Thursday, May 28

How's that abstinence-only training working out for ya, southerners?



Click image for larger and more details. And don't give Texas, New Mexico, and Nevada a pass, their states look good only because data for 2003 was not available.

Before I go any further in this post, yes we need single-payer healthcare. Medicaid birthrates as a percentage of total birthrates is a good indicator of both the poverty of a state and also the availability of adequate birth control information in the population likely to be already served by state agencies. I blame directly the politics of abstinence-only for states that have high ratios of medicare births.

In a perfect world, citizens in states with higher birth-rates among the uninsured would pay a pro-abstinence and prophylactic ignorance tax, which would appear as a line item on page one of their 1040.

"Write the name of your state on line A"
"If your state is listed in Schedule IC (idiot Christianist) subtract $1,000 from your standard deduction."

States that enact medically accurate, age-appropriate comprehensive sex education programs (h/t NCSSE) would be exempt from such tax after three years of reduction in Medicaid birth rates. (I would also push for free roadside condom distribution and including state-funded advertising for Trojans during all sports programming and American Fucking Idol.)

As I have said before, if accurate information can be made available on the website for Walgreens, it can be made available by your legislature.

Tennessee you must be so proud of the baby daddy who had 21 kids with 11 women and did not plan it that way. "It just happened," he said.

It just happened to Bristol Palin, too. I try not to think about whether Levi is practicing safer sex these days. Bristol's parents are showing their selfish arrogance again by allowing her to be used for family propaganda.

I understand completely the do-goodness of generous Medicaid funding for pregnant women and young children. Healthy babies are a very good investment of public money. That said, what kind of society are we building when we encourage a national ignorance of reproduction and sexual health?

Tabloid media saturation is actually an opportunity to get our national head out of our ass and grow up when it comes to sex. Teenagers need those of us who are adults to be adults. Those dependent, right or wrong, on the public dole can receive lots of information while they are seeking assistance from other agencies.

Bristol's mother needed to buy her condoms and tell her to use them, or watch her carefully enough and keep her busy enough that sex with Levi wasn't the only fun she could have.

PS Good Christian teens can happily cheer at this on the NASCAR track:



But we must shield their tender sensibility from this?

condom

Really.

7 comments:

  1. Anonymous3:41 PM

    Who luvs you, BGal?Everyone, apparently.

    I saw you regularly at the esteemed Driftglass castle. Have been run raggedy ann lately w/o time to get my mainline Driftie.

    Then, today I see John Sundman of Wet Machine has you on his blog roll.

    "How's that abstinence-only training working out for ya, southerners?" is spit-take, monitor-lickin' GOOD.

    Thanx. I've sent out screeds to my own abused personal em list w/ titles like: "Yes, States Below the Mason-Dixon Line DO Hit Number 1 ... Like Highest % of Morbidly Obese Adults (GA)..." etc.

    Can I pass this around to my Inner Rick Man-On-Dog Santorium Sanctum?? Non-public.

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  2. taylorbad3:52 PM

    Human sexuality is a normal part of who we are. In the teenage years it appears with feelings of social awkwardness, invincibility, immortality, wonder and desire. It has always been so.

    Hiding from sexuality, making it dirty, making it sinful, making it forbidden fruit has predictable consequences. Treating it like we have has not worked. Indeed, as you have pointed out, Blue Gal, it has probably become a pathological element in unwed teenage pregnancies.

    The prescription isn't for more sex; it is for smarter sex.

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  3. ooh- the irony is so thick i can cut it with a knife. medicaid births in the land where they hate big government..... uh huh. in the section of the country who won't take stimulus money to pay unemployment benefits but the self righteous can sit in the pews and throw hundreds in the plate so pastor can continue to purchase his $1,000 suits. i guess i'd better open a window...

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  4. Where you see the bible belt, I see the poverty belt.

    http://media.photobucket.com/image/poverty%20belt/ThePunk2007/map_poverty.gif

    Yes, abstinence only was stupid, and contraception is measurably efficacious--but curing poverty is the real fix for this problem.

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  5. Well and succinctly put, BG.

    I've lost my tolerance for Willful Ignorance and can no longer speak civilly about subjects which hinge on the wholesale swallowing of The Right's bullshit. Sex education is on the list, along with Don't Ask/Don't Tell and same-sex marriage bans (I'm sure you're aware of the attacks being leveled at New York's efforts to pass equal marriage rights legislation.)

    Thanks for staying the course, Gurrrl.

    Anf FWIW, my verification word is "coxism." sounds somehow like it ought to be relevant! ;)

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  6. You are a great read, and I'm really impressed with your viewpoint. I don't know who the original rascal was that pointed me your way but I'm sure glad they had you on their blogroll.

    Dang. Cunning Runt got "coxism" but I get "tattlyra". Just seems a little unfairly biased! ;-)

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  7. Ha! Yet another Bush fuck up.

    In another topic, I have a post up, I think you would like....because it involves a favorite topic of yours..... *panties*!!!!

    http://ramblings-fran.blogspot.com/

    It may be a little dirty.... because there is money involved. Just messin' with ya.... go read it.

    ReplyDelete

I really look forward to hearing what you have to say. I do moderate comments, but non-spam comments will take less than 24 hours to appear... Thanks!