THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, July 22, 1996 TAG: 9607200008
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A6 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Letter
LENGTH: 29 lines
After reading ``Teens say: Teach us more than biology'' (news, July 14), I became enraged at a statement made by Dee Dee Love, a rising sophomore at Old Dominion University: ``To bring up condoms and birth control and not bring up (abortion), you're not giving all the options.''
Options? I didn't realize that we are now placing abortion, which is a complicated surgical procedure that terminates the fetus, with condoms and birth-control pills, which were created to prevent a fetus from ever forming.
Condoms and birth-control pills are relatively inexpensive and cause virtually no emotional damage, as opposed to abortions, which are costly and can create an emotional scar for women for the rest of their lives.
If we include abortion as an effective birth control option, then we are truly sending out a warped message to our adolescents, as well as lessening the value of life.
Regarding sex education in schools: It's time parents took responsibility. It is first and foremost all parents' job to teach their own children about such delicate and private issues. It's called parenting. If schools are to set aside classroom time for anything, it should be to promote self-affirmation and basic decency.
PATRICIA RYAN
Norfolk, July 14, 1996 by CNB