Abstinence: A Great Plan For Saints

Ruth Marcus in The Washington Post quotes the Republican platform:

"Abstinence from sexual activity is the only protection that is 100 percent effective against out-of-wedlock pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases."

Marcus goes on to write that there is a lesson in the Bristol Palin story - one that goes beyond the price families pay, in lost privacy, for the political careers of Mom or Dad. Young people need to be prepared for the day when abstinence, however laudable, is not the path they choose.

Marcus notes that the policies McCain and Palin support are in no way helpful when that day comes.

More than 60 percent of high school seniors report having had sex at least once. The message that every family should take from Bristol Palin's pregnancy is: It can happen here.

Except Sarah Palin opposes programs that teach teenagers anything about contraception. "The explicit sex-ed programs will not find my support," she said in answering a questionnaire from the conservative Eagle Forum during her 2006 gubernatorial race.

McCain has voted to increase abstinence-only funding, voted to terminate the federal family planning program and voted against funding teen pregnancy prevention programs. He voted to require teens seeking birth control at federally funded family planning clinics to obtain parental consent.

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