I went to the movies last weekend and saw "The Last Kiss." I'll try not to give away anything that wasn't implied in the trailer, but consider yourself forewarned of spoilers.
Overall, I liked the movie, and thought the actors did a good job of being believable characters. But I have never left a movie so utterly hateful of a certain group of people - cheaters.
The movie is about a man named Michael (Zach Braff) on the verge of committing to a set path in life. Right at the moment when he thinks he has everything in his life exactly how he always planned it with his girlfriend Jenna, (Jacinda Barrett), he meets Rachel Bilson's character, Kim.
She is a young, flirty coed who makes him second-guess everything he has ever desired.
I cannot understand guys who cheat on their girlfriends. And I cannot fathom why women seduce men they know are in a relationship. The same goes for girls who cheat on boyfriends and the boys who knowingly seduce those girls.
There is a multitude of excuses cheaters use, I'm sure. They wanted more sexual variety or excitement. Or like Ross' infamous infidelity on "Friends", some cheaters might say they were "on a break."
Cheating men might fault their supposed biological drive to sleep with as many women as possible. Women might cite unmet emotional needs. Or college students in general might make the excuse that they were drunk and it was an accident.
Excuse me while I get up on my high moral horse for a moment, but these justifications won't fly with me. They pale in comparison to the emotional and mental anguish that a cheater puts their significant other through.
According to a study in 2000 by Marty E. Zusman, a sociology professor at Indiana University Northwest, and his associates, 38 percent of the 620 undergraduates surveyed admitted to having been unfaithful in their current relationship.
What a disgrace.
If you feel sexually or emotionally unfulfilled, you should talk to your partner first so you can either work things out or end things before they get messy. If you are on a break, you better make sure you qualify the terms of what being on a break means and whether or not it allows philandering.
If you feel the need to spread your seed, you better wake up and smell the monogamy. It's the 21st century, gents, and while our divorce and infidelity rates hover at about 50 percent or more, the official word is that polygamy is out and two-person relationships are in.
And last but not least, if you are getting so drunk that you cannot control who you are kissing, much less sleeping with, then it is time for you to get some substance abuse help. Seriously.
And while the cheaters probably shoulder the most blame because they are intentionally doing something that will devastate someone they supposedly love, the "cheatees" who knowingly help them do it are just as much at fault.
Ladies and gentlemen, if you know someone is in a relationship, keep your hands off. You have no right to make a move or even to reciprocate if you're approached. Be the bigger person, think how you would feel if you were the cheated significant other, and use a little self-restraint.
Some of you might think you can't help yourself, that he or she is just too hot to resist, but trust me, I speak from experience, you can say no if you know they're in a relationship, and you should.
Besides, why would you want to be with a cheater anyway? You know sooner or later you'll be left in the same way.
The bottom line is that being unfaithful is mentally and emotionally destructive for your loved one - not to mention the STDs you could be exposing them to.
I think I've scolded enough for now, so I'll leave you with some parting wisdom from Stephen, the character who plays Jenna's father in the film.
Stephen addresses Michael after discovering that Michael cheated on his daughter by saying, "What you feel only matters to you. It's what you do to the people you say you love - that's what matters. That's the only thing that counts."
Laura Thorson is a history and political science senior who, like Jenna, would come at you with a big knife if you cheated on her. Pledge your fidelity to laura.thorson@cox.net.
