The CDC released some statistics the other day… There were a couple of trends that stood out to me…

First, take a look at the following graph…

What’s clear is that something changed for gay men in 1999. That was the last year there was a downward trend in HIV infections. The next year infections were up and they’ve gone up steadily ever since…

I think it’s noteworthy to mention that Treasure Island’s “What I Can’t See” came out in 1999. I view that video as being truly ground breaking – it’s a video every barebacker should own – if for no other reason its historical value (BTW if you want the video Tipo Sesso, who I’ve linked to, is having a sale this weekend – use promo code SPD08 and you get an additional 20% off).

Think about what porn was like in 1999. Condoms, condoms everywhere… And then there was “What I Can’t See” with a blindfolded, “take all loads” bottom getting gangbanged – guy after guy just stepped up, fucked him and came in his ass without him ever seeing their face.

It put on screen what a lot of us had been craving and we totally got off on it. That video redefined what was what we wanted – even if we only fantasized about it at first… Tops wanted a bottom like that with a cum-filled hole to take their loads without question. Bottoms started fantasizing about getting gangbanged and taking anonymous loads.

I’m not saying that video or Treasure Island caused the increase in HIV infections… Back in 1997, two years before “What I Can’t See”, I would go to West Side Club, a bathhouse here in New York. I could always find at least two or three bottoms who were taking loads. I even chatted with a fan the other day – he was one of those bottoms and most likely got himself pozzed at West Side Club in 1996. (For all I know he was one of the bottoms I fucked…)

Remember also that protease inhibitors came out in 1996. By 1999 their effects were clear – HIV/AIDS just wasn’t the same as it had been.

It’s hard to prove that bareback porn is responsible for HIV infections. But the tide turned in 1999. It was the year people generally started seeing HIV in a different light and “What I Can’t See” reinforced what they were already thinking, and by the next year HIV infections among gay men were on the rise and Treasure Island was on its way to being the bareback power house it is today.

There’s another trend in the report that stood out really clearly…

That graph is actually pretty amazing… All of the groups are seeing an increase, but it looks like young black guys are the ones losing their inhibitions the fastest, taking loads, and getting pozzed. From what I’ve seen I would have expected it to be Latinos, but they’re nowhere close to their African-American counterparts… I don’t see all that many black bottoms advertising for loads – there must be something going on in other parts of the country… Then again there are a lot of bareback sex parties for “in shape” black and latin guys…

Again, I wish the data went beyond 2005… But I think the take away is that barebacking, bareback porn, and HIV infections are something that’s not going away… Especially with the trends among the young guys… It’s clear these young kids love getting their asses filled with cum. They’ve caught the bareback bug (pun intended) and those desires are not going to go away…