This scares the crap out of me...

Just when you think that Cameron, Clegg and the other loathsome, slimy pig-fu<king perverts who make up our unelected UK Conservative-coalition 'government' can't get any more evil and fascistic..... we hear about this shit:

Anti-abortion group drafted in as sexual health adviser to government | Society | The Guardian


Yes, it's actually real, not some revenant from April the 5th.

To sum up, the government is going to abolish the Independent Advisory Group on Sexual Health and HIV and set up in its place a new group to help with policy. This new panel consists largely of right wing Christian groups, homophobes and other assorted f<kheads, who advocate abstinence in place of contraception. The anti-abortion group Life is actually one of the more mainstream voices on the new panel. Other proposed members include the usual bunch of moronic fundamentalist Christian pressure groups, and abstinence-only lobbyists.

Of course.. you might think that all this is fine, as it's only an advisory group, that has to reflect all points of view in order to provide a balanced outlook. It doesn't affect real-world issues does it?

In Richmond, south-west London, the Catholic Children's Society has taken over the £89,000 contract to provide advice to schoolchildren on matters including contraception and pregnancies. Another Christian-run charity, Care Confidential, is involved in providing crisis pregnancy advice under the auspices of Newham PCT in east London.

Newsflash: ABSTINENCE-BASED EDUCATION IS A CROCK OF UTTER SHIT. It DOES NOT WORK!

NOT EVER!

END OF!


For those who have doubts, consider the fact that the UK, and US - both strong advocates of abstinence, rather than contraceptive-based education number among the highest rates of unwanted teenage pregnancy.

As George Monbiot (who I occasionally-but-not-always agree with) wrote:

The two western countries at the top of the disaster league, the United States and the United Kingdom, are those in which conservative campaigns are among the strongest and sex education and access to contraception are among the weakest.

The United States, the UN Population Fund’s figures show, is the only rich nation stuck in the middle of the Third World block, with 53 births per 1000 teenagers – a worse record than India, the Philippines and Rwanda. The United Kingdom comes next at 20.

The nations the conservatives would place at the top of the list are clumped at the bottom. Germany and Norway produce 11 babies per 1000 teenagers, Finland eight, Sweden and Denmark seven and the Netherlands five.

George Monbiot &ndash; Waging War with the Virgin Soldiers


This whole abstinence-based, 'sex is a sin, so don't do it' form of 'education', which ignores proven facts in favour of simplistic moral posturing is not only a crock of pure shit.. it's a supremely dangerous crock of shit.

Want to know what causes unwanted teenage pregnancy? Here's a hint, its not caused by witholding information about contraception in the ostrich-like belief that what the little darlings don't find out about won't hurt them. It's caused largely through ignorance, lack of proper education, and lack of support facilities.


Oh well, hats off to the Torys once again. We all know how they feel about universal education.

And when they aint busy helping bomb the crap out of thousands of innocent civilians in Libya, depriving the weakest and most vulnerable members of society of income, boosting bonuses for banking fat cats and helping them avoid taxes.... or arming paramilitary death squads in the Congo... they are acting as the nation's moral guardians!

Yaaaaay... fu<king hooorayyyyyy!!

[Dave Fountain]

I think I've read it right, and thanks to F for bringing this to our attention.... a new panel consisting of various groups, but that also includes the Terrence Higgins Trust who I'm sure give many a Daily Mail reader many a sleepless night. You could say LIFE were on the other end of the scale, so some attempt at balance has been made but the Tories don't play the game on an even playing field to be sure.

I was taught sex education in secondary school by a nun. Yes, a nun. That is a bit like being taught car mechanics by Lulu. I'm now off to read why western cess pools like ours create so much teenage pregnancy because I don't know why. And if I don't know something I like to find out about it. Thank you again Fabs and thank you The Guardian.

[Ffabbia]

The editorial that I linked in my original post is a good place to start, and work from there.

