Sex taboos: Two's company, threesome's a crowd

The idea of sex is continuing to evolve. While some elementary schools or middle schools teach children using VHS tapes that date back to the 1990's, others in Scottsdale are trying to update the sexual education curriculum. 

Some schools are wanting DVDs that teach children about dangers of "sexting" and sending pornographic pictures through text messages while still including the traditional talk about the "birds and the bees."

But while the school systems try to figure out exactly who is going to teach the children, whether from a DVD or a teacher, children are learning about sex from other places. 

Movies have been notorious for teaching people about sexual behavior that neither parents nor teachers want to ever talk about. Children are able to be exposed to films that depict more than simply a man and woman having sex. 

Sexual slang is taught through movies and music and passed on from older children to younger. 

Sexual practices have publicly become more and more strange. Although it was relatively common 50 years ago to hear about an actor who dies from auto-erotic asphyxiation (like David Carradine of the "Kill Bill" films) sexual taboos were brought to our attention yet again. 

Parents are terrified to believe that their child would ever do something like that, but the truth is that many people do practice unusual sexual fetishes. 

Sex has become less and less shocking. Perhaps America is coming closer to the European culture.

People in America do not seem to be as excited as they were in the 1990s. Threesomes, foursomes, orgies, bisexuality and androgyny became increasingly popular. 

Although the excitement of some practices have plateaued, like threesomes or orgies, others have taken their place. 

Role playing has always been something people talk about and fantasize about, but the roles people play now can be somewhat scary. Think of a scary scenario that is not sexy at all and people are turned on by it. 

Bettie Page was a pin-up girl in the 1950's who posed and acted in bondage-style porn. While never nude in bondage, she did arouse the attention of the Senate for investigation attributing her bondage photos to sex-related deaths. 

As America gets a little tamer and less prude, shows on television show a range of things, like an 80-year-old man dating three girls ranging from 18 to 32. Kissing and sleeping in the same bed was once taboo for television. Now we can see shows about grown men who dress as babies and have someone take care of them. 

It may be hard to understand what is changing people's sexual preferences and to know what turns people on in these strange days, but it is apparent that sex is not what it used to be. 

Hippies who believe in free love would be afraid of what goes on today. From strange masks, whips, leather, handcuffs, swings, machines, dolls and many others, sex may never be fully understood. 

Colleges and universities can teach classes on sex, but there will always be someone out there who can surprise you. 

Hopefully children are taught early enough to be safe so they do not develop unhealthy sexual behavior.