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Dec. 2, 2004<BR><BR> Federally funded abstinence-only sex education programs present "false and misleading information," according to a report released on Wednesday by Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.). Several million children ages nine to 18 have participated in the more than 100 federally funded abstinence-only sex education programs since 1999, when such programs began, the Washington Post reports (Connolly, <I>Washington Post</i>, 12/2).<BR><BR> <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" style="border-collapse: collapse" width="68%" align="right"><tr><td class="fonty" vAlign="top" align="left" width="2%" bgColor="#ffffff">&nbsp;</td><td class="fonty" vAlign="top" align="left" width="98%" bgColor="#ffffff"> <TABLE CELLPADDING="5" CELLSPACING="5" WIDTH="100%" border=2><TR> <TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top" WIDTH="100%" class="fonty"> <TABLE CELLPADDING="0" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR> <TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top" WIDTH="100%" class="fonta"> <I><B>Our comment:</B></I>&nbsp; President Bush and his administration are lying to children and teenagers about sex and HIV, while knowing that their lies will unavoidably, indisputably kill some kids.<BR><BR> And they lecture America on morality. <BR><BR><DIV align="right"><i>Helen & Harry Highwater</i> &nbsp; <BR>(<A HREF="mailto:unknownnews@inbox.com">unknownnews at inbox.com</A>) &nbsp; </div> </TD></TR></TABLE></TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <table cellSpacing="1" cellPadding="1" width="100%" border="0"><tr><td class="fonty" vAlign="top" align="left" width="100%" bgColor="#bbbbbb"><table cellSpacing="1" cellPadding="1" width="100%" border="0"><tr><td class="fonty" vAlign="top" align="left" width="100%" bgColor="#cccccc"><table cellSpacing="1" cellPadding="1" width="100%" border="0"><tr><td class="fonty" vAlign="top" align="left" width="100%" bgColor="#dddddd"><table cellSpacing="8" cellPadding="8" width="100%" border="0"><tr><td class="fontpq" vAlign="top" align="left" width="100%"bgColor="#eeeeee"><b> According to the report, some of the claims made by the programs include:<BR><BR> &nbsp;&nbsp; * that a fetus at 43 days gestation is a "thinking person"<BR><BR> &nbsp;&nbsp; * that a boy or man can impregnate a woman or girl by touching her genitals<BR><BR> &nbsp;&nbsp; * that women who undergo abortion are "more prone to suicide"<BR><BR> &nbsp;&nbsp; * that 10% of women who undergo abortion become sterile<BR><BR> &nbsp;&nbsp; * that 50% of gay male teenagers are HIV-positive<BR><BR> &nbsp;&nbsp; * that HIV can be spread through sweat and tears<BR><BR> &nbsp;&nbsp; * and that condoms fail to prevent sexually transmitted diseases 31% of the time when used during heterosexual intercourse, according to the report, the Post reports. </b></td></tr></table></td></tr></table></td></tr></table></td></tr></table> </td></tr></table> Congress earlier this month approved a $388 billion omnibus spending measure (HR 4818) for fiscal year 2005 that includes about $168 million for abstinence education programs (<I>Kaiser Daily Reproductive Health Report</I>, 11/29).<BR><BR> In FY 2001, about half that amount was allocated for abstinence-only sex education, according to the Washington Times (<I>Washington Times</i>, 12/2). <BR><BR> Waxman's staff reviewed 13 of the most commonly used abstinence-only sex education curricula in the United States and found that 11 of the programs <NOBR>--</NOBR> which are used by 69 organizations in 25 states <NOBR>--</NOBR> contain "unproved claims, subjective conclusions or outright falsehoods regarding reproductive health, gender traits and when life begins," the <I>Post</i> reports. <BR><BR> According to the report, some of the claims made by the programs include: that a fetus at 43 days gestation is a "thinking person," that a boy or man can impregnate a woman or girl by touching her genitals, that women who undergo abortion are "more prone to suicide," that 10% of women who undergo abortion become sterile, that 50% of gay male teenagers are HIV-positive, that HIV can be spread through sweat and tears and that condoms fail to prevent sexually transmitted diseases 31% of the time when used during heterosexual intercourse, according to the report, the Post reports.<BR><BR> According to the report, a 2001 obstetrics textbook says that fertility is not affected by elective abortion. The statement about gay teenagers might be a misinterpretation of CDC data that found that 59% of HIV-positive boys ages 13 to 19 contracted the virus through unprotected sex with a male, according to the Post. In addition, condoms, when used properly, are more than 97% effective in preventing pregnancy and STDs, including HIV, according to federal research, the <I>Post</I> reports.