4A the university daily kansan
opinion
thursday, march 18, 2004
EDITORIAL BOARD
Education, not abstinence, gives best protection
Sure, it sounded like a good idea. Fight premarital sex and the sexually transmitted diseases and unwanted pregnancies it causes by having teens sign a public pledge promising to abstain from sex before marriage.
Abstinence education, which President Bush's administration thinks is the only acceptable sex education, encourages teens to take these vows each year.
However, like any theory, the idea of abstinence pledges must be tested to determine its effectiveness. In a study released last week as part of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, the theory was tested, and the results weren't good.
OUR VIEW
Abstinence pledges are not protecting teenagers from pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases. We need to give them more education.
The researchers followed a national group of teens who took the pledge in the six years after their pledge. They found that nearly nine of every 10 teens who pledged were no longer virgins.
Examining the data more closely reveals an even more troubling trend. The STD rates among the teens who pledged to remain abstinent were statistically similar
to the rates for non-pledgers. Researchers attributed this finding to the fact that teens who took the pledge were less likely to use condoms that non-pledgers. Only 40 percent of pledging teens used a condom the first time they had sex, and 59 percent of non-pledgers used protection.
These findings seem to prove the ineffectiveness of abstinence education, confirming what parents of teenagers have known for years: When promises and hormones collide, hormones are almost always going to come out on top.
This study shows that abstinence education simply doesn't work well. Yet President Bush remains steadfast in his stubborn stance of abstinence as the only sex
education. His 2005 budget plans to double funding to programs which try to stop teens from having sex, raising the funding for such programs to $270 million.
This $270 million will be wasted on programs such as these vows, that only delay the onset of premarital sex, doing nothing to address the real problems of STDs and teenage pregnancy. This money should be spent on more logical and effective programs to combat these problems, educating teens on the dangers unprotected sex poses or providing them with condoms.
We need to protect the next generation with education and spermicides, not signatures and empty promises.
Wes Benson for The University Daily Kansan
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I am a single Republican girl and I am not in a sorority.
--good at it.
Does beer go on sale the day after St. Patrick's Day?
You hate Texas. I hate you.
C
I made a shirt that says "Spank me, I'm Irish." Why I do have the feeling that my ass is really going to hurt?
good at it.
I wish my mommy and daddy would pay for me to go to South Padre over spring break. That would be nice.
I just saw a police chase all the way down Iowa. It really isn't that big of a deal considering there is only five cop cars. That's only like two stars in Grand Theft Auto.
No, I will not make out with you
PERSPECTIVE
图
I just got ticketed by a cop that jumped out in the middle of Mass. He almost caused a wreck. I hope that the money from my ticket goes to fixing some of the pot holes around the city.
The anarchist with the mohawk in Hash really needs to take a shower. The man stinks up an entire room.
good at it.
good at it.
To the couple making out in front of E's:
That was hot. Keep on keepin' on.
图
Insults or not, connections between people invaluable
I would just like to let you know that you're hot.
"Ya mama's glasses are so thick, she can look into a map and see people wavin' at her..."
- The Pharcyde, "Ya Mama" from the 1992 album, Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde.
"Ya Mama..."
COMMENTARY
"...is so cross-eved..."
The words tumbled out of my mouth in a wry male pre-pubescent alto-tenor tone. The wordplay had started.
I was one of the dozen illest players in the school. Suckas knew better than to cross me, yet I was standing face to face with one who just had. For his transgression he was about to suffer.
"...that she walked out the FRONT door, and saw you and yo' nasty-behind sister plaving in the BACKyard!"
"OOoooohhhhhhh!" came the chorus of voices from the cipher of not-yetteenage boys that had circled around us in the locker room to witness the contest.
Cornelius Minor
.opinion@kansan.com
My opponent was hurt, he shuddered as if stung by an Ali jab, his bottom lip quivered, and I knew that he didn't have the soul to test me again.
Cornelius Minor, age 13, 98 wiry pounds of clever south suburban Atlanta mouth, and still the emperor of the locker room dis. Dudes couldn't touch me. I, with my words, could turn preteen machismo into mush simply by turning mamas into mockery, and I was
The memories of those contests of extemporaneous wit have long outlasted the shaken pride that was often the casualty of such juvenile warfare. After getting served by some kid, we would usually slap each other five, gear up and bounce rambunctiously into gym class for the day's basketball, four-square or flag football.
One would wonder were we not the same boys who had conjured 7,000 fresh synonyms for each other's mamas just minutes before? Yet we laughed and played together. In many ways we came of age together, and that ritual of was a unique part of that growth.
