The left's attack on abstinence

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 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 3 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. 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:

Abstinence Until Marriage

Choosing the Best

AbstinenceEdu.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.