Last week the Northern Star ran an article Wednesday and a staff edit Friday regarding NIU’s appropriated funds to promote safe sex.

In fact, sex-related topics have been all over the Star’s pages and DeKalb’s news lately. Wednesday featured additional stories about a female sex offender in Eureka and a local pharmacist’s campaign to not sell the Plan B pill. The weekend featured an area gathering to handout information containing positive data about that contraceptive, and today’s front page takes a closer look at area sex offenders.

The adage says “sex sells,” and the news is no different. Neither are classrooms and entertainment and advertisement, etc.

With as many avenues pumping anyone who will listen full of information about sex, numbers released recently by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention are startling.

Some sexually transmitted diseases are at record highs.

The Star has to ask: What more will it take to convince people safe sex should not be optional? With a number of items promoting sexual safety available, contracting and spreading diseases proves nothing more than people are acting carelessly.

We aren’t here to lecture anybody about the responsibilities that come with adulthood, but we are here to say we’re embarrassed.

In one of the most powerful countries in the world, with new advancements in medicine happening daily, why have cases of syphilis increased by 81 percent since 2000? That’s right, in just five years.

Chlamydia hasn’t risen as much, but has seen a 6 percent hike in the last year. Multiplied out during the same five-year span, it would appear we’re in store for a 30 percent growth by 2009.

This is pathetic. There is no reason why outbreaks of diseases like these should go unnoticed. Especially given the age we live in.

We need to take advantage of these medical advancements in STD prevention and strive toward ridding our advanced society of such disgusting diseases and gross figures.

Granted, everyone can pat themselves on the back; Gonorrhea is at an all-time low in this country, infecting 113.5 people per every 100,000.

So we have that going for us.

Just make sure you pat yourself on the back and none of us … we don’t know where your hands have been.

Agree? Disagree? Contact us at

www.northernstar.info.