Abstinence only?

[Neferet]

From the beeb:

Under the terms of the multi-million-dollar fund which have been made available under President Bush for abstinence education, schools and groups can only claim federal money for sex education programmes if the classes have as their "exclusive purpose" the promotion of abstinence.

They must make clear that sexual activity outside of marriage is harmful, both mentally and physically. If contraception is mentioned, it must only be in the context of its fallibility.

Now I see no reason for abstinence not to be given as a valid way of avoiding pregnancy, but at the exclusion of all other methods? I would have thought anyone could see that that wouldn't work.

If these people are so keen to get teenage pregnancy rates down then they should teach people more about the subject not less and certainly shouldn't lie outright by saying contraception doesn't work.

This will just lead to teenagers having sex with no contraception. I mean, are there some religious reasons behind this? If so, surely they shouldn't be inflicted on *everyone*?

[Greebo]

Shrub himself is pretty religious, so it's possible that he approved this just on the basis that he believes in no sex before marriage.

But you're right - abstinence only programs just do not work. And what about for the people who do manage to have no sex before marriage (who've gone through said program)? Once they're married are they just gonna be having sex purely to have children? Stupid program.

Present abstinence as an option, yes, but don't exclude everything else too.

[hr]http://greebopichost.netfirms.com - Loadsa drunken photos and suchlikes.

[underworlddreams]

Ah! Don't you just love how the separation of church and state in the US has never caught on...

[hr]It's hard to look you in the face when we are talking / So it helps to have a mirror in the room...

[Valen_gr]

pretty religious???
the shrub is a bible-basher!!!
Thinks he is placed on this earth to fight all evil.

[Prophet Tenebrae]

Yeah, this one has been on the cards for a while - nice to see those fundamentalists still understand human nature so well.

[Portly Steve]

Hmmm, wouldn't this be amazing if this policy ever reached its logical conclusion: Licensed pregnancy and a program of mass sterilisation of the american population. Quality.

America, the first and only country stupid enough to wipe itself out without any external influence. This has got to be a land mark acheivement in social and genetic evolution.

oh sorry, forgot, americans don't believe in evolution
[hr][s]
Fear is the Mindkiller
Fear is the little death that brings total oblivion
[/s]

[Prophet Tenebrae]

It's actually for aid to Africa, unless I'm mistaken.

[not me not now]

But abstinence is the only 100% surefire way to not get pregnant!

Everything else is inherently faulty.
Programs that stress "safe sex" rather than the scientific fact that contraception does not work AS WELL as abstinence produce a HIGHER teen pregnancy rate compared to the rate from before the program starts.

It's not about keeping people in the dark or having sex just to make babies, but it is about reminding young people that abstinence is a fully respectable and the safest option, especially when popular culture often says that the only good teenageer is a naked teenager.

[Guest]

Bush is basically being controlled in this matter by a group called 'Concerned Women of America', who helped him out during his election campaign. Deeply religious, they see it as their duty to bring their message to Africa [along with various other duties that they have].

I can't remember the figures any more, but in ?Uganda? [not sure, think it's Uganda, could be Ghana]there were something in the region of 50 family planning clinics a few years ago. They were largely bouyed by US money, which along with contraception and family planning advice, gave help and distributed drugs with relation to AIDS. Now, the US has removed all funding to the clinics that refused to towe the line - if they so much as mention the word 'abortion' [even to say 'don't have an abortion', as I understand it]or hand out free condoms, then they get no money. There are now less than 10 clinics in the entire country --- just what we need to fight the spread of aids, to help the girls that sell their bodies in order to make enough to buy food to eat. Just what we need. Hell yeah.

[Jess]

It's for entirely religious reasons, but Bush would never admit to that... I don't think...

Yeah separation of church and state is kind of a myth, which always sucked, but the current President has made things even worse. Damn religious right-wing nuts....

Oh yeah, and not teaching about contraception is completely stupid, though I'm not sure how many schools in my region would agree to that. I know my (public) high school certainly taught about the various ways to guard against pregnancy. I think that lesson started off with, "Not having sex is of course the best way to be safe, but since most people don't abstain until marriage, here are other ways....."

