For Planned Parenthood, it's all about abortion
I WANTED TO RESPOND to a March 2 letter ["Breeding ignorance"] about a budget amendment defunding Planned Parenthood.
The letter contains factual errors, and it called into question my motives in introducing a budget amendment to remove state funding from Planned Parenthood.
It should be noted that Gov. Kaine stripped abstinence program funding from the budget, which is targeted at the same audience as the Planned Parenthood funding, and the writer seemed to have no problem with that.
The governor’s action was in spite of data from his own Department of Health showing positive results here in Virginia, demonstrating that abstinence education is contributing to a decline in teen pregnancy rates.
No such data exist for the sex education programs Planned Parenthood is conducting in our public schools.
The writer stated that the funding is for "STD treatment, cancer screening and a host of other medically proven treatments that affect the sexual health of all women and men in Virginia."
This is wrong on several counts. Most importantly, not one penny of this money goes for any such medical treatment. It all goes to sex education in the classroom.
It would surprise no one that Planned Parenthood’s view of what is appropriate in sex ed (aka family life education) differs radically from ordinary Virginia families and deviates dramatically from Virginia’s guidelines of emphasizing abstinence.
While Planned Parenthood’s version of sex ed often does not enjoy widespread support in the community, the abstinence programs targeted by the governor have met with overwhelming support by parents in the communities where they are being presented. There is a disconnect here between what Virginia’s government is funding and what Virginia’s families want their children taught.
The governor is attempting to remove very popular family life education programs from the schools while funding Planned Parenthood to provide its own version of sex ed to our children.
Finally, let’s dispense with the outrageous notion that Planned Parenthood is reducing teenage pregnancy on some mythical altruistic basis. Planned Parenthood reduces teen pregnancy by providing abortions, which both makes Planned Parenthood a lot of money and ends a pregnancy.
Planned Parenthood’s sex-ed programs in our schools are what a marketing executive might call a "loss leader," used to introduce their organization and all it has to offer, e.g., abortion on demand, to our children.
I believe most Virginians agree with me that such an organization should not receive the hard-earned tax dollars of Virginia’s citizens.
Ken Cuccinelli
Virginia State Senate
37th District, R-Centreville
Richmond
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Planned Parenthood is about
Planned Parenthood is about contraception, real education, not just lectures about abstinence, and a woman's right to choose in the early phases of her pregnancy. Last I checked, our country was supposed to have separation of church and state, where religion cannot dictate rights and laws. It has been proven that abstinence only programs are no more effective at preventing teen sex than more valuable programs that actually teach about contraception, STDs, and being safe. So, the kids who are only told to avoid sexual activity are just as likely to become sexually active JUST AS YOUNG, yet they don't learn about the risks involved and how to protect themselves.
Comprehensive...
How many people, other than progressivegal, feel that someone other than a parent should be discussing "abortion, masturbation, and sexual orientation" to your children. How many people feel that it is OK for a stranger to discuss "proper use of latex condoms, along with water-based lubricants" to your children. That is what Planned Parenthood "comprehensive" education is throwing in the face of your KIDS. Not my kids for christ sake. These subjects may be discussed in my home but in line with my values to provide an accurate understanding of true moralistic behavior. I don't need some liberal telling my children how to masterbate, tell them how abortion is the easy way out or tell them that homosexuality is OK. These are subjects that only "I" will have a say in.
CB
So you challenged the guy, he provided what he feels to be what you asked for and now you are changing the subject. Let's go back to this silly idea of teaching abstinence with public dollars. I agree it is decency to suggest this idea, but it is not a plausible solution. We are sexual creatures. Our libido often over rules our brain in such matters. It is simply what we are.
Charles...
That was a well thought out approach to the problem and yes you hit the nail on the head of expecting the unfortunate but only if it is unfortunate. I can't, with good conscience, provide an atmosphere where irresponsibility is condoned with an easy way out at the expense of others. Yes, kids make mistakes and parents understand that, I am one. It is not conducive to the overall fabric of society to treat mistakes as if they were entitlement resolved. There has to be some middle ground where kiddie revolution is not accepted with handouts that promote irresponsibility. We are supposed to be teaching them what not to do for the sake of their livelihood not how to get out of it after the deed is done.
