Abstinence-only bullshit

It seems that faith-based bullshit reigns supreme in Texas:

STATE-MANDATED IGNORANCE.... McClatchy ran a disturbing piece the other day, noting the results of a new study examining Texas' public schools and lessons on sexual health. It wasn't at all encouraging: "The overwhelming majority of Texas schools use scare tactics and spread myths in place of teaching basic sex and health information that students can use to protect themselves and others."

The report, Just Say Don't Know: Sexuality Education in Public Schools, published by the Texas Freedom Network, studied materials from 990 Texas school districts and found that 94% of the districts use "abstinence-only programs that usually pass moral judgments while either downplaying or ignoring contraception and health screenings." An additional 2% ignore sexual health altogether. "What is left is a miniscule 4 percent of Texas school districts that teach any information about responsible pregnancy and STD prevention, including various contraceptive methods," the TFN noted.

Let's not forget that state-mandated ignorance on this scale comes with considerable costs. Texas, thanks to its taxpayer-financed confusion, has one of the highest teen-pregnancy rates in the nation, costing the state "approximately $1 billion annually for the costs of teen childbearing."

Data from the CDC further showed that "young Texans overall rate well above national averages on virtually every published statistic involving sexual risk-taking behaviors," making this "one of the most pressing public health issues facing" Texas.

I've heard before that "nothing fails like prayer"...maybe that should be amended. Faith-based sex education fails miserably.