Scott Tibbs
Submitted to the Indiana Daily Student, 11-13-2002

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Planned Parenthood's wrong approach on teen sex

To the Editor:

In response to Kelly McBride's letter in the November 12th IDS, while she may have good intentions in her position as "sexuality educator" for Planned Parenthood, I question her effectiveness, given that we have seen a 38% increase in abortions in Bloomington since 1995. We all know where the road paved with good intentions leads.

In addition, Planned Parenthood held an event in the Monroe County Public Library last spring where PP's peer educators (whose training came in part from a $2000 grant from the Bloomington City Council) gave information to other teens about ways to prevent pregnancy and STD's. However, McBride told me after the event that PP has no policy for parental notification regards to the information PP passes on to teens. In other words, just pay your taxes and PP will take care of one of the most important facets of your child's education without your consent or knowledge.

The fact of the matter is, even when combined with disclaimers about how teens should wait, handing a condom to a young person implies approval of premarital sex. Giving a young person a condom may not cause them to have sex, but it sends the wrong message, especially when it comes from an "expert" in the field of "sexuality education" such as Planned Parenthood's McBride.

The attitude of "they're going to do it anyway" is a wholesale surrender to the fact that teens are engaging in sexual activity long before they are ready for it, physically, spiritually, mentally, economically and emotionally. Young people are not animals, controlled by biological instinct and hormones. What separates humans from the animal kingdom is that we are rational beings that can control our sexual urges. I think it an insult to young people to adopt such a defeatist attitude instead of urging them to wait and trusting that they are able to do so.

Finally, I encourage Cherry Blattert to continue to write thought-provoking columns providing the traditionally liberal-leaning IDS with a sorely needed conservative perspective.