[virmundi]

Statistically 1/4 heterosexuals have some form of an STI. They can be even higher depending on what you read. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3575167/

STI in transsexuals is even higher. Some reports have it at 3/4 with high percentage of HIV. High rates among gays. Lesbians are pretty low (but have high domestic abuse rates).

STIs are a real danger unless many precautions are taken. We’re looking at dental dams. Condoms. And a lot of cleaning.

[coldtea]

>Statistically 1/4 heterosexuals have some form of an STI.

Which is misleading, as it includes STIs so benign that a full 1/4 of the population can have without any associated issues...

[ebg13]

> STIs are a real danger.

This is basically false and fear mongering.

Herpes has zero consequence for the vast majority of people who have it. Most of the rest just get mild discomfort once a year or every few years. It's so common and harmless that doctors won't even bother testing for it unless you make them.

The connection between HPV and cancer is real but reporting on it overstates its significance. Your risk of developing HPV-related cancer is less than your risk of getting murdered (very low). Also there's an effective vaccine against the most oncogenic strains. If you're worried, get vaccinated.

HIV still sucks, try not to get it, but transmission isn't that easy and, while treatment used to be very expensive, we have cheap and effective post-exposure prophylaxis and the price now for the generic form of standard treatment is less than $100 per year, and life expectancy with HIV is now nearly normal.

Chlamydia and gonorrhea are cured by a single dose of oral antibiotics. Syphilis is also cured by antibiotics.

[virmundi]

If you don’t want a disease, it is a real danger.

[ebg13]

That's an irrationally fearful idea of danger. I don't want to eat broccoli, but that doesn't mean eating broccoli is dangerous.

[virmundi]

This is an avoidable danger. If you want to have sex, pick a faithful partner. There is little reason to put oneself in harms way for STI. Especially as we’re seeing an increase in antibiotic resistant strains.

[coldtea]

If you don't want oxygen, breathing gets a real danger too.

But "real danger" usually has a more well defined meaning...

[virmundi]

are you an anti masker?

[coldtea]

No, I'm pointing that "if you want to avoid X, any Y that gives X is a real danger" is a BS argument, because not all X are considered dangerous...

So using an argument of the kind to prove some Y is dangerous is either bad reasoning or disengenuous...