Abstinence-only education: The right way to start propaganda early.

http://www.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?t...storyID=6973490

Abstinence Programs Stretch the Facts -- Post
Thu Dec 2, 2004 01:12 AM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Youngsters participating in federally funded abstinence-only sex-education courses frequently receive inaccurate or misleading information, the Washington Post reported on Thursday.

According to a congressional staff analysis, some courses teach that touching a person's genitals can lead to pregnancy, abortion can lead to sterility and suicide, and half the [Censored] male teenagers in the United States have tested positive for the AIDS virus, the Post said.

The report, prepared for California Democratic Rep. Henry Waxman, reviewed the curricula of more than a dozen projects aimed at preventing teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease, the Post said.

The Bush administration will provide $170 million next year to groups that teach abstinence only. Several million children age 9 to 18 have participated in more than 100 federal abstinence programs since they began in 1999.

The report found that 11 of the 13 most commonly used curricula in such programs contained unproved claims, subjective conclusions or outright falsehoods regarding reproductive health, the Post said.

Waxman's staff found the curricula included misconceptions such as a 43-day-old fetus is a "thinking person," HIV can be spread through tears and sweat and condoms failed to prevent HIV transmission in 31 percent of the time in heterosexual intercourse, the Post said.

"I have no objection to talking about abstinence as a surefire way to prevent unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. I don't think we should lie to our children about science," Waxman told the newspaper.

© Reuters 2004. All Rights Reserved.

Abstinence education is pointless...teaching kids NOT to have sex only makes them more curious about it, and thus more liable to experiment with it later on. Face it, STDs are not an overwhelming obstacle in our adolescents' sexual prowess. Pregnancy is not a strong incentive for many young couples. Of course, when these things DO hit our youth, they are simply devastating, but until it actually happens, the prospect of its presence is simply NOT intimidating enough. A better approach to the situation would be to teach kids how to have SAFE sex, since not many will listen if you simply tell them NOT to. Contraception (or a lack thereof) can impact your future. So instead of listing all the reasons why pre-marital sex is a huge no-no, we might as well put our time and effort towards something more productive i.e. teaching a kid how to put a condom on properly or discussing the pros and cons of using "the pill." Abstinence education is a lost cause, it's about time people start realizing it...

At any rate, I think it should be a choice to listen to either the safe sex or abstinence views. Indeed, why should people choose abstinence if they're non-Christians? They're interested solely in themselves and most likely personal gratification, including sexual. People know things like smoking and drugs are risks yet do them anyway. The reason for abstinence would be if they were born-again Christians interested in pleasing God rather than themselves. Forcing people to hear either view is ultimately going to be wrong for some, either in forcing some to watch stuff they don't need to see and is wrong for them to see, or getting others to avoid something out of fear rather then for the right reasons, and based on faulty evidence.

oh no not sex LET STOP THE SEX PEOPLE OH GOD!!! blah blah blah next

Well Mike, sex outside of marriage specifically is called adultery as is divorcing for any reason other than adultery by the other person (Mt. 19:9). For Christian believers it's a very real concern since you are sinning against your body the temple of the Holy Ghost, and only fornication is such an offence against that temple (1 Co. 6:18). It is a crime worthy of death, as is using the Lord's name in vain.

However, I do not believe even a majority of the majority of the world which claims to be Christians actually are, since Christ said few will find the path to life (Mt. 7:14) yet many will come to Him in the last day claiming to be His only to be told they never knew Him (Mt. 7:23). Many is the majority, not the few.

Long story short, most of the people out there are assumeably not Christians and sin, any sin, sends them to Hell (Ro. 6:23), which is why we're all guilty and only God in the flesh could be otherwise and pay for our sins (Ro. 3:23-26), perfection as sinlessness has always been far from mankind, and is what is needed for us to escape a place the Bible calls "the Lake of Fire."

What I'm saying is adultery doesn't send us to eternal damnation any more then hating your brother does, which is equated to murder (1 Jn. 3:15). Living a good life doesn't get you to Heaven, when God asks you why He should let you into His Heaven, a reply of "I tried to live a good life" or "look at these works I did" will not be sufficient.

And so trying to force abstinence on people if they don't want it for a moral reason if they are unsaved does no good since they're Hell-bound anyway, although their further sins will be racking up even more punishment for them in the life, or rather for them the eternal death, that is to come.

Forcing abstinence on those who don't want it does not save them from anything is what I'm saying, it may only serve to place their faith in their own righteousness, which will prove their downfall in the day of judgement which God has appointed. However, forcing sex education for those who don't need it and consider it a very real attack on their attempt to live a godly life is not only unnecessary, it is wrong.

I had sex education in middle school proabbly funded by the government. But I didn't take the class. Because I thought it was stupid. Ididn't show my parents the paper either even if they said yes to it. I just stayed in another teachers classroom while the students watched gross herpes infections and stuff like that. I don't need sex education. Cause i'm smart enought to not be pulled into unsafe sex and all that.

Well, good at least that it requires paper signing there before they make you go through with it. I wouldn't be surprised though if they try to push to make everyone go through that stuff regardless. And what about Health class in High School?

one hint to the Christians among us: God kicked Adam and Eve out of the paradise _after_ they covered their genitals with leafs from local trees, not the other way round. Think about it...

Anyways, I don't think it's only the US government's fault in this case. As I have learned in the last weekls of my religions class, fundamental christian organizations have a pretty large influence on politics because they can mobilize both many voters and lots of money.
Another thing which is being taught by fundamentalists: The use of condoms supports spreading the HI-Virus because the condom industry builts the virii into condom tips; therefore people shouldn't use condoms...

Sex education isn't such a problem here in Germany because fundamental christians are a minority; though it can happen that some children are don't receive it. In Lower Saxony, where I live, sex education is part of the elementary school's curriculum. In Hessen, where a friend of mine comes from, it's part of the middle school's curriculum. She moved from Hessen to Lower Saxony between elementary school and middle school. That didn't stop her from gaining experience in high school...