Planned Parenthood Pushes Intensive Sex Education for Kids as Young as 10

A new report by the International Planned Parenthood Federation is advocating that children as young as 10 be given extensive sex education, including an awareness of sex's pleasures.

The report, "Stand and Deliver," charges that religious groups, specifically Catholics and Muslims, deny their young access to comprehensive sexual programs and education.

"Young people's sexuality is still contentious for many religious institutions. Fundamentalist and other religious groups — the Catholic Church and madrasas (Islamic Schools) for example — have imposed tremendous barriers that prevent young people, particularly, from obtaining information and services related to sex and reproduction. Currently, many religious teachings deny the pleasurable and positive aspects of sex." the report states.

Click here to read the report.

The report demands that children 10 and older be given a "comprehensive sexuality education" by governments, aid organizations and other groups, and that young people should be seen as "sexual beings."

"Young people have the right to be informed about sexuality and to have access to contraceptives and other services," Bert Koenders, the Netherlands Minister for Development Cooperation, wrote in the foreword to the report. It was his organization that helped fund the report.

The report argues that sex education should be "recast" to show sexuality as a "positive force for change and development, as a source of pleasure, an embodiment of human rights and an expression of self."

Much like a U.N. report released last August that advocated teaching masturbation to children as young as 5, "Stand and Deliver" has set off a wave of protest among religious and conservative groups.

Ed Mechmann, spokesman for New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan, charged that Planned Parenthood was "trying to teach children sex without values and that sex is a matter of pleasure and done without consequences."

He said religions like Catholicism and Islam teach sex as part of a much bigger picture and that Planned Parenthood was trying to de-link sex from traditional values.

"It is part of an effort to get children to reject traditional values and accept a liberal American-European view," he said. "In many traditional countries — Catholic and Muslim — it won't work and should be seen as cultural imperialism."

Mechmann also charged that Planned Parenthood's report was compromised because it has a financial stake advocating the changes. "The difference between Planned Parenthood and us is that we don't make money off what we teach and say. They do. They make money off contraceptives and abortions," he said.

Michelle Turner, president of the Maryland-based Citizens for a Responsible Curriculum, said Planned Parenthood was simply trying to eliminate parental say.

"What are they trying to do? They are trying to eliminate the role of mom and dad in the family," Turner said. "For Planned Parenthood to decide that governments, private organizations and religious organizations should make decisions about kids' sexuality is just going too far."

"It is part of a bigger push to change the way we think about sex," she said. That sex is all about pleasure and there are no consequences. They are wrong. No matter how much we teach children, some will make mistakes. They will forget. And Planned Parenthood doesn't want to deal with that," she said.

"They see religious groups, especially those that counsel abstinence and waiting until marriage, as bad guys," she added. "We aren't."

Planned Parenthood said it was unable to comment because the report was issued by its European office and it was unable to contact them.

Religion Professor at Fredericton Catholic University Moonlighting as Abortion Clinic Escort

By Patrick B. Craine

FREDERICTON, New Brunswick, September 9, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A lecturer in religious studies at St. Thomas University (STU) in Fredericton, New Brunswick has begun volunteering as an escort at the city's Morgentaler abortion facility.

Dr. Christopher Levan, a minister in the United Church of Canada, serving at Wilmot United Church, holds a lectureship at STU. According to the university's course list, he will be teaching two sections of Introduction to Religious Studies in both the fall and winter semesters.

LifeSiteNews.com learned about Levan's activities with the Morgentaler facility after a woman who regularly stands in vigil at the Morgentaler facility sent around an e-mail claiming that she witnessed Dr. Levan acting as an escort. She said last Tuesday was the first time she had seen him, and that she discovered his identity because the director of the abortion center introduced him to the other escorts.

Dr. Levan told LifeSiteNews.com in an interview today that he has only done escorting once so far, but plans on continuing. He's doing it, he says, because he has a problem with the "harassment of women going into the abortion clinic," referring to activities of the regular pro-life protestors who stand outside.

"Not that they're in any way vindictive or mean," he said, "but their signs are sometimes. And these are women who have a legal right to this particular medical procedure and there is enough distress without having to run the gauntlet of [people] who want to change their mind."

"It's currently a legal medical procedure, is it not?" he asked. "And in a society that is pluralistic, that allows people to make those kind of choices, they're allowed to make that choice, aren't they?"

"So what I'm doing," he said, "is I'm making sure that the women who make that choice, who make it with, I assume, whatever sincerity they are capable of making it, are allowed to make that choice without the recrimination of those who have not been party to the difficulty they have gone through in making that decision."

Dr. Levan insisted that he personally disagrees with abortion. Commenting on the "I Regret My Abortion" pro-life sign carried by a woman outside the abortuary, he said, "I want to say to her 'I regret them too.' Absolutely. I'm not standing there because I agree with abortion, but people having made that choice deserve the dignity of being able to go and get the procedure without having to be guilted or in some way told that they are guilty of a heinous crime. Because they are not."

"Abortion is a regrettable, regrettable procedure that women are legally allowed to choose in this province," he emphasized.

Dr. Levan's view of abortion is completely in line with the position of the United Church, as he indicated to LSN. In 1980, the community promulgated their policy on abortion, which stated that "abortion is acceptable only when, after careful consideration, the medical, social, and/or economic situation makes it the most responsible alternative." In this and other policy statements on abortion, they have urged the government not to regulate abortion and to ensure access to it throughout the country.

St. Thomas University, however, is a Catholic university that continues to highlight its Catholic identity. In its mission statement, the university states, "We are a liberal arts institution whose roots are in the faith and tradition of the Roman Catholic Church." According to the teachings of the Catholic Church on the issue, abortion is a grave and intrinsic evil that results in the death of a unique human being endowed with the fundamental right to life. Catholics who in any way obtain or help a woman procure an abortion automatically incur the Church's most stringent punishment - excommunication.

Levan is a prolific writer, with books such as God Hates Religion, Sin Boldly, Living in the Maybe, and Knowing your Ethical Preferences. Besides his support for abortion, he has advocated openness to homosexuality, arguing, for example, in a 1995 article that homosexual practice is not condemned in Scripture.

Professors of religious studies at STU have something of a history of conflict with the Catholic Church. The former acting chair of the department and current professor, Dr. Alexandra Bain, has converted from Catholicism to Islam and gave a keynote address at the CWL's 2006 provincial convention after which she ridiculed the Trinity. Further, STU president Dr. Michael Higgins, who specializes in religious studies, and is a former president of St. Jerome's University at Waterloo, famously scolded Pope Benedict in 2006 for his comments on Islam at Regensburg, calling them "grossly stupid."

LSN left a message with the Bishop of Saint John, Most Reverend Robert Harris, who is also the chancellor of STU, but did not hear back by press time. A message left for STU's media director was also not returned in time.

Contact information for St. Thomas University:

Dr. Michael Higgins, President and Vice Chancellor
Mary