Abstinence Clearinghouse

Unscientific poll - Are you doing it?
by The Professional Virgin
[11.16.2006]

As I read the news today (or rather as I reviewed the articles on the Google News page concerning abstinence) I was stuck by the overwhelming attitude that everyone must be having sex at all times.

For example, in response to a story on targeting abstinence messages to those older than 18, the president of a sex education advocacy group suggested that promoting abstinence to those who have already been sexually active is putting ideology above public health. Afterall, they can't abstain.

I think this attitude that everyone is doing it all the time is ludicrious. As a matter of fact, I'll do an unscientific poll right now. Of the two of us (me, the author, and you, my audience) I'll bet that 100% of us are not sexually active this very instant.

Those who think that abstinence education is only about not having sex are missing the point. It is good public health to not be exposed to STDs. It is good public health to not experience an unexpected pregnancy. It is good public health for children to be raised in stable, 2-parent households. And, no matter how much some disagreee, all the medical evidence shows that it is good public health to be in a faithful marriage.

Promiscious sex at any age is bad public health. It should never be encouraged.

Abstinence education, even to those older than high school, is about promoting healthy relationships that will last a lifetime. It is about preventing the spread of disease and the creation of children out-of-wedlock. It is about building stable families for future generations.

Anyone who truely wants people and society to be healthy should be open to these ideas. Even those who have been sexually active in the past can learn from their past and make better decisions for the future. One of the first steps to achieving a healthier society is to understand that unmarried people can and do abstain. I'm abstaining. You are abstaining right now. Milions of teenagers are abstaining. Millions of twenty-somethings are abstaining too. Everyone is doing it - abstaining. Why is this so hard to understand?