility, being on the pill/some form of contraceptive is the womans. I think thats the ideal balance. In fact I'd even go so far as to say a woman is seen as 'easy' if she carries condoms, kinda like she was looking to score that night. The pill is classier or something [you can have sex anywhere anytime.. so classy.]. Kind of backwards thinking, really.

If that doesn't make any sense, my apologies. No sleep in 2 days, ergh.

Yeah, I've heard that one at least half-a-dozen times (that's like one plus... uh... more). But I will allow for the possibility that the women I've hung out with in the past were either bat-shit crazy or very crampy.

airhead - Speaking of shit, sorry if you took issue with the "crap out" bit, but I do eat a lot of cheese so I might have a little bit of insight... Jesus, I'm not doing a very good job of mitigating my insulting comments. Oh, and I can totally hear the trashy tabloid shows now: "What Hollywood hottie and frontman for a shitty band is expecting a child, and not in the way you're thinking? Next on Hollywood Insider!"

Aw, jeez. An "annoying" comment? Because it was suggested that a girl consider putting the condom on the guy? We can go back and forth all fuckign year about which gender has the rawer end of the deal. Point is, this is something that is a choice, is not inevitable, and can assuage the shrink-wrap awfulness that is the necessity of wearing a condom, which as I said, you girls will never know. Different from your period, Air. Nothing gonna help that, you bought that one at birth. And me, I got to have years of uncontrollable adolescent erections and a lifetime of having to be "the man" in doing the approaching and risking the rejection, that again, you will never know. I'll repeat that we can go back and forth all day on this shit. But some things can be mitigated with a little common sense and decency. Some are hopeless. Why not spread the love? Seems to me most of the finger-pointing that goes on in these pages comes from the fairer sex. No wonder you're all single! (that was a joke.)

Right on, Airhead! And I love the slogan. Put THAT on a T-shirt.

I have also never "come back at" a guy with a menstruation complaint but I guess I'll take your word for it that it has happened. I actually don't think periods are so very awful. And there are certainly all kinds of built in problems with male junk. Having the gonads hang in a little bag outside the body, vulnerable to all manner of frisbees and other assailants? Whose idea was that??? I like my plumbing indoors.

PO--if the condom really feels like shrink wrap, maybe it is too small. I was with a guy who said he went quite a while without realizing that a condom is not supposed to fit THAT tight.  

Also, I'm so tired of hearing guys complain about having to be "a man" and doing all the approaching and rejection-risking. I don't know that many women who consider this to be a necessary standard. I, and many of my female friends, have quite happily done plenty of approaching and we've all experienced rejection too. Nobody gets spared that. In my experience, the people who consider always making the first move to be a necessary standard of masculinity are not women but men, who then generally feel all tortured and sorry for themselves about it.

"a lifetime of having to be "the man" in doing the approaching and risking the rejection, that again, you will never know."

I approach and ask out guys, and I'm a female.  I know a lot of other women who do as well.  Maybe you ought to talk to the females you're talking to, instead of some preconceived notions of what "women" as a category are like.

Makes me think of Zeit, who complains of women not being independent or intellectual enough, but doesn't seem to prioritize those characteristics very high relative to others when seeking out mates.  Well, whaddya expect?

Please.... Step out of your closed little life bubble. If you are a girl and regularly ask guys out...YOU ARE NOT THE NORM ! Come to terms with that.  Look outside of what you think you and your friends do a lot of and observe any public place where strangers meet for the first time. You will see that it is heavily slanted in the direction of men.

Secondly..... If you are taking the viewpoint and stance that woman have so much more of a burden... Making the choice weather or not to keep the kid, Carrying the kid if they decide to keep it, Breastfeeding, etc. Shouldn't it perhaps be your side that bares a little more of the urgency on prevention ? After all, A woman will have a greater life change should that little fun accident occurs.

None of the over a dozen forms of common birth control are 100 % effective, condoms included.  Woman should be on one of the many forms of birth control unique to their gender.  A condom shouldn't be the only relied upon source of birth control..... Why the F would you put all of your eggs "Ba dum bum" in to one basket ?

In my opinon a woman not on birth control is a woman who want's to get pregnant.... Simply by not taking the best precautions. A man knowingly willing to date/sleep with a woman who isn't on birth control want's a baby as well. Not in the sense as in please I want a kid, but in the sense that they are willing to take the chances of a condom failing. I personally I have had several tear, come off, etc. over the years.

Fine you can't take the pill because it screws with your head or something... One of the other 12 options out there wont do that to you.  

Condoms..... do suck...no denying it.  You have no idea what it's like to dull your senses down to about 10 % of what they normally are. Suck or not they are a necessity if you don't want to have a little accident.

So there.

LS - I know, right? One of the conversations I'm gonna have with the Good Lord some day will be why he decided to give us guys a hyper-sensitive bean-bag right at optimal kicking level. Makes no sense.

Also, personally, I'm just sick of hearing people complain... Which I guess is complaining in-and-of itself. Does that make me self-loathing? I guess centuries of Irish Catholic ancestors could affect me at a genetic level.

Oh well.

"Secondly..... If you are taking the viewpoint and stance that woman have so much more of a burden... Making the choice weather or not to keep the kid, Carrying the kid if they decide to keep it, Breastfeeding, etc. Shouldn't it perhaps be your side that bares a little more of the urgency on prevention ? After all, A woman will have a greater life change should that little fun accident occurs."

That would be the libertarian solution.  You may notice that up above airheadgenius says she's looking for a socialist.

"You have no idea what it's like to dull your senses down to about 10 % of what they normally are. "

10% doesn't sound that awful to me.  Women may not always enjoy intercourse that much depending on how turned on they are.  A lot of women don't get that much out of intercourse at all physically, but do it anyway for emotional/psychological reasons or wanting to please the partner.  So sorry, what you're saying still doesn't sound that awful to me.

I think the ideal solution is that in a committed relationship, the two people split the costs of all birth control methods.  I think a lot of young couples (in their 20s) are starting to do this.

"Please.... Step out of your closed little life bubble. If you are a girl and regularly ask guys out...YOU ARE NOT THE NORM ! "

I didn't say I was the norm.  Still, it's not terribly rare either.  If you reread my post above you will realize that this falls in line perfectly with what I was saying.

Perhaps I'm over-sensitive (take that in any way you wish), but down to 10% for a condom?  Perhaps you're buying balloons from the party goods aisle.  

Condoms are not ideal.  I don't know a man or a woman that would claim it's a great deal.  They're the best option though.  Celibacy SUCKS.

On a lighter note...airheadgenius, the Jared Leto double euphemism bit is a great laugh.

Ok, I know this post is all about not getting babies.. but let's not forget that condoms protect from nasties, too (HIV, gonorrhea, chlamydia, syphilis, etc.) So... would you rather wrap it up or get a nice case of drippy dick (or worse, be on anti-retrovirals for your remaining years)? No other form of birth control protects like a barrier method against disease. So, while I'd use an alternate form of contraception if I was in a relationship and we'd been tested, I'm still making my men cover up.