There has, for years, been a push to promote abstinence as the only appropriate sexual choice for teenagers. Now, people are beginning to promote the idea that all unmarried people under the age of 29 should remain abstinent. The first article below discusses the new propaganda, while the second article explores some of the perspectives from people who have chosen abstience or celibacy.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/shelley-lewis/no-sex-please-were-sing_b_33084.html

http://villagevoice.com/people/0645,bussell,74920,24.html

You know, I have absolutely no problem with people consciously and deliberately choosing abstinence/chastity/celibacy if that is what's right for them at the time. It can be enormously healing and refreshing to approach life from a non-sexual position for a time. And I consider it a valid, respectable life choice.

However, people who choose abstinence or celibacy out of misguided feelings of guilt or shame about their sexual natures and desires need help to heal these psycho-emotional wounds. And I don't have any respect for those who try to force-feed others feelings of guilt and shame around sexuality, or who agressively promote their abstinence preference as the only right, clean, true and pure way to live.

Basically, I don't think our sex lives should be legislated at all. The government has no right to tell me when and when not to have sex, how to have sex, with whom I can share sex, how or if I should use contraception and STD prevention tools, whether or not to shop for, own or use sexual aids of any variety, if I pay or accept payment for sexual services, and the pornographic material I might choose to consume.

This blogger has posted a hopeful and optimistic prognosis for the future of some of our sexual and reproductive rights and freedoms which have come under attack in recent years, based on the recent election results:

http://www.rhrealitycheck.org/blog/2006/11/08/after-the-election-potential-for-progress

I do so hope that some more realistic and reasonable solutions can be found, or at least discussed, for the sexual education, abortion rights, contraception information, human trafficking and free speech issues that have loomed so large in recent years.

What do you think?