By Patricia Roeder
I'm back.
I haven't written in a while for various reasons. I've been behind in school, working on scholarships, applying to colleges, etc. I was so busy I decided to take a break and only write when something incredibly irritating or major happened. In other words, something big had to happen.
That something was a March 12 Associated Press story in the D section of The Truth. The headline: "Teen girl STD rate 'shocking.'" The subhead read, "Study suggests one in four is infected."
First, I must stop and tell you my initial reaction. I feel the STD rate is shocking. What I mean by shocking is scandalous, or shameful. I am not very surprised the STD rate is high. Sex is everywhere. I can't watch one hour of TV without flipping the channel. It's rare that I remain on the same station during a commercial break. I stare at the floors during previews in a movie theater. I can't randomly pick a book out of the teen section at the library because nearly every book has sex references and/or a sex scene. My generation is getting so much sex, it's pathetic. That one in four girls is infected is hardly a surprise. I'm quite sure the average teenager sees some form of sex every day.
When I read the article, the commentators seemed to be shocked, as in unbelievable or incredulous. Sex education "expert" (if there is such a title) Nora Gelperin said, "Those numbers are certainly alarming." Well, duh. As I read the article, I thought that at least people are finally realizing how our society hinders our personal lives (and sanctity), right?
Wrong. According to Gelperin, "Sexuality is still a very taboo subject in our society." I am not buying that garbage. Sex is as common as grocery shopping nowadays. Gelperin continues, "Teens tell us that they can't make decisions in the dark and that adults aren't properly preparing them to make responsible decisions." There is some truth in this statement. I think teenagers are more sensible than Gelperin makes them out to be, but adults could be giving teenagers the wrong message. "If you're going to do it honey, you'd better take this condom" is the wrong attitude.
That's not what Gelperin was referring to, apparently. The numbers reflect "the sad state of sex education in our country," she said. Cecile Richards of Planned Parenthood said that "the national policy of promoting abstinence-only programs is a $1.5 billion failure" Dr. Ellen Kruger chimes in, offering that teens need to hear that STDs are prevented by abstinence and condoms.
Such talk infuriates me! Richards needs to get her head out of the clouds. If you don't have sex, you won't get STDs, plain and simple. I don't know what Kruger is trying to say. You can't "use" condoms and practice abstinence at the same time!
Condoms don't stop STDs anyhow. Studies show that in preventing HIV, condoms fail 31 percent of the time. Condoms offer very little protection against HPV, provide no protection from herpes, and there is virtually no difference in chlamydia diagnoses between persons who use and don't use condoms. Latex is manufactured. It has holes 5 microns wide. The HIV virus is a tenth of a micron.
The real source of blame does not lie in abstinence-only sex education. You can't just point to a second-rate educational method and say, "If that is changed, the problem goes away." Sex education, whether it's abstinence-only or covers birth control, will not reduce the STD rate. All teenagers have the impression that pre-marital sex is OK. Saying "always use a condom" only encourages sex, and repeatedly saying "sex is bad" puts a negative spin on sex.
Our society is focused on self. What makes you happy? How do you feel? What do you want? A self-centered society is an immoral society.
Before we can blame sex education programs for the STD rate, we need to repair society. Sex is everywhere and it is encouraged, regardless of the circumstances. Pre-marital sex guarantees many grave consequences, including STDs. My generation needs to stop listening to the lies of society and Planned Parenthood.
The cool thing about chastity is that you can have sex in certain conditions. If you are married and remain faithful, you could have sex for years and not get sick. You could be married for 50 years. How long are people friends before they're married? Six months? A year? Five years at the most.
I, personally, would rather wait five years, get married and have much happier relations with someone who really loves me and will be with me the rest of my life. Statistics shows those who wait for sex have happier personal lives, anyway.
It's difficult to live chastely in a society that encourages immorality, but if you want happiness, you need to wait. If your partner doesn't want to wait for you, they probably didn't love you to begin with.
Patricia Roeder is a senior at Goshen High School.