Those moments were never really about mamas or about four-square. In all reality, they were not even about me. Though we could not have called it such, there was a strong concept of "us" shared among the kids from my neighborhood. If you crossed one of us, we all had to
rumble. If something was bad for one of our own, it was bad for all.
We could fight, disagree, and argue amongst ourselves — which we often did, but when it came down to it, no one in our unit would be allowed to suffer if anyone else could help it. We, on some semi-conscious level, knew that we were all connected.
As I have grown older, friendships have tightened. Disposable income has made it possible to hang out more, travel and to send gifts, but strangely those connections have faded. Bad news that was once met with inquiry — "Aww, man, you lost your Nintendo cartridge? ...what do I need to do?" is now met with empty consolation — "You lost your job? Oh, I'm sorry to hear that."
In my struggle to make the final academic push before spring break, I've been reminded, in both overt and subtle ways, that being a responsible student means being a responsible person first,
and being responsible is all about paying attention to the folks around me — being connected.
As we think nationally and globally the same concept applies. What's bad for my man across town is one day going to be bad for me, too. When a woman is left to face inhumane treatment abroad, I'm left to deal with the inhumanity of my knowing silence to her plight.
If we continue to fail to pay attention to each other, we've got much more to lose than our locker room pride and our mama's good name. I, certainly, am learning that lesson more each day, and I am increasingly thankful for the colorful personalities who so dutifully teach and exemplify it.
Minor is an Atlanta graduate student in
Minor is an Atlanta graduate student in American studies. He also co-hosts a radio talk prgram on KJHK, Voice Activated, at 7 p.m., every Thursday.
PERSPECTIVE
ut summer tan on hold; use spring break to volunteer
It's time to bust out the bikinis and hit play on Sisqo's Thong Song. Spring break is around the corner promising sun, fun and no tests for at least a week.
Spring break is usually thought of as a time to relax and get a tan, not a time to think of helping others.
Thad Holcombe, director at Ecumenical Christian Ministries, has taken a group to Ghost Ranch for seven years.
COMMENTARY
However, students all across different college campuses are using their spring breaks as a time to make a difference.
Kari Zimmerman
opinion@kansan.com
Alternative breaks began at the University of Kansas in 1995 when an Alternative Spring Break group traveled to El Paso, Texas. Since then, the groups have grown across the nation.
students to pick an alternative break," Holcombe said. "They love the themes of the trips and also the joy of community service."
Different breaks can range from a weekend to a few weeks. Holcombe said students usually traveled to locations across the nation to serve at a wide variety of non-profit agencies. Activities range from helping out in community events, building houses and helping with the elderly.
"I don't think it's a difficult choice for
Different organizations all across KU campus offer different types of alternative breaks. KU Alternative Breaks are offered throughout the school year. Activities vary depending on the city and state. All students are encouraged to participate in these activities.
Students usually don't consider alternative breaks for their time off but the experience can be rewarding and beneficial in future life choices.
I for one had never thought of an alternative break until really it became my only option.
In all reality, having money to burn and pina coladas to drink were not an
option in my freshman year. So instead of going home for a week of Ricki Lake and soap operas, I found myself on my way to Mexico.
Traveling with 20 strangers and an overzealous leader, I clenched my teeth and boarded the plane. I knew at least the weather would be warm and I would maybe have time to get a tan.
Upon our arrival, sewage-filled streets and the screams of hungry babies were my only welcoming committee. The tiny community was desolate and dirty, and I thought for sure I couldn't survive there for a week. I knew then that my spring break was going to be of a different nature.
My group spent the majority of the week cleaning streets, helping make repairs on houses and handing out
The thought of building houses and helping kids never was appealing until the experience came to an end. The reward wasn't a tan or Daytona Beach T-shirt, but the feeling of accomplishment and a bit of self discovery.
clothes to different families. The days were long and tedious, but the hard work felt good on my body and soul. Just seeing the tears and smiling faces was a way bigger reward than any received in a spring break contest.
So next year, before visions of naked girls and oiled-up boys come to mind, think of a vacation where new friends are met, personal boundaries are challenged and lives are changed.
KANSAN
Michelle Rombeck
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Zimmerman is a Topeka senior in journalism.
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A
Editorial Board Members
Kendall D'Lynze Ford
Laura Francoviglia Anna Gregory
Amy Hammontrell Kelly Hollowell Teresa Lo
Mindy Osborne Greg Holmqist Ryan
Scarrow Elizabeth Willy Sarah Behunek Kevin
Flaherty Brandon Gay Zack Menhewan Alex
Hoffman Kenw Kampiwirth Amy Kelly
Cameron Koelling Courtney Kuhlen Brandi
Mathiesen Travis Metcalf Mike Norris
Jonathan Reeder Erin Riffey Alea Smith
Karl Zimmerman