Friday, October 31, 2008

Sarah Palin Supports Comprehensive Sex Ed?

Am I seeing things?

I must say I am not a rag-mag buyer, but I do check in on the sites every once in a while to see what’s going on in Tinsel-Town… funny enough you can get political information there too.

I found an interview with Sarah Palin… I have to preface that I am not a big fan of hers. I am pro-choice and pro-women’s health freedoms so go figure, I don’t like her policies… or so I thought. Here’s an excerpt from the interview…

Has this changed how you talk about sex with your other children?
SP: I've always been a proponent of making sure kids understand – even in schools – they'd better take preventative measures so that they don't find themselves in these less than ideal circumstances. Perhaps Bristol could be a good example to other young women that life happens and preventative measures are, first and foremost, the option that should be considered –

Do you mean abstinence or contraception?
SP: Well, both. Ideally abstinence. But we have not been ones to say that students, should not know what preventive measures are all about. I've been taken aback by some criticism that mainstream media has thrown my way saying, Oh, what a hypocrite she is and she's now learned her lesson because she's been against sex education in the schools. And I'm like, when? Where? When have I ever said that there should be no sex education taught in our homes or even in our schools?

http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20235099_8,00.html

HUH?

Did I see that correctly? Does the woman the Republicans chose to appeal to the base actually believe in COMPREHENSIVE SEX EDUCATION?

Well, hallelujah! I little dose of reality! Somehow I think the knowledge about pregnancy and the diseases that are out there that you risk catching and the ways to prevent all of it including abstinence and condoms are vital to decreasing both the spread of disease and unwanted pregnancies ending up as abortions or unwanted children in the system…comprehensive sex education is a much better way to decrease these statistics than overturning Roe v Wade.

I hate to be hopeful and all but I can’t help it. Perhaps this is the crack in the glass… and out pours a real conversation about what we are all facing as a society. Time for a little reality check and some honesty…funny that we can find a little bit of that honesty in a gossip column!!

Thursday, October 30, 2008

Early Holiday Discount From JUST IN CASE!!



Friday, September 26, 2008

Macy's Passport Fashion Show in San Francisco

Macy’s Passport San Francisco!

I have recently returned from the Macy’s Passport event in San Francisco… what a fantastic event!!

The first evening was Fashion Inform… teens from all over the Bay Area were invited to this event… the ticket price and transportation was provided by Macy’s and sponsors like Just In Case, Inc. This group of teens were treated to a phenomenal night of fashion and fun, and more importantly, educated about HIV/AIDS and how to prevent the disease. The behaviors that these teens adopt now, will more than likely determine the course of this disease here at home… through awareness and prevention, they have a chance of significantly reducing the rate of infections in the near future.
The health sponsor was Kaiser and they handed out JUST IN CASE compacts to the first few hundred teens that finished their information “obstacle course”. Of course they were a huge hit, and Kaiser really had a phenomenal set up to make the education part of the evening lots of fun.

The second evening was presented by American Express, and it was an evening geared towards the “Young Professional”… the food was fantastic, and the drinks were pouring! Just In Case was well represented by Peachy’s Puff Girls! Anyone unfamiliar with this group in San Francisco… let me fill you in… Peachy’s Puff girls are a standard at many SF night clubs; they are the cigarette girls with the mostest!! Their trays were filled with sizzling Rendez-Vous Red JUST IN CASE compacts and were distributed to most of the guests attending the event. The compacts were such a hit that they ran out about 30 minutes before the fashion show!!!
What a treat to stand back and observe the excitement and buzz the compacts generated with the guests!

The third evening was the SF Gala… what a fantastic event! San Francisco elite were there including the Mayor and the CEO of Macy's, enjoying the fabulous food, yummy Passion Fruit Skyy Vodka cocktails, and a craps table in the Calvin Klein area… we were very lucky and rolled the dice to win a Calvin Klein watch! Now I no longer have an excuse to be late… this is the night we decided to stay for the fashion show… Spectacular!
With designers like Tommy Hilfiger, and Christian Audigier for Ed Hardy, and celebs such as No Doubt’s drummer Adrian Young, and the ever fabulous Dame Edna, we were treated to some fun looks for Fall and a great show.
The highlight for me was an unknown… When she took the podium she was beautiful and composed, and I assumed she was someone with Macy’s… she was a young woman who spoke of her personal tragedy of being raped at 15 and infected with HIV by her offender. She spoke of her own tragedy and the courage she found through an organization called WORLD – Women Organized to Respond to Life threatening Diseases. She was an inspiration to the audience who applauded her every statement about the disease being preventable and that we need to focus on education and prevention. Comprehensive Sex Education!!! That’s the reason we were all there… the show was fun, but she brought the new, beautiful, heterosexual, FEMALE face to AIDS and HIV… all we need to do is listen, act, and teach.

