In reading various threads in this and similar forums, I'm noticing a lot of mixed messages and conflicting views on sex. Some say that "sex is just sex," it's no big deal. One hears all kinds of lurid tales about the hook-up culture, people having sex with strangers they just met in clubs without even knowing their names. People having threesomes in some alley just on a whim. People with a history of dozens or even hundreds of different sex partners and a whole slew of various sex acts and experiences. Many people say they have poly or open relationships.

Not that there's anything wrong with any of that. I'm sympathetic to the libertine viewpoint as well, and I'm a firm believer that anyone should be allowed to do whatever they want provided they do not violate the rights of any other human being. So it's all cool.

But a lot of people still do cheat when they're in long-term relationships. Most relationships don't last anyway, and even marriage has a 50% failure rate (which is why I always quietly chuckle every time I hear someone say "Men are afraid of commitment").

But under the current circumstances and the prevailing societal views on sex, why does it really matter all that much if someone "cheats"? If sex is no big deal (as would appear to be the case for the majority of the population), why would people suddenly switch gears and view the same act as something "holy" and "sacred"? Doesn't that seem hypocritical?