Alright Texas, Get With It! (abstinence, contraceptives, evolution, preach)

[Buttercup]

Originally Posted by Nihilo

Apparently he doesn't care about any statistic, as long as his family is successful with abstinence-only. Before he said "it isn't the schools job", but every rational person who wants to educate their children with something other than a religious ideology would consider otherwise.

I've mentioned this before in other threads but perhaps Rocka hasn't read it. A good friend of mine came from a very nice devout Baptist family....her father was a preacher. She grew up with all those rules of not going to dances, no dating until much older than most kids, and of course she had the no sex until marriage moral stuffed down her throat until she couldn't stand it. Guess who was the first to become pregnant? Yep, as soon as she left the house at 18 that girl turned into one wild child.

Moderation in all things is something Christians talk about often. Too bad they don't apply that credo to their kids.

[Sola'lor]

My parents taught me not to have sex until I am married. I'm engaged now and will probably be married by the end of this year. Still I have not yet had sex.

I think the problem is that schools don't support parents in what they are teaching their children. The media's representation of sex is also a huge problem to overcome.

But if anyone thinks that it doesn't work to teach kids no sex until marriage, they are dead wrong.

[UnTheist]

Originally Posted by Sola'lor

But if anyone thinks that it doesn't work to teach kids no sex until marriage, they are dead wrong.

Umm, it doesn't work. The statistics show the success rate is about zero.

[Eraser Salad]

Kids who take abstinence pledges have as many STDs as everyone else. (RF won't let me link to the source, but it's easy enough to find some on Google.)

Also of importance is that even if you're married and totally monogamous, that doesn't mean every time you do it it should result in kids. Married couples need contraceptive knowledge, too.

[UnTheist]

The issue isn't even STD's. Regardless of your age or marital status, getting tested for STD's is required to be 100% sure. They are saying "abstinence only" not because it is unsafe, but because God says so.

[VanCrackin]

I live in Colorado, which is pretty heavy republican.
Our sex education basically stated: "If you have sex, you will get pregnant, no matter what." That stress on abstinence doesn't work.

Sex ed needs to be a non political, even look at abstinence and safe sex (as far as contraceptives go.) Sex is a responsibility that some kids can handle if they are given the proper education.

The moral issues of sex need to be taught at home, but parents also need to realize that kids don't always listen. Parents that stress no sex until marriage should use their judgment: What's worse, a kid having protected sex before marriage, or unprotected sex before marriage. If you think your kid is having sex, go buy him a box of condoms. Kids do not always listen to their parents. Non of my siblings did, anyway.

[rocka21]

Originally Posted by Nihilo

Umm, it doesn't work. The statistics show the success rate is about zero.

minus sola'lor and my wife.

[9-10ths_Penguin]

Originally Posted by rocka21

minus sola'lor and my wife.

I notice you left yourself out of that list. A 66% success rate for a "no sex before marriage" program would still result in a lot of kids and STDs if they didn't know what they needed to about birth control and safe sex.

Even if you think that the only moral thing to do is wait until marriage, sex ed can still be seen as a preventative measure: you teach your kids to play safe, but you still keep a first aid kit in the house; you teach your kids to drive responsibly, but you also teach them to wear their seatbelts. Sex ed is one more item on the heap of "just in case".

[Buttercup]

Originally Posted by rocka21

minus sola'lor and my wife.

Why do you think that Texas has the highest rate of teen pregnancies? Care to give your opinion?

[UnTheist]

Originally Posted by rocka21

minus sola'lor and my wife.

I already knew that. Still doesn't remedy the utter failure of abstinence courses.