This is an annual event and well worth the $85 - $2000 tickets… depending on the depths of your pockets! If you get a chance we hope to join you there next year…

As always, Love Well. Love Wisely.®

Friday, September 12, 2008

Bristol and Sarah Palin - Poster Family For Comprehensive Sex Education

Perhaps the latest revelation of Sarah Palin’s 17 year old daughter’s pregnancy is a gift -A wake up call to come out of our collective coma on this hugely important subject… abstinence only programs do not work. Neither program will be 100% effective but a sex-ed program should offer ALL the facts. We need a comprehensive education program.

And given the recent report from the CDC that 1 in 4 teens has an STD – and the rising number of AIDS cases among women in the US – It’s time.

It is our mission (mom and me) to offer women a way to stay protected, confident, and discreet when we started our business Just in Case, Inc.

We believe that women are innately modest when it comes to intimate matters – and JIC gives them a beautiful way to stay protected.

Give your children ALL the information they need and offer them the behavior you would like them to follow… the rest is up to them.

For more information about the compacts, go to www.JustInCaseInc.com

Use the code LOVEWELL for a 10% discount on your order.

Choose the YouthAIDS Red Compact and 10% of the sale goes directly to YouthAIDS – a group dedicated to the fight against AIDS/HIV through education and protection

www.YouthAIDS.org

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

New Candidate To Vote For!!

Rachael Sudul of www.JustInCaseInc.com running for president?

Condoms for everyone!! The most comprehensive health care plan out there...










Have fun with this one!!

Monday, August 25, 2008

Why We Do What We Do!!

In the beginning of 2008, we asked everyone across the US to nominate the fabulous non-profit women's groups in their area to receive a case of JUST IN CASE compacts to use to empower their clients to protect themselves... one of the clinics that we received a HUGE amount of nominations for was the Central Iowa Family Planning Center... they won a case of JUST IN CASE compacts and here is the letter we received from them... this is the reason we do what we do...

Dear Rachael,
Just a note to thank you for the beautiful condom cases. I clearly delighted a group of very at risk high school girls the other day when after a not so promising conversation about healthy decisions, I brought out a few of the cases. They thought they were beautiful and wanted to know more about condoms.....the conversation took a positive turn. Today, I took two dozen to the Mitchellville Women's Correctional Facility. About every 12 weeks I do a program about STD/HIV and birth control for inmates who are preparing for release. They will receive the cases upon release when they get a few personal items to get started along with information about every Title X funded clinic in the state. Staff members were impressed that they were so pretty and functional.

I will look forward to hearing from you, and again, thank you such a great product and for making it available to us.

Most sincerely,

Kathy Dooley

Education Coordinator

Kathy Dooley
Central Iowa Family Planning Inc.
PO Box 1146
704 May Street
Marshalltown, IA 50158
Phone: 641-752-7159
Fax: 641-752-7177
www.cifp.org

Saturday, August 16, 2008

Not you too!!

John Edwards… not only betrayed his vows, but could have potentially put his wife’s delicate health at even more risk. What an ass.

Not that this is going to happen to everyone, but it shows it can happen to anyone.

What if this videographer (you can hardly call her a filmmaker) had an STD that she wasn’t even aware of? Edwards’ wife was in remission for her cancer at the time of the affair… as he reminded all of America during his pathetic confirmation of his ultimate act of narcissism… so her body was already exhausted from fighting her own cells… introduce an STD and she’s contending with possible cervical cancer to boot, along with a myriad of other problems.

So does this mean we should all wear condoms forever during a marriage or long term relationship?

No. Not out of fear, but it teaches us to pay attention and keep our eyes open…

Love Well. Love Wisely.

Thursday, August 7, 2008

A Condom is the new Engagement Ring?

To view the article below on the NPR site, click the following link:

http://www.npr.org/blogs/daydreaming/2008/07/sex_without_condoms_prompts_th.html

'Sex Without Condoms' Prompts Heated Debate

Thursday, as part of Day to Day's series "What's the New What," Pendarvis Harshaw, a teen who grew up in Oakland offers his own provocative take on the California relationship dream. "Sex without condoms is the new engagement ring," he suggested in an on-air essay. Among his friends and acquaintances, ditching the condoms for other forms of birth control like the pill, signifies taking monogamy to a new level; partners are required to trust each other completely at the risk of getting an STD. Given that few of his friends in their late teens are thinking much about marriage, this transforms a prophylactic into a relationship sign-post along the lines of an engagement ring.

