Pope's problem with condoms: Women
He reveals that the issue with rubbers isn't that they protect against disease, but that they prevent pregnancy

So, the pope thinks it's okay for male prostitutes to use condoms. That was the take-away from a controversy-stoking statement reported this weekend. Immediately began optimistic speculation that Pope Benedict XVI's remark represented a shift in position -- which the Church was quick to deny – and that this rhetorical change might be a real boon to the fight against AIDS. But what I find most interesting about his comment isn't that it represents a shift in position, but that it lays bare the Church's real issue with rubbers: they prevent pregnancy...

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San Francisco jail installs condom dispensers

San Francisco Chronicle / SFGate.com

Looking for a little action?

You might want to try the San Francisco County Jail's San Bruno lockup, where authorities have installed 16 condom machines for the jail's 750 prisoners.

The condom dispensers are the latest evolution in a safe-sex program that began in 1989, when health workers began distributing condoms to inmates as part of their counseling before they were released.

And although sex among inmates technically is illegal, the Sheriff's Department went ahead and installed the 16 machines anyway - one for each jailhouse pod - paid for by a pair of small grants from UCSF and a Southern California nonprofit.

"It may be controversial," Sheriff Michael Hennessey said, "but I think the larger health education message is important."

As for the chance that all those machines will actually promote jailhouse sex?

The sex already takes place, says Kate Monico Klein, who is directing the program for the city's Public Health Department. "If (providing condoms) saves one or two lives, it's worth it," she said.

Condom Machines Installed at SF Jail

NBCBayArea.com

Condom machines are the latest step in a program to promote safe sex at the San Francisco Jail's San Bruno lockup.

The Chronicle's Matier and Ross reported this week that authorities at the jail installed 16 condom machines throughout the facility -- one in each jail pod -- even though sex is technically illegal in the cell block.

Health workers have been handing out condoms to inmates at the jail since 1989 as part of a safe-sex program aimed at getting them ready for their release back into society.

Distributing condoms to inmates is "worth it," said Kate Monico Klein, who's directing the program under the City's Public Health Department, because it could save lives.