Dean wrote about how we gave in to the GOP on wedge issues, gave them power.

[madfloridian]

I was thinking yesterday about what he said about caving in when I was reading about how the right wing is ramping up "abstinence only" education again.

As Congress debates whether to continue federal funding of abstinence-only sexuality education, the National Abstinence Education Association is launching an effort to organize a million supporters, with the help of the “Swift Boat Vets” PR firm.

“Parents for Truth” apparently aims to recruit support by the same method NAEA used in a poll last year: touting salacious details supposedly drawn from comprehensive sex ed curriculum and falsely implying that abstinence programs provide comparable information about contraceptives.

...."While recent studies have cast doubt on the effectiveness of abstinence-only programs to such an extent that even President Bush has seemed to back away from the fight, “Parents for Truth” is looking beyond the fight over federal funding, encouraging parents to push abstinence-only on a local level. Subscribers “will be provided information on what is going on in their state, in their community," said Huber. "and they will also receive tools so that they can fight and win battles in their own schools on behalf of their children.

Last year our Democrats went along and increased the funding, and we are waiting to see if they give in again this year.

Fifteen states are even refusing the government funding because the programs don't work.

I remember this from 2004, another example of Howard Dean's blunt assessment of our party which permeates his book called You Have the Power. And blunt it is.

He speaks of how an anti-democratic, openly anti-pluralistic, openly theocratic agenda allowed a coup of sorts to happen:

From the 2004 book, You Have the Power, more on this topic.

The Republicans maneuvering brilliantly under the guidance of their language czars, learned how to cloak their ideology---and ideology far more extreme than what most Americans would accept--in words that sounded mainstream."

..."After Gingrich became Speaker, Brock reports in the "Republican Noise Machine", Luntz tutored newly elected Republicans in Congress on how to sell their radical agenda to more socially progressive neocons through careful turns of phrase."

..."The biggest coup of all, bring a team of radical right wing idealogues to the White House under the cover of Compassionate Conservatism.

Democrats and moderate Republicans have woken up and found themselves in an America ruled by people pushing forward intolerant, discriminatory policies....anti-woman, anti-gay, and anti-civil liberties, all in the name of God. The truth is we allowed this to happen by mostly remaining silent about the things that give meaning to people's lives."

He had more to say, and it was not popular. The Democrats did not want to hear it, and they resented that he said it.

NIP..."We became afraid of the Right, afraid of the anger, and instead of being steadfast, we pandered....The Democratic Party has paid a big price for that. Worse, our people have paid a big price for the collapse of our will to lead. We failed to articulate a vision for American that keyed into Americans' hope of overcoming economic and social instability. ..."

...."By remaining silent about the things that mattered so much to Americans, we allowed ourselves to be painted into a corner and to be defined by the Republican opposition. .."

Then he says this kind of behavior "laid the groundwork for the rise of the radical right".

Yes, there was really a fear in our party back in 2004 about invoking the wrath of the GOP. It was real fear of the right wing.

Dean did not become president, and he probably never will be....he is blunt in his critiques and is ahead of his time in standing up against this stuff.

But I think he just went about making change another way. It will take a long time, but the progress is beginning.

[madeline_con]

1. Here's what I cannot understand for the life of me...

people who have kids who are old enough to be sexually active are younger on average, than I am. Why do they have their heads in the sand or up their butts, or wherever it is they can't see that "just say no" just won't work?

Are all these people religious zealots, or something, believeing the idea that if we talk about it, they'll run out and get pregnant or get AIDS? :crazy:

spell edit

[madfloridian]

2. I don't think they believe it. I think most just go along...

to make it sound like they are "good" people by the standards set by the talibanish right.

[sandnsea]

3. Well, there's lots more pregnancies

So I think some parents think birth control education hasn't worked real well either.

[disunderestimated]

4. Teen pregnancies and abortions are down!

It is a common misconception that teen pregnancies and abortions are increasing - when they are actually decreasing:

The CDC itself tracks this data

http://www.thenationalcampaign.org/national-data/pdf/pregrate_Oct2006.pdf

Or if you prefer more detailed data please see the NIH study showing:

"... there were almost 6.4 million pregnancies in 2004 among women of all ages, about 6 percent fewer than the almost 6.8 million pregnancies in 1990. The 2004 total included 4.11 million live births, 1.22 million induced abortions, and 1.06 million fetal losses (such as stillbirths and miscarriages). In 1990, there were 4.16 million live births, 1.61 million induced abortions and 1.02 million fetal losses."

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_63404.html

[sandnsea]

5. I meant over the long run, since the 70's

[madfloridian]

6. This is 2008, your data is from 2004.

I don't have the stats right now, but that is not the purpose of my post. My post was showing the right wing obsession with wedge issues.

The right wing loves to control women's lives and even would love to deprive them of pills that would stop them from getting pregnant. It is about control and power.

However I will add that young people after 8 years of "abstinence only" teaching paid for by the government...and not presenting other options...young people overall are far more sexually involved. I am not counting the purity ball, virgin rings kind of thing.

One problem with statistics is that many teens do not consider oral sex as real sex (sound familiar?)...and thus they declare themselves as not engaging in sex when asked.