Should publicly supported education programs include the distribution of condoms?
All the Yes points:
- Providing condoms to students in public education programs will reduce the incidence of underage pre…
- Providing condoms to students is the morally pragmatic thing to do. Educators need not endorse sexu…
- Providing condoms to students is a wise investment of government funds. A fortune is spent by world…
- Providing access to birth control empowers women with more control over their bodies. Historically …
- Condoms are one of the most effective means of protecting against STDs, HIV and pregnancy. For thei…
All the No points:
Providing condoms to students in public education programs will reduce the incidence of underage pre…
Yes because…
Providing condoms to students in public education programs will reduce the incidence of underage pregnancy and the spread of sexually transmitted diseases. If one accepts the premise that condoms are an effective means of prevention, it stands to reason that their distribution could have a significant impact.
No because…
Providing students with condoms actually encourages the earlier onset of sexual activity. If young people believe they will be “safe” when using a condom they are much less likely to be deterred from engaging in dangerous and immoral behaviour.
Providing condoms to students is the morally pragmatic thing to do. Educators need not endorse sexu…
Yes because…
Providing condoms to students is the morally pragmatic thing to do. Educators need not endorse sexual activity, but they can encourage students to make wise choices if they decide to have sex. Such an approach is wise because it accepts the inevitability that some young people, regardless of the strength of an abstinence message, will still have sex.
No because…
Presenting condoms to students in a publicly funded environment presents a potential offence to people from a variety of religions. Catholics and followers of other religions who do not believe in birth control, and orthodox practitioners of a number of the world’s religions find the apparent encouragement of sexual activity an affront to their religious traditions.
Providing condoms to students is a wise investment of government funds. A fortune is spent by world…
Yes because…
Providing condoms to students is a wise investment of government funds. A fortune is spent by world governments each year addressing the public health problems created by risky sexual behaviour. The cost of raising the many children created through unintended pregnancies over a lifetime can be astronomical. The cost of treating a patient with HIV can be enormous.
No because…
Taxpayers should not have to support programs that they find morally objectionable, even if there seem to be pragmatic justifications for the action. Moreover, if overall sexual activity increases as the result of encouraging ‘safer sex’, the number of people occasionally engaging in risky behaviour will increase and the risk of these problems spreading will increase with it.
Providing access to birth control empowers women with more control over their bodies. Historically …
Yes because…
Providing access to birth control empowers women with more control over their bodies. Historically women have often suffered more because of restrictive policies related to reproduction (abortion laws, restrictions on birth control purchases, parental consent policies). Men often don’t have to face the consequences of their actions. Condom distribution encourages the responsibility of men and increases choices for women. It can also establish condom use as the norm, not something that women continually have to negotiate, often from a position of weakness.
No because…
Widespread condom distribution will establish sexual activity as the norm among young teens, creating peer pressure to participate in sex. The added temptation to engage in sexual activity that is ‘protected’ will result in more women having sex at a younger age, perhaps furthering their exploitation.
Condoms are one of the most effective means of protecting against STDs, HIV and pregnancy. For thei…
Yes because…
Condoms are one of the most effective means of protecting against STDs, HIV and pregnancy. For their cost, they are easily the most cost-effective means of protecting against these threats.
No because…
The effectiveness of condoms is grossly exaggerated. If not used properly, condoms can be highly ineffective. Young people are more likely to use condoms incorrectly, due to lack of experience with them or because they are drunk. Moreover, the temptation to have sex without a condom may be significant where the supply of condoms is not plentiful.
condoms should not be distributed in schools because if they distribute condoms in schools they are simply encouraging sex before marriage whilst in most religions of the world sex before marriage is considered to be a sin and yet they start producing condoms in schools which simply means religious views will be affected and moreover no parent has sent his/her child to school so that that child becomes an expert in sexual activities but all parents send their children to school so that they shape their future and inherit success
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