<BR><BR> Waxman, a proponent of comprehensive sex education, said that abstinence-only programs make students unprepared to protect against pregnancy or STDs if they become sexually active, the <I>Post</i> reports.<BR><BR> "I have no objection talking about abstinence as a surefire way to prevent unwanted pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases," Waxman said, adding, "I don't think we ought to lie to our children about science. Something is seriously wrong when federal tax dollars are being used to mislead kids about basic health facts." Bill Smith, vice president of public policy at the Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States, called for closer monitoring of "shame- based, fear-based, medically inaccurate messages" that are promoted in abstinence-only programs (<I>Washington Post</I>, 12/2).<BR><BR> Gloria Feldt, president of Planned Parenthood Federation of America, said, "Rep. Waxman's study proves what other research has already revealed <NOBR>--</NOBR> that abstinence-only programs are ineffective and harmful to young people" (PPFA release, 12/1). <BR><BR> Laura Murphy, director of the ACLU Washington Legislative Office, said, "For years, lawmakers have increased spending on abstinence-only programs without clear evidence that they are effective at preventing unplanned pregnancies or sexually transmitted infections, including HIV." She added that the report "demonstrates that public money is being misspent at the expense of our children's health. It should serve as a serious wake-up call to lawmakers" (ACLU release, 12/ 1).<BR><BR> However, Dr. Alma Golden, deputy assistant secretary for population affairs at HHS, said that Waxman's report took statements in the abstinence-only programs "out of context" to show them in the "worst possible light," according to the AP/<I>Las Vegas Sun</i>.<BR><BR> "These issues have been raised before and discredited," Golden said, adding, "One thing is very clear for our children, abstaining from sex is the most effective means of preventing the sexual transmission of HIV, STDs and preventing pregnancy" (Sherman, AP/<I>Las Vegas Sun</i>, 12/1).<BR><BR> Libby Gray, director of Project Reality <NOBR>--</NOBR> which produces the abstinence-only programs "Game Plan" and "Navigator" <NOBR>--</NOBR> said, "The information presented in [the programs] is medically accurate, and all information presented is from data compiled by national sources such as CDC, NIH and the American Social Health Association," adding, "These curricula have been reviewed by physicians and public health professionals and have been found to be statistically and medically accurate" (<I>Washington Times</i>, 12/2).<BR><BR> Joe McIlhaney, who runs the Medical Institute for Sexual Health, which developed many of the curricula surveyed, said he is "saddened" that Waxman decided to "'blast' well-intentioned abstinence educators" even though abstinence-only education supporters and opponents agree on many things (<I>Washington Post</i>, 12/2).<BR><BR> <BR><CENTER>Published by<br><a href="http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=17221"><i>Medical News Today</i></A></CENTER> <TABLE CELLPADDING="5" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="7%" BGcolor=white class="fonty"><BR></TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="86%" BGcolor=white class="fonty"><TABLE CELLPADDING="5" WIDTH="100%" border=0><TR><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="100%" BGcolor="#FFFFFF" class="font15">This material is copyrighted by its original publisher.<BR><BR>It is reprinted by <B>Unknown News</B> without permission, solely for purposes of criticism, comment, and news reporting, in accordance with the Fair Use Guidelines of copyright material under <A HREF="http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html">§ 107 of U.S.C. 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In determining whether the use made of a work in any particular case is a fair use the factors to be considered shall include <NOBR>--</NOBR><BR><BR>(1) the purpose and character of the use, including whether such use is of a commercial nature or is for nonprofit educational purposes;<BR><BR>(2) the nature of the copyrighted work;<BR><BR>(3) the amount and substantiality of the portion used in relation to the copyrighted work as a whole; and<BR><BR>(4) the effect of the use upon the potential market for or value of the copyrighted work.<BR><BR>The fact that a work is unpublished shall not itself bar a finding of fair use if such finding is made upon consideration of all the above factors.</I></TD></TR></TABLE></TD><TD ALIGN="LEFT" VALIGN="TOP" WIDTH="7%" BGcolor=white class="fonty"><BR></TD></TR></TABLE> <BR><BR><CENTER><A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.net/bighowdy.html"><B>There's much more than this</B></A> at <NOBR><FONT COLOR=darkred><B>Unknown News</B></FONT></NOBR>.