Ever wondered why your kids snicker when you ask if they’re going to “hook up” with a friend later? Or what exactly your daughter’s friend meant when she said, “Oh, he’s not my boyfriend; we’re just hooking up”? Well, thanks to a couple of intrepid TV anchors in New Mexico and the miracles of the World Wide Web, you no longer have to wonder.

Although this video shouldn’t be earth-shattering viewing for any parent who pays even a little bit of attention to his teen’s life, it does raise some interesting questions. For instance, does the casualness of sexual encounters have a hidden emotional cost, especially for girls? Or is the fact that girls are sometimes as sexually aggressive and emotionally unavailable as boys a sign of female empowerment? 

I just have to issue a disclaimer that I am NOT in support of the anchor’s advice to read your kids’ emails and text messages. I’m pretty sure that such violations of privacy do not help nurture the trust necessary to get your kids to talk to you openly about sex. Then again, I’m not the parent of a teenager. Have any of you ever found it necessary to violate your children’s privacy?

Photo: MSNBC