This is in response to Brent Applegath’s letter, Makes sense.
It is good and honourable to wish to protect our children.
On the surface, it appears that handing out condoms at school is a plausible idea.
But have we given them all of the information required to make such a serious and life-altering choice?
Are they responsible enough to make adult decisions?
Is it perhaps like giving matches to someone who doesn’t know that if they aren’t careful, the whole house can burn down?
On the other hand, do we give our young people enough credit?
Perhaps they are more capable of controlling themselves, their emotions and their actions than we give them credit for.
After all, we are human beings with the ability to reason and not animals who copulate just to perpetuate the species.
Then again, animals don’t use condoms which were made to prevent conception.
Condoms are effective 70 to 90 per cent of the time and were made to prevent conception, which can only occur three to seven days per month. STIs are 10 times smaller than sperm and are present 24/7. Consider how much more young people are at risk for infection/disease, which can be fatal, and what the failure rate could be?
People are more than just a physical body. What about the spiritual, emotional and psychological health of the individual?
Perhaps, we could teach our children to respect one another. We could give them the knowledge that each person has dignity and should not be used as an object of momentary pleasure. They could take pride in learning to discipline and control their bodies instead of their bodily desires controlling them.
Is it not better to strive for something greater than to settle for something mediocre and fall for something lousy?
We could all proudly hold our heads high and live longer, healthier and happier lives.
L. Melesko, Vernon