Here's another more balanced piece in the independant:

The Big Question: Why are teenage pregnancy rates so high, and what can be done about it? - Big Question, Extras - The Independent


Don't trust everything in a newspaper though - even the Guardian has been known to suck Satan's cock when it's required of them. Monbiot and I have come to virtual blows on more than one occasion over the subject of nuclear power, and his obstinate, senseless and seemingly-blind support of this obscenity. I can only assume he's recently taken a blow to the head.


The real issues are obviously a lot more complex than abstinance vs contraceptive-based education. Socio-economic factors, wealth levels and backgrounds of families concerned, peer groups and parenting techniques (Or lack of) all play important roles.

There's been a comprehensive reduction in the role played by communities in the lives of 'yer average city/town-based workin' type-familiy here in the UK (and evidence suggests the same pattern in much of the US). The old days of growing up in a local community, where neighbours actively interact with each other are slipping away; and it's now more common to live in isolation.

I've no stats or facts to back this up, it's just an educated guess - but I'd not be at all surprised to learn that more close-knit rural communities have lower teenage pregnancy rates than those of large towns and inner cities.

Basically... we're alllllll doooooooooooomed

[Dave Fountain]

We are all doomed but we're still smiling, well I am. I've been doing a lot of reading lately concerning the state of capitalism and how it is starting to eat itself, well it's been eating itself for quite some time ever since the Federal Bank stitched the whole world up, it's now only a matter of time and hard math that means the whole system is coming to an end with an almighty crash. Greece, Portugal and Ireland are just the start. It's all about debt, it's all about interest, it's all about money that doesn't exist but ends up in the same old pockets that do exist. When it does come to an end there are solutions and new avenues to go down but boy is that going to be one switch over. And it will happen in our lifetime. I am not a conspiracy nut watching YouTube videos, this is like actually happening right in front of us.

When we start attacking each other for food then we might realise actually something is going on here. When people are lying in the gutter then we might stop tap dancing to rave music and get a grip. When roaming gangs are killing people under the names of various Gods and demons then you better start running.

The world is running out of resources because we are not managing them correctly. Now I still obviously have quite a few denial and hedonistic cells in my body to think everything will be ok, I'll just carry on as normal and get a solar panel fitted in the toilet. But at least when it does start kicking off I've got a head start on most of you blokes first

p.s. I am not a nut case, this is going to happen, now go have a cup of tea whilst you still can.

[TonyMiller]

... and anyone who has a few bob stashed away in the bank might as well spend it, because money is going to be worthless very soon...

[Dave Fountain]

Tony, Caligula had a brilliant idea. Just for one day he once replaced all the money in the market place with spunk. Basically if you wanted to buy a pot from a stall you had to be wanked off by the stall-holder (sadly these were mixed sex so took no favour for orientation). Many people went out of business that day but most men had a smile on their face.

[Snidcyco]

Caligula for Prime Minister! There'd be a lot less teenage pregnancy, but a lot more sticky wallets
"You forgot your change sir!"
"Nah your all right - keep it!"

[Fluid Breaks]

Our government and how my country is run is pretty much why why i'm moving to Sweden

[Dave Fountain]

Well you know what old Lord Humungus used to say, "You can run but you can't hide"

[Ffabbia]

Don't blame you either. From the Swedes I've chatted with and what I've read, their system is better than ours in almost every conceivable way.

In-depth Explanations about how we do things here in the UK leaves people from more democratic nations rather bemused. The way we educate our children, our bizarrely puritan and embarrased atttitudes toward sex and sex education, our support services and obsession with trashy junk-culture must seem very backward to them.

Don't even get me started on the destructive mass insanity of the so-called 'war on drugs'.

The way that our media is exclusively dominated by three rabidly right wing press barons who pedal the sensory equivelant of crack and ketamine directly into the collective veins of public consciousness is certainly a very alien concept, and one that is very difficult to explain as there are few common parallels.