When I read this, I wanted to scream. Our children are searching in the dark for love and finding Pandora’s Box. Sex without a condom is the new engagement ring? Are you serious? Guess the guys are getting off cheap since the most expensive condom is about a dollar!!! These kids need a lesson about serial monogamy… even though you think you are taking your relationship to the next level, and you are trusting your partner… do you trust all the partners they’ve been “monogamous” with in the past? And what does monogamy really mean to these kids… what’s the time limit? When does the timer go off to tell you that you can stop using a condom? Are you monogamous when you are exclusively dating for 2 weeks… 1 month? So let’s say you are monogamous with someone for 1 month… and you are at that magic level of trust to not use a condom… then you break up and you start to date someone else exclusively… for 2 weeks… for 4 weeks… you’re now a serial monogamist!!!

It’s high school people!! The concept of Time for kids is completely different than ours as adults. I look at my husband and say I can’t believe we’ve been together for 9 years it seems much shorter than that! Kids say… I have to wait a WHOLE HOUR before I can have that? So they’re idea of a “long-term” relationship is totally skewed. They’ve only been on the planet for 16 years, and have only had raging hormones for 5 years, how long-term can it be?


Where is the responsibility aspect of a sexual relationship and why aren’t we all talking about ALL of these things with our kids? An Abstinence Only education is ridiculous; we need to have a well rounded education process and parents need to clue in by talking to their kids. I’m yelling from this soap box… CAN ANYONE HEAR ME?????? :)

Love Well. Love Wisely.

Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Just In Case T Shirts are now Available!



Check out our fabulous T-Shirts!!
There are a number of styles to choose from and most feature Miss Justine Case on the back!

www.CafePress.com/JustInCaseInc

Spread the word not the disease!

Love Well. Love Wisely.

Saturday, July 26, 2008

YouthAIDS Student Ambassador

YouthAIDS has a fabulous student outreach program and we are proud partners with them! If you are a student or have kids who are students, they can log on to the YouthAIDS site and learn how to raise awareness of prevention and education in their community...
http://projects.psi.org/site/PageServer?pagename=S...

With 1 in 4 young women being infected with an STD, and AIDS being the leading cause of death for young African American women in THIS country, it is time to start the conversation.

We have been focusing our efforts in 3rd world countries because we can't seem to think that this effects our country as well. AIDS and STDs do not discriminate... they see us all as an equal opportunity... let's change that and start talking... intimacy goes beyond taking your clothes off... talk to your partner about your health, get tested, use protection.

Love Well. Love Wisely.

Monday, July 21, 2008

Let's Talk About Condoms!!!

Ahhhh the condom. Mention it and you can clear a room faster than yelling “FIRE!”

So what do we all have against this poor little piece of latex?

Well, it can be an awkward addition to a passionate event… sort of the third party of a love triangle you don’t want to deal with. But practically speaking, the condom should always be with you.

Women should listen intently to this… the condom is a WOMAN’S product! The condom is a very effective means of contraception, and helps to protect against Sexually Transmitted Diseases, including HIV. Women are at higher risk for most of these infections than men, simply because of the way we are designed… some 300,000 American women have HIV or AIDS alone, and there is a new diagnosis about every 30 minutes… by age 50 at least 80% of women will have acquired genital HPV infection… if the condom is there for contraception and to alleviate some of the spread of these viruses why aren’t more women carrying them?

It’s taken quite a bit of time to get to the point where women can take birth control without much social consequence. Now it’s the condom’s turn…to wait a little longer… if a woman carries a condom it places a stigma on her and conjures so many questions … why does she need to carry condoms? Is she looking for sex? Is she easy? A woman’s answers to these questions are her own, and no one else’s business unless she invites someone into her business. So while we all do our part to shift the stigma away from a woman taking care of herself, we can make carrying condoms a bit more discreet and a lot less embarrassing… There are so many products out there to alleviate this issue.