CB
Please point the posting where I said PP doesn't provide abortion services. I dare you. I did say that abortion services are just 7% of the overall services Planned Parenthood provides in Virginia. And in addition, no state dollars are spent on abortion or abortion services.
Your "non-biased" study that you hold so dear to was performed by the Abstinence-Education Intiative of Virginia. Yet you clearly don't hold any esteem in the Mathematica study, or the APA, AMA, NEA, ASHA, SAM, and any other number of healthcare and education organizations and professionals. But I guess the Va. study that was sponsored by the Abstinence-Education Initiative is more accurate in your eyes, right? More credible than EVERY OTHER STUDY.
CB, please educate yourself a bit more before entering a conversation on reproductive healthcare. Unless of course you want to gladhand with Sen. Cuccinelli who has about the same amount of opinion and education on the topic as you.
How things work
This thing about sexual behavior among young people is like people working in a factory. As long as they have been well trained and the boss is there to make sure things go like they should, everything works pretty well. But if they are not well trained and the boss goes away for a time, anything can happen and usually does. You have to accept that you are not the child’s only teacher. There are kids at school, kids in the neighborhood, things on TV and the internet, other adults with different views on things, who all influence a child to one degree or another. If you haven’t established a strong moral/ethical base of conduct, by example and words, before the kids reach the age where, OMG, she’s pregnant, is a possibility, and you aren’t there to make sure things go like they should, then you had better lean toward the possibility that abstinence may not be the firewall that you hoped for and make sure that pregnancy prevention is an option.
Do I really need to go there once again?
Do I need to provide contrary proof for the fiftieth time once again that completely refutes your views? I have provided facts and figures from other non biased sources on numerous occassions including the Virginia State Department of Health on your blog but hence, my facts mysteriously disappear. I am a little confused because you claimed in another post that "PP" doesn't provide abortion services yet I quote "Abortion services are just 7% of the overall services Planned Parenthood provides in Virginia. In addition, no state dollars are spent on abortion or abortion services." Which one is it? Please make up my mind!!! If "PP" is funded by taxpayers, it is reasonable to assume that taxpayers are funding abortion. I am so tired of these liberal induced problems that suddenly become taxpayer funded feel good free cop outs for the irresponsible.
Truth
CB - I challenge you to find any part of what I posted inaccurate.
Here is a link to organizations and officials that support comprehensive sex education:
http://www.siecus.org/policy/in_good_company.pdf
Here is a link to an article which shows Iowa to be the 17th state to reject Title V funding for abstinence-only sex education:
http://qconline.com/archives/qco/display.php?id=377481
A snippet from the article, "Culver’s decision came shortly after Doug Kirby, Ph.D., a leading adolescent health researcher at ETR Associates, presented his findings on the effectiveness of both abstinence-only and comprehensive sex education programs at a briefing in Des Moines. Kirby’s research, published in Emerging Answers 2007: Research Findings on Programs to Reduce Teen Pregnancy and Sexually Transmitted Disease, concluded that the only programs with strong evidence to delay sexual initiation were comprehensive sex education programs."
Here is a link to the Mathematica study: "The study found that youth in the four evaluated programs were no more likely than youth not in the programs to have abstained from sex in the four to six years after they began participating in th
Pure bunk....
Pure bunk progressivegal...pure liberal bunk. I can't add anymore truth to the matter. Oh, by the way, I am not fundamentalist as you assume. Now that makes a what out of who? Funny that when I challenge you on your blog, all of my responses are deleted. You are a liberal liar!!!!
Example
I was taught to go with out as is being suggested. Yet I found myself doing everything I could to bury myself in it since the age of 13. Get real. Those of you who beleive teaching abstinence matters are out of touch. You might as well burn the money. it is akin to shrugging your shoulders and saying your tried when you actually did nothing.