CHAREN: Abstinence education benefits

Abstinence is STILL the only 100% effective form of birth control. We need to work on the "vulgar and licentious culture" we have created that is drowning out the message that abstinence works.

"More girls get pregnant by thoroughly following the recommendations of birth control advocates than do girls who strictly adhere to an abstinence program." More girls get pregnant by having sex - that is the problem. To even conflate the preaching of abstinence as infallible sucess IF there is no sex involved means nothing - it's a decision to either educate kids, or to beg the impossible. How could anyone possible imagine that simply saying no is better than educating? What you are correct about is that one individual does not tell us everything about the wisdom of public policy. What this particular event tells us is that Gov. Palin's "public policy" stance - that it works 100% of the time - isn't viable in her own life. If, in fact, we are to consider her a potential great leader then we should be allowed to believe that she can make her policy stances applicable in her own home.

Considering the number of teens that get pregnant even though they have had non-abstinence sex education, should we then say that such education obviously does not work and hence should be eliminated? As the article notes, the statistics over the last 8 years show us that something is working. I wonder what has changed?