The high cost of sex...

This morning while reading the news I stumbled across a staggering figure...$1.3 billion in federal funds. Would you be interested to hear what all these tax dollars are going to? This is the financial figure that is currently being put on the price tag of our governments sex abstinence program. Never mind that the statistics climb ever higher when it comes to STD's and teenage pregnancy is still the highest in all the Western world under these high dollar programs and that the age that children become sexually active is ever getting younger and younger.

The United States has the highest teen pregnancy rate in the western world, despite the fact that our teens are not more sexually active than Swedish teens, or Canadian teens, or British teens.

1.3 billion dollars annually...That is an obscene amount of money isn't it? I wonder how exactly all that money is being spent. How do you blow $1.3 billion on preaching about not having sex? I wonder if we as parents might like some of that 1.3 billion in our pockets and teach our own sex ed. facts. I, rather egotistically, believe I might be able to do a better job at it and for a huge discounted rate too. When did having or not having sex become our governments business to fund and teach? Here again it seems religion has crept into a subject that could have easily been handled in health class. What we can and cannot teach morally in a school setting has become a huge drain on the tax payer. Still, these "programs" are probably taught in the school auditorium as some special event. I remember going to the one at my school. I remember looking around thinking... oops, too late! We could have given those bozo's some information on the subject by the time they talked to us.

Somehow Americans believe if we hide it, shame it, and pretend it isn't there then it will go away... SEX IS HERE TO STAY. I do not believe teaching a child what a condom is, or explaining it's usage, will then make that child more at risk for having sex... I do believe- however, that not knowing what a condom is, and where to get one, could absolutely cause unprotected sex.

Educating teenagers about contraception makes them more likely to use contraception
when they begin having sex, but it doesn't lower the age at first intercourse.
Why? Probably because the decision where and with whom to become sexually
active is a very complicated one, rooted in family, peers, religion, the media,
and individual personality factors. But the decision whether to contracept or
not is a very simple one: is it available? If so, Ill use it. If not, I’m still
going to have sex, but I’m not going to go out of my way to get birth control. http://www.coolnurse.com/teen_pregnancy_rates.htm

Until Americans get over their hysteria about giving young people access to
birth control, we will continue to have the highest teen pregnancy rates in the
western world.

It's really that simple. I do also believe that this stumbles into parents territory and off of government territory. Why do we pay all that money for a flailing, unnecessary, and stupefyingly expensive sex abstinence program- that doesn't even work!!!? Then, as if 1.3 billion weren't heart stopping enough let's add to that the cost to the tax paying American for all those Medicaid expenses going out to the teenage mothers who are pregnant and of course followed up by 18 years of life for her child's medical expenses. Teen pregnancy costs the United States at least $7 billion annually. Almost half of all teen mothers end up on welfare. To top the whole thing off we have this stat: The sons of teen mothers are 13 percent more likely to end up in prison while teen daughters are 22 percent more likely to become teen mothers themselves. The cycle continues...

Yep, that's America for yah. Ever believing despite statistical data that you can shame it, ignore it, and throw money at it and all the world will be right. I say let's try throwing a condom on it and see what happens!:-) The Catholics sure aren't going to like this!