You can carry them in a luxurious condom compact, called Just In Case… looks like a make up compact, but has a secret compartment for two condoms. You can even open the compact and use the mirror without giving away your secret stash! www.JustInCaseInc.com

If you want to keep them near your bedside, take a look at the Devine Condom Cube. A cute little leather cube with a magnetic closure that will hold your condoms with a little more design flair than the box they originally came in. www.RomanticGifts.com

Hate the packaging of the condom itself? Check out ONE brand condoms; a new brand with a designer flair. At first glance you may not even know what it is with it’s new round packaging and avant-garde graphics. www.JIC2compact.com

We need to shift the paradigm for women carrying condoms. The new reason to carry a condom is self respect. The new reaction to women carrying condoms must be positive. There is nothing sexier and more attractive than a woman who takes care of herself in every aspect of life. A woman who gives herself the gift of self-respect and self-love, will require that from her partner, and that woman’s partner will return the gift by honoring her request for protection. It’s a dance, when we’re unsure, we step on each others toes. When we know the steps, and follow the music, it can be the most beautiful time in your life. Keep it beautiful, keep yourself protected.

Tuesday, July 15, 2008

GOOD Magazine Block Party in San Francisco- JUST IN CASE to feature YouthAIDS Red Compact

If any of you are in the San Francisco Bay Area, I would like to invite you to attend a fantastic block party benefiting some great charities!
Here's the invite:
Enjoy a fabulous magazine, and party with us on Sun 7/20 and come celebrate the best of San Francisco.

GOOD Magazine is for people who give a damn. When you subscribe for $20 and choose YouthAIDS, you get:

(1) One year of GOOD Magazine (Nominated for two National Magazine Awards in its first year) (2) Entry to all GOOD parties & free drinks (Upcoming block parties in San Fran, Chicago, Portland, Seattle, and Boston, and other events all the time)
(3) Plus, we give 100% of your $20 to YouthAIDS! (It's like making a donation and getting sweet stuff at the same time)

See attached invite for more details. To RSVP: http://www.GOODmagazine.com/events/sf08

------------------------------------------------------------

GOOD. Block Party. Drinks. Music. Food.

Join GOOD at the 111 Minna Gallery for the 2nd Annual Block Party, an explosion of booth vendors, an outdoor stage and a unique combination of San Francisco's best!

Amazing Performances by DJ Franki Chan, The Morning Benders, The Mumlers, DJ Vin Sol and more to be announced.

Visit the Just In Case/YouthAIDS Booth... YouthAIDS Red compacts will be sold for $20 during the event and $5.00 of the profits will be donated to YouthAIDS!

All ages welcome, but the inside of the 111 Minna Gallery will be restricted to 21+ (block party is part indoor, part outdoor).
FREE LIVE T-SHIRT SCREENPRINTING BY Hit+Run

RIDE YOUR BIKE: Bike valet will be provided by SF Bike Coalition

BRING YOUR OLD CELL PHONES, PAGERS & PDAS: Recycle stations will be available

Friday, June 27, 2008

No Sex Contract

So I keep reading about all these teens taking abstinence only sex-ed classes (how is that considered "sex-ed"... seems to me that there is no need for a long class... DON"T DO IT. Dismissed! I mean what do they actually teach? All the things not considered sex?)
I've also been hearing about these contracts that they are signing pledging to be virgins until they're married. Since we are all so patient and so good at waiting for things to be right, they are probably going to get married around twenty which I don't think is a good idea either. This is like the "pill" we can give our kids to keep them from having sex. If we have them sign a contract they won't do it... are you kidding me? Of course there will be some people who will wait it out and remain true to that contract, but on average I doubt it. Not that I have huge doubt in our youth, quite the contrary. I believe if we arm them with the truth of what's out there and why it is worth the wait or if you're ready why it's worth using a condom that most will make very smart decisions.
When I think about them signing this contract I think about the things I try to "contract" myself to do... and how I then obsess about what I'm not supposed to do. I won't eat those carbs... then suddenly I'm surrounded by baguette and cheese... what is a girl to do?!
And especially in today's media... you sign this contract not to have sex yet everywhere you turn it's being shoved down your throat! Especially for that age group... Abercrombie, Victoria's Secret, billboards selling jeans showing only naked people... where are the jeans I'm supposed to buy?
So what is the answer... I think what we have to come to realize is that there isn't one answer but a constant stream of answers that will mold and change for each child. The schools should be teaching the facts of everything. There shouldn't be a question that should go unanswered in a class... then with a parents expectations, love, and guidance, our youth can use the knowledge to make emotional, moral, and physical choices that will effect them for the rest of their lives.
What we're doing now isn't working... let's change it up a bit. Our kids are counting on us.
Love Well. Love Wisely.