[CS-FSLUG] PD-I: THE LEFT LAUNCHES OFFENSIVE AGAINST SCHOOL ABSTINENCE PROGRAMS

[Fred A. Miller]

THE LEFT LAUNCHES OFFENSIVE AGAINST SCHOOL ABSTINENCE PROGRAMS
    
Rep. Henry Waxman, one of the U.S. House of Representative's most liberal
members, has taken aim at federally-funded abstinence education programs,
accusing many of them of promoting misleading information regarding abortion
and sexually-transmitted diseases.

A report commissioned by the congressman said that abstinence programs
distort information on the use of condoms in preventing pregnancy and the
spread of disease, overstate the incidence of emotional and/or physical
suffering following abortion and over-accentuate religious values in
instruction.  The report was critical of abstinence programs suggesting that
life begins at conception.

Leftist critics of school-based abstinence don't like the fact that
President Bush has promoted these programs and allotted additional funds to
them.  This year, national abstinence programs will get $170 million in
federal funds.

It is important that Americans understand that Rep. Waxman is a leading
proponent of condom-distribution programs.  He is not simply an unbiased
observer in this situation.

The fact is that there are many abstinence education organizations that are
helping young people carry out their oaths to remain sexually abstinent
until their marriages.  Many leftists despise absolute values that require
personal commitment and, often, dependence on faith.  So it really shouldn't
be surprising that school-based abstinence education programs are in their
crosshairs.

Focus on the Family Sexual Health Analyst Linda Klepacki said that many
criticisms leveled at abstinence programs are based on suspect science.

"Rep. Waxman's agenda comes through loud and clear on every page of his
latest attempt to discredit the important work being done in our nation's
schools to protect teens from the physical and emotional consequences of sex
outside of marriage," she said.  "Perhaps most laughable is the charge that
abstinence educators present subjective opinions as scientific fact - that's
a  favorite strategy of the condoms-first crowd, one it has perfected
through the years."

Mrs. Klepacki noted that Rep. Waxman failed to note that the failure rate of
condoms in the first 12 months of use by teen females is as high as 22.5
percent.  There's a recipe for disaster if ever there was one.
    This is a critical fact, especially when one considers the fact that the
Alan Guttmacher Institute found that about three million teens contract an
STD (sexually-transmitted disease) each year.  Some of these diseases have
no cures.  It is important that teens know that condoms are simply not a
panacea in terms of protecting themselves from disease.

Furthermore, abortion does indeed often come with consequences, even if Rep.
Waxman doesn't want to focus on this.  For testimonies of women who were
emotionally devastated by their abortion choices, please visit the Love
Matters website ( http://www.lovematters.com/women.htm ).  After reading
these testimonies, it is obvious that abortion is an emotionally devastating
act.

America's teens need to know that sexual activity can have permanent
problematic results.

"The truth of the matter is," Mrs. Klepacki said, "abstinence works every
time in preventing pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease.  That's not a
political statement, or a creative interpretation of scientific evidence.
It's an absolutely indisputable fact."

That is, indeed, the bottom line.  We live in a society that places way too
much emphasis on sex, without any regard to the impact it is having on the
lives of our young people.  Our nation's teens are bombarded by sexual
images throughout every day.  It is essential that parents and grandparents
get involved in the lives of the children/teens that they love.

I thank God that we have a president in the Oval Office who understands that
school-based abstinence programs that teach personal responsibility and
morality can provide a positive alternative to the media's barrage of sexual
images and messages.

There are many organizations designed to (1) help kids understand the need
to remain pure until marriage and (2) help them achieve their goal of
successfully fulfilling that commitment.

Here are a few such organizations:

True Love Waits ( http://www.lifeway.com/tlw )
Sex Respect ( http://www.respectincorporated.com )
Truth4Youth ( http://www.abstinence.net ) 
Worth the Wait ( http://www.worththewait.org )
Abstinence Until Marriage (http://www.greattowait.com/program )
Choosing the Best ( http://www.choosingthebest.org )
AbstinenceEdu.com ( http://www.abstinencedu.com )

I urge readers to visit these sites and learn how they are helping young
people journey down the path least traveled by remaining sexually pure.

-- 
"As Internet technology itself vaults into new areas, so too does the
Microsoft monopoly and its tried-and-true bag of tricks."
-US Senator Orrin Hatch, (R) Utah