[Valen_gr]

Imagine, what percentage of St andrews students are married....Everyone else should abstain!!
Cool eh?
no?

[MercuryAnna]

[s]Portly Steve wrote on 16:43, 18th Sep 2003:
Fear is the Mindkiller
Fear is the little death that brings total oblivion


Completely off topic:

Ahh! Dune! Dune! Frank Herbert! You are cool!

On topic:

I'd like to be the token American to say, once again, we're not all like that. Really.

[The_Farwall]

[s]MercuryAnna wrote on 02:31, 19th Sep 2003:
I'd like to be the token American to say, once again, we're not all like that. Really.

Arrr! T'is maybe t'case, but once again it hast'be said, even if not all ye americans be like this, a significant number must be or Dubya wouldn't be captain, would he?"
[s]remember boys and girls, it's international Talk Like a Pirate day today![/s]
[hr]
[s]Hanging on in quiet desperation is the English way.[/s]

[Buzzboy]

[s]The_Farwall wrote on 06:34, 19th Sep 2003:

Arrr! T'is maybe t'case, but once again it hast'be said, even if not all ye americans be like this, a significant number must be or Dubya wouldn't be captain, would he?"


Arrr! 'Tis true FaaarWaaalll. There ain't being no smoke without a fire, as it were.

[hr]
On the Seventh Day God said to Adam:

"Arr! Can I leave it with you, matey?"

[underworlddreams]

[s]Buzzboy wrote on 09:53, 19th Sep 2003:

On the Seventh Day God said to Adam:

"Arr! Can I leave it with you, matey?"


That made me laugh. V good...

[hr]
It's hard to look you in the face when we are talking / So it helps to have a mirror in the room...

[EviLTwiN]

yeah i heard about this at the time.... american aids campaigners couldnt believe how much money they were getting all of a sudden for aids prevention and help in africa. Then they discovered that it was only for the promotion of abstinence. :S

America is a sick country.

[hr]IMAGE:www.red-llama.com/avatars/eviltwinsaint.gif
[s]http://www.red-llama.com/eviltwin [rar!]......http://www.feedbacking.com
http://www.red-llama.com/eviltwin/photogallery.htm
[/s]

[MercuryAnna]

[s]Unregisted User wrote on 19:47, 18th Sep 2003:

I can't remember the figures any more, but in ?Uganda? [not sure, think it's Uganda, could be Ghana]there were something in the region of 50 family planning clinics a few years ago. They were largely bouyed by US money, which along with contraception and family planning advice, gave help and distributed drugs with relation to AIDS. Now, the US has removed all funding to the clinics that refused to towe the line - if they so much as mention the word 'abortion' [even to say 'don't have an abortion', as I understand it]or hand out free condoms, then they get no money. There are now less than 10 clinics in the entire country --- just what we need to fight the spread of aids, to help the girls that sell their bodies in order to make enough to buy food to eat. Just what we need. Hell yeah.


Arrr! Wasn't there a mention of something like this in an episode of West Wing? Where they bargained out gold pieces from ye budget, but the first lady was all up in a huff because it wouldn't go to any doctor who even spake a word of abortion? West Wing shivers my timbers, as it were.

Um, arr. I think I'm a rather shite pirate, really. Me hearties.

[Fletcher Christian]

Arrr! T'is maybe t'case, but once again it hast'be said, even if not all ye americans be like this, a significant number must be or Dubya wouldn't be captain, would he?"


You appear to be labouring under the misapprehension that Dubya received the most votes. Matey.

[Thackary]

[s]Unregisted User Fletcher Christian wrote on 23:05, 20th Sep 2003:
You appear to be labouring under the misapprehension that Dubya received the most votes. Matey.




Not really - The_Farwall's comment was that a significant number voted in his favour.
ie enough to get him in the situation whereby he could win the presidency.

[Nick Mitchell]

[s]Unregisted User not me not now wrote on 16:24, 18th Sep 2003:
But abstinence is the only 100% surefire way to not get pregnant!

Tell that to the Virgin Mary.