guess what. making a chastity pledge doesn't keep you from having sex! it does, however, keep you from being prepared for sex and its consequences. in fact, you're just as likely to have sex as the next teenager, but more than half of you won't use a condom, and you will be tested for std's at roughly half the rate of the non-pledging group. you're also going to marry younger.

sounds like a recipe for empowerment to me.

the continued use of "abstinence only" sex ed is yet another alarming sign that our friends in the bush administration hate facts. they can't make an accurate employment forecast to save their lives; yet they continue to view the world through rich-people-colored glasses. "abstinence only" doesn't save lives. it doesn't promote greater sexual health. it doesn't even promote abstinence -- but we're still not teaching kids to be prepared. and let's not even bother detailing the politicization of the war in iraq. point is, these folks will do anything to promote policies they like, no matter the actual effects (or causes, for that matter) of such policies.