This is just ridiculous, a bunch of ppl who have no kids, pretty much have no clue what it takes to raise a kid the right way, and yet they are trying to tell me what's best for my kid. Ok 5% of the kids might not want to let their parents know, so we should just promote the message of "Its OK to do the things your parents do not want you to do, because we won't tell them" to the 95%?
It's like we're just giving up. We don't want them to have sex, but they're going to do it anyway, so why not give them condoms? SHHHH, don't tell your parents....they're too stupid to understand.... What other activities can we apply this way of thinking to? Heroin? Let's go ahead and nip this in the bud and give them clean needles too. They're gonna do it anyway, right?
Actually needle exchange programs where users can get free clean needles in exchange for their old ones have been very successful in cutting down on HIV and hepititis. That wasn't to middle school children, but I believe heroine doesn't affect as many middle school children as sex does.
Yeah, I guess the two people on the school board voted against it had kids and the other 10 didn't. Get a clue. Health care services are a good thing. Hooray for medicine.
I'm not really opposed to giving them birth control pills as long as the parents are involved in the decision making. If you make it clear that their parents do not have to know about it, how many 12 year olds are going to let their parents know about it voluntarily? Besides, one would think that the greater overall effect would be to a girl's psyche if she was having sex at such a young age. Pregnancy is just a symptom of a problem that needs a parent's involvement to help solve the problem. If they really wanted to deal with the symptoms, they would actively encourage dialogue between parents and kids on these issues to the point instead of giving kids options which you know they will take, because honestly, how many 12 year old girls are going to tell their parents they were even kissing a guy? As it is, the distribution of birth control pills to 12 year old kids are simply another example of the overmedication of young America. They prescribe prozac to young kids, and countless other happy pills to unhappy children. These children will be on medication their entire life because they will neever have learned how to deal with things like disappointment, etc. As for those who say there was no alternative, you don't know that. Was another plan ever introduced where parents would have to be involved? The article doesn't say that. I can only base my opinion based on what the article says, which is that parents are cut out of the process.
When you tell them if you tell kid "if you want to have sex against your parents' wishes, its OK, because we won't tell them", how is that NOT encouraging them?
I think the problem is people assume that it's not really encouraging unless you actively tell them to go have sex. I think it tends to be forgotten that 12 year old kids are just kids. They will always try to push the envelope and their boundaries to see what they can get away with. By telling them that they don't HAVE to tell their parents, I think a majority of them will just do that and not tell their parents no matter what else is said to the contrary by guidance counselors.
You get a freaking clue. I was talking about idiots like you on this board who have no kids, but somehow think they know more about parenting than the actual parents. These people on the school board has their own agenda to push. How about ask the parents at the school to vote? You know, the people who will be directly impacted by this, I bet majority of them would voted no.
I think the message is, if you are having sex, you need to have birth control. Their feeling was that if the two choices are getting birth control or notifying the parents, they wanted them to get the birth control out there first and foremost. I disagree with that part of the measure. I think parents should be brought in. But I can't imagine people who know it is wrong enough to hide from their parents all of a sudden thinking it's ok because the school is offering birth control. I'm sure they still know that it's wrong.
I think the student hears 2 conflicting messages (parents: you should tell me, school: you do not have to tell parents). I don't think even a small minority of them is going to tell their parents voluntarily. Like I said before, they could do so much better if they simply informed the parents and not cut them out of the loop. I'm a conservative Christian and I find myself even a bit understanding about making birth control available to them, what upsets me the most is that parents are cut out of the equation.
Exactly. Would you be ok with your kid getting prozac or lithium without your consent or knowledge? hell school nurses aren't even allowed to give you aspirin without parental consent.
When my wife taught school a lot of "parent involvement" was a fist to the head etc. The birth control is needed because of the lack of parent involvement. If you are really involved with a kid you will know what they are doing, it wont be a problem. This is parents relying on the school to take away their responsibility of maintaining an open relationship with a child, not the other way around.
I'm not raining on you Meowigi, and I don't have a kid myself, but this statement seems rather naieve on your part.
