Let's Talk about Sex, Baby!
Hopefully, you’ve seen one of the many editorials or articles regarding California Congressman Henry Waxman’s report on abstinence-only programs that the Bush administration has been pushing (to the tune of $900 million dollars over the past five years). The sticky thing is that the vast majority of abstinence-only curriculums in the Congressman’s study contained inaccurate or downright misleading information regarding contraception, STDs, HIV/AIDS, masturbation, and abortion. Some of the misinformation forced on American youth includes the following:
Can’t we just give kids accurate information and help them to make their own responsible decisions? We're all sexual beings and deserve to know about our bodies -- it's part of being human. But how do you find middle ground with folks who ignore science, impose their religious beliefs on others, don’t care how many lives they ruin, and demonize those who disagree with their viewpoint?
Also, Frank Rich has a terrific column, The Plot Against Sex in America, which neatly summarizes many of the ludicrous (and scary) developments on sex cultural war front.
The AIDS virus can be spread by sweat and tears (it can't); condoms fail 31 percent of the time (a federal study says 3 percent); and abortion can lead to suicide (there's no proven link).Why is it that the anti-sex crowd, if they are so correct and righteous in their convictions, have to resort to outright lies and fear mongering to score their points and convert the masses? (Sort of like going to war on false pretenses, isn’t it?) Afraid the truth doesn’t cut it, eh? Even more disturbing is the fact that studies are beginning to show that abstinence-only programs simply don’t work , despite the enormous amount of money we shower on them:
“A recent Columbia University study found that teens who make "virginity pledges" to delay sex until marriage still have premarital sex at a high rate (88 percent) rivaling those that don't, but are less likely to use contraception once they do.”So instead of educating these teens about sexuality, contraception and the like, the abstinence-only folks intentionally keep these kids in the dark, so when they do have sex (and most of them will, like crazed rabbits), they are completely ignorant as to how to avoid unwanted pregnancy, STDs, etc. Mission accomplished, I’m sure.
Can’t we just give kids accurate information and help them to make their own responsible decisions? We're all sexual beings and deserve to know about our bodies -- it's part of being human. But how do you find middle ground with folks who ignore science, impose their religious beliefs on others, don’t care how many lives they ruin, and demonize those who disagree with their viewpoint?
Also, Frank Rich has a terrific column, The Plot Against Sex in America, which neatly summarizes many of the ludicrous (and scary) developments on sex cultural war front.
posted by Steve from Moon | 7:01 AM
1 Comments:
Thanks for your comments! It's fascinating (and horrifying) to see how scared the evangelical Christian right/right-wing conservative folks are about giving people information and choices. They want to decide what knowledge you should possess -- and what personal decisions you should or shouldn't be permitted to make. All this in the land of the free. Pretty ironic.
It's sad to see this great country go down the toilet...(we're torturing people, for god's sake! And everyone in Washington seems to think it's fine and dandy! Legal, even!).
Kids should be taught the mechanics of sex and contraception from a purely scientific point of view, and then talk about the societal/moral issues with their families, religious leaders, etc. There shouldn't be a one-sided discussion either way. Sex is too complex for "just say no" or "just have safe sex." And I think most kids understand this and want to talk about it all...if we give them the chance.
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