</CENTER><BR> 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This doesn't mean we're anti-American, redneck scum, pinko commies, militia members, or terrorist-sympathizers. It means we believe in freedom, as more than merely a cliché. <BR><BR> We believe you have the right to live your own life as you choose, and others have the equal right to live <I>their</I> lives as <I>they</I> choose. It's not complicated.<BR><BR>We believe freedom leads to peace, progress, and prosperity, while its opposite -- oppression -- leads to war, terrorism, poverty, and misery. <BR><BR> We believe it's preposterously stupid to hate people because of their appearance, their race or nationality, their religion or lack of religion, how they have sex with other consenting adults, etc. There are far more apropos reasons to hate most people. <BR><BR> We believe in questioning ourselves, our assumptions, each other -- and we especially believe in questioning authority (the more authority, the more questions). We believe obedience is a fine quality in dogs and young children, but not in adults. <BR><BR> Like America's right-wingers, we believe in individual responsibility, hard work to get ahead, and stern punishment for serious crimes. We believe big government should not be blindly trusted.<BR><BR> But unlike most right-wing leaders, we mean it. <BR><BR> Like America's left-wingers, we believe in equal treatment under law, war as a last (not first) resort, and sensible stewardship of natural resources. We believe big business should not be blindly trusted.<BR><BR>But unlike most left-wing leaders, we mean it. <BR><BR> Like libertarians, we believe it's wrong and <I>reprehensible</i> to arrest people for what they think, believe, look like, wear, eat, smoke, drink, inhale, inject, or otherwise do to themselves. <BR><BR> But unlike many libertarians, we're not obsessed with the gold standard, we don't believe incorporation is humanity's highest achievement, and we don't believe everything in life comes down to dollars and cents. We've read and enjoyed Ayn Rand's novels, but we understand that they're works of fiction.<BR><BR> We're skeptical, and we're sick of so-called 'journalists' who aren't skeptical at all. <BR><BR>A reader asks, what are our solutions?<BR><BR>We propose no solutions except common sense, which is never common. We like the principles of democracy, and the ideals broadly described as 'American'. The US Constitution is a fine and workable framework for solutions, when it's actually read and thoughtfully understood by intelligent statesmen and women. So, no manifestos from us. We don't dream that big, and if there's one thing the world <i>doesn't</i> need it's yet another manifesto.<BR><BR>Our suggestion is: think.<BR><BR>A fact-based instead of faith-based approach leads to solutions for most of the recurring issues of our time, from abortion to global climate change, pollution to universal health care, careful but real regulation of industry and economy, hunger, war, terror, human rights for humans not for corporations, science not religious doctrine in public schools, equal protection and prosecution under law, etc. Approach problems without glorifying stupidity, without demonizing intelligence, and answers usually come into focus. <BR><BR> These pages are published by <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.net/bighowdy.html">Harry and Helen Highwater</A>, happily married low-income nom de plumes and rabble-rousers from Madison, Wisconsin (with a few friends scattered around the world helping out). <BR><BR> We try to spotlight news that hasn't gotten enough (or appropriate) attention in American media, along with our opinions and yours. <BR><BR> We bang our keyboards against the wall, because it doesn't hurt as much as banging our heads. <BR><BR><center><A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/bighowdy.html"><img src="http://www.unknownnews.net/Highwaters-oldtime.jpg" border="3" width="199" height="277"></A></center><BR> <DIV align="right"><i><A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/contact.html">Helen &amp; Harry Highwater</A></i> &nbsp; <BR><BR> &nbsp;&nbsp;(from <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/about.html">About <I>Unknown News</i></A>)&nbsp;&nbsp;</div> </TD></TR></TABLE><BR> <A NAME=introduction></a><TABLE CELLPADDING="8" CELLSPACING="8" WIDTH="295" border=1><TR><TD ALIGN="left" VALIGN="top" WIDTH="300" bgcolor=white class="fonta"> <B><I>If you're new to Unknown News,</I></B>&nbsp; here are some answers to <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/faq.html">frequently asked questions</A> about the site, and answers to <A HREF="http://www.unknownnews.org/about.html">questions we wish you'd ask instead</A>. 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