Flutterby™! : abstinence again 2005-02-25 16:26:54.160877+00

abstinence again

2005-02-25 16:26:54.160877+00 by Dan Lyke 3 comments

While the headline says Teen sex increased after abstinence program the findings are really that in Texas, at least, abstinence based sex education had no effect on the subsequent sexual activity of teens. But, as always, what it does have a negative effect on is their use of condoms and birth control. This is anti-news, and really just an excuse for me to link to Mark Morford's comments on the study:

Look. We all know that telling teens to abstain from sex is like telling tequila to abstain from the lime. Telling teens to repress their burgeoning beautiful natural chemical lustful cosmic urges that have been only recently delivered to them on the wings of salacious and well-lubed angels is like telling a fervent piano devotee that Mozart is a hack.

People who advocate such nastiness should be ashamed. Ashamed and humiliated and then flogged with the dead fish of their own tepid and miserable sex lives. Just an opinion.

#Comment Re: made: 2005-02-25 20:45:22.595438+00 by: mvandewettering

It's absurdly irresponsible for adults to keep children into the dark as to the risks (the realistic risks, not the boogy-man risks) of sexual activity and how these unintended consequences can be avoided. While the overall rate of teen pregnancy is dropping, the U.S. still has double the teen pregnancy rates of any other industrialized nation, and double the abortion rate. The idea that teenagers should be expected to "Just say no" is just denying the fact that most adults have a difficult time acting in a sexually responsible manner.

I'm basically against sixteen year olds having sex, but I'm even more against sixteen year olds becoming parents because somebody was too uncomfortable with the idea that sixteen year olds can do what sixteen year olds are physically capable of doing, indeed, what evolution has carefully tuned their bodies to want to do. Get over yourselves. As adults, why not really be responsible and make an effort to help kids make the right choice, rather than keep them uneducated and ashamed?

i second mvandewettering's opinion "as adults, why not really be responsible and make an effort to help kids made the right choice". sixteen year olds may be capable of having sex, but they sure can't raise babies. i think by whatever means is available be it whykNOw abstinence school program or sex ed in health, someone, besides parents who appear to not be informing their children about the hazards of sex at an early age, NEEDS to educate these YOUNG teens.

I talked about this research with a friend of mine who is a public health civil servant specializing in AIDS and she told be that in Africa, "thigh sex" is taught in shcools. Thigh Sex is a traditional African technique for pregnancy prevention but now is returned to for AIDS prevention.