Abstinence vs. contraception

By Tom Quiner

Today’s “Dear Abby” reveals the false thinking of the Planned Parenthood crowd.

A 15 year old girl writes:

“I’m 15. I have dated since I was 12 but never told my parents and sort of went out of my way to hide it from them. I had sex when I was 13, but was always careful about using birth control. I’m on the pill and always use condoms.”

Before I continue, did you note her use of double protection when engaging in sex? She’s on the Pill AND uses a condom. Please continue for the rest of the story:

“I got pregnant anyway, five months ago. I always had irregular periods so I didn’t realize it until two months ago. The doctor told me I was having a girl. I was scared out of my mind, but I was planning to tell the father and my parents. Then early last month I got a terrible pain. I went to the clinic and had a miscarriage.”

Planned Parenthood tells teen aged girls it’s okay to have sex as long as you use the Pill, or a condom, or some other form of birth control.

This girl used both, and still got pregnant.

Abby’s advice? More birth control:

“Because the birth control you were using didn’t prevent your pregnancy, you should ask a health care provider for advice about avoiding another unplanned pregnancy in the future. A staff member at your local Planned Parenthood health center or other clinic, or your own physician, can discuss all of your options and help you get the birth control you need.”

In other words, this girl already heeded Planned Parenthood’s advice and it failed her. Why would Abby send her back to the same people who got her in the mess?

There is only one way to avoid a pregnancy: abstinence. And yet America’s political Left reviles and mocks abstinence.

They push contraception onto our teens like it is some panacea.

It is not.

A comprehensive study was conducted by  N Ranjit, A Bankole, JE Darroch, and S. Singh: “Contraceptive Failure in the First Two Years of Use: Differences Across Socioeconomic Subgroups,” Family Planning Perspectives and highlighted on the pro birth control website, Contracept.org.

They found that 49.8 of teens using spermicides will be pregnant within two years.

27.5% of those using condoms will be pregnant within two years.

14% using the Pill will be pregnant within two years.

Zero percent of those who abstain will be pregnant.

The geniuses at Planned Parenthood are encouraging birth control, perhaps because it increases the supply of unintended pregnancies, which increases their abortion business. The chart above spells it out.

The teen girl in the letter to Abby above started having sex at 13. You can see that the odds of her becoming pregnant at some point over the span of her teenage years is very high, even if she is using birth control.

On the other hand, if she abstains, she will not get pregnant. In addition, she will not get a sexually transmitted disease, which can lead to cancer and early death.

Sixty-five percent of our teens have had sex by their senior year in high school. 9.1 million of our teens and young adults contract a STD each year.

You might say that we can’t change human behavior. Nonsense. The government, with vigorous support from liberals, began promoting the dangers of cigarette smoking in the early 1960s. We have witnessed 38 consecutive years of declining per capita cigarette consumption.

You remember their lawsuits against “Big Tobacco.” Why not the same outrage against Planned Parenthood?

Because liberals are in the pocket for Planned Parenthood. Of course they’ll support contraception. It’s good for Planned Parenthood.

Dear Abby has bought into the lie. Who knows how many young lives are going to be devastated by the bad advice on morality, chastity, and health they’re receiving from the media, from Hollywood, and our schools.

Time to take our kids back from the culture.