28/02/2006

If only more schools would do this

entry posted by Inquisitor at 22:55 (permalink).
categories: Idiots , Politics

"School gives pupils contraception" (BBC News)

Basically, a community college in Devon has decided to give out condoms and/or the Pill and/or STI testing to kids who've been through a full sex-education programme run by family planning GPs. This is a fantastic idea - it gives out the 'if you're going to screw, and we know you're going to, you might as well do it safely' message in a way that increases the amount of qualified support that kids are going to get - plus, it's from actual trained GPs instead of little trained PE teachers, as it was in my case.

So unsurprisingly, as it is with all sex ed matters, some people are being moronic about it. Parents were apparently consulted beforehand and, of course, can opt their kids out (grr), but of course they don't want those other kids learning about it either, and what's more they don't like the fact that the GPs give confidentiality and so won't know that their kid's trying not to get pregnant. I particularly like this comment:

"Campaign organiser and father-of-eight Neville Wheelan, who would be affected if the scheme was extended to other schools, said the rights of parents and families were being undermined."

As a "father-of-eight", of course, he obviously doesn't believe in contraception (I wonder if his wife does). Funnily, he doesn't even seem to be from the area, which I thought would have been a prerequisite in order to get your views heard by the local media.

"He said: 'The consequences, psychological and physical damage that can be done is something that children should not be exposed to.'"

Funny, I would say exactly the same thing about having a kid - the point of sex ed is so that we avoid said damage (having a baby at 14 will ruin your life forever, getting chlyamidia off your boyfriend will really fuck you up, that sort of thing.) But there you go, you just can't please some people.

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