Robeson High vs Adam City vs Meghan

[Jefferson]

Robeson High vs Adam City vs Meghan

This is the show from Friday October 16th, 2009.

SUMMARY:

* Meghan McCain, "Stop Me Before I Post Again" More accurately, McCain's column is titled, "Don’t call me a slut."

* Speaking of Public School Administrators: One in eight girls in a Chicago high school have become pregnant. Paul Robeson High challenged but failed to beat Colorado's Adam's City High for the national titled: 108 Babies Born in a single year to female students from one public school! A record! Here's Bob's guest editorial printed by the Rocky Mountain News on Feb. 19, 1993:

Three years ago tomorrow I resigned for a stupid reason from the Adams County District 14 Accountability Committee. Superintendent Richard Weber had just implemented a condom distribution program to reduce teen pregnancy and disease. I somehow had the backward notion that this would increase teen pregnancy, so I resigned in protest.

Eventually, though, we all read of Adams City High School's birth rate increase of 42% (May 5, 1992, "Teen moms abound at Adams High"). One birth for every eight girls yielded 108 children in one year. A record! A couple of years earlier, my resignation read:
"To the District 14 Board of Education:

"I am hereby resigning. By distributing condoms in Adams City High School, we are running the risk of increasing teen pregnancy, AIDS and venereal disease among our children.

"When the board chose this course of action, it did not reference any studies that indicated condom distribution would help reduce teen sexual problems. Why? Because there are none. The studies show the opposite.

"Planned Parenthood Federation of America financed a 1986 Harris poll, 'The Planned Parenthood Poll: American Teens Speak: Sex, Myths, TV and Birth Control.' The teens in the poll admitted that Planned Parenthood- approved 'comprehensive sex education courses' did affect their behavior: There was a 50% higher rate of sexual activity for them after the class, with no significant increase in birth control use.

"Since the early 1970s, Congress has poured tens of millions of dollars into Planned Parenthood to help it bring sexuality curricula into our schools. During that time, the teen pregnancy rate soared by 90%, to more than a million each year, plus nearly 500,000 teen abortions per year, an increase of 230%.

"A Johns Hopkins study reported by Zelnick and Kantner in Planned
Parenthood's 'Family Planning Perspectives' showed that from 1971 to 1976 unintended pregnancy was actually higher among contraceptive users than among non-users! In these years Planned Parenthood services became widespread to students.

"How safe are condoms? 'Family Planning Perspectives' reported in October 1986 an 18% annual failure rate for 'safe sex' condoms.

"The 'Planned Parenthood News' boldly stated, 'Our goal is to be ready as educators to help young people obtain sex satisfaction before marriage.' They meet their goal well.

"Focus on the Family's James Dobson recently aired an interview with Kristi. With her boyfriend Jason, she attended a Planned Parenthood birth control class. The topics were so explicit and enticing that he persuaded Kristi to have sex with him immediately after the class in the front seat of his car, without protection.

"Unhappy parents were assured they could keep their children out of the condom program. Oh, really? How about the parents of 14-year-old Susan, whose boyfriend pulls out a school condom? How were they to protect their daughter
from this program?

"The board says, 'Be realistic, teen-agers are going to have sex anyway.' That is fatalism, not realism. Sex ruins kids' lives. Do we lack faith in our children's character? If we expect 10th graders to have sex, they will. But if we challenge them with self-respect and abstinence, many will live up to that standard. Instead, we have set an impossible goal for our kids: Have sex and avoid the consequences.

"I have pulled my children out of the district and will keep them out until basic morality, which is constitutional, returns."

Three years later, my kids are still out. The boys at Adams City are having a field day and the girls, well, they will pay the price for years to come. When a prediction contrary to intended results comes true, the wise will take notice. District 14 has yet to take notice.

-Bob Enyart, Denver Talk Radio Host (in the Rocky Mtn News 2-19-93)
* Join Steve Curtis (and Bob) at the Life Commercials Banquet: Steve Curtis, of Ten Minutes Till Midnight and American RTL, is hosting the LifeCommercials banquet on Saturday, October 24th at 6 p.m. at the Doubletree Hotel in Westminster Colorado. See Steve's flyer for details, and if you can, register soon and then if you'd like to sit at the BEL table, call 1-800-8Enyart to see if there are open seats! Also, Ten Minutes author Lee Martin will be there to sign books!

* Help Personhood Efforts Get Signatures: If you live in Colorado, could you help circulate the Personhood Colorado & CRTL 2010 petition? We need your help! If you live in any other state, can you help to advance personhood via the 2010 ballot or in one of three different ways?

Today’s Resource: You can enjoy one or two of Bob Enyart’s entertaining and insightful videos each month, mailed to you automatically, simply by subscribing to the BEL Monthly Topical Videos service! Also, you can check out the other great BEL subscription services!

 

[Lighthouse]

I can't believe the picture was that bad. I really can't.

 

[Alate_One]

I can't believe the picture was that bad. I really can't.

Probably because it isn't.

I was no great fan of sex education in school and I'd love to believe it was harmful but as I was reading this story my "hogwash-O-meter" started going off. So I did some searching. The "John Hopkins study" Mr. Enyart cites turns out to be this one.

Which does show a 30% increase in sexual activity over the time period in question but has NOTHING to do with sex education in particular unless you're going to make the argument that the country as a whole had sex ed during this time period. Even if this were true there would be no basis for making the statement since there's no "control USA" to compare it to. Perhaps this isn't the actual reference Bob was using? If not maybe he can supply the citation.

Secondly I did some searching in peer-reviewed literature with actual randomized controlled studies with regard to sex education and condom distribution, and at least 4 or 5 of the recent studies I found, found that pregnancy and sexual activity were actually reduced by sex ed and abstinence only education was no better. (I can link these later but I am pressed for time)

There are certainly some scary statements and actions attributed to Planned Parenthood but I'm afraid I'll have to take them with a large grain of salt considering the above (though I've never had any great love for the organization).

I agree that children need to be taught morality, though this must come from the parents, not the school since I can't imagine schools doing it properly (they can barely teach the actual subjects!).

However, I don't think the graphic photos of STDs that I was exposed to in sex-ed are a bad thing for preventing early and unprotected sexual activity.

 

[Lighthouse]

Probably because it isn't.

I was no great fan of sex education in school and I'd love to believe it was harmful but as I was reading this story my "hogwash-O-meter" started going off. So I did some searching. The "John Hopkins study" Mr. Enyart cites turns out to be this one.

Which does show a 30% increase in sexual activity over the time period in question but has NOTHING to do with sex education in particular unless you're going to make the argument that the country as a whole had sex ed during this time period. Even if this were true there would be no basis for making the statement since there's no "control USA" to compare it to. Perhaps this isn't the actual reference Bob was using? If not maybe he can supply the citation.

Secondly I did some searching in peer-reviewed literature with actual randomized controlled studies with regard to sex education and condom distribution, and at least 4 or 5 of the recent studies I found, found that pregnancy and sexual activity were actually reduced by sex ed and abstinence only education was no better. (I can link these later but I am pressed for time)

There are certainly some scary statements and actions attributed to Planned Parenthood but I'm afraid I'll have to take them with a large grain of salt considering the above (though I've never had any great love for the organization).

I agree that children need to be taught morality, though this must come from the parents, not the school since I can't imagine schools doing it properly (they can barely teach the actual subjects!).

However, I don't think the graphic photos of STDs that I was exposed to in sex-ed are a bad thing for preventing early and unprotected sexual activity.

Picture = photograph. The one of Meghan McCain. Maybe you should try paying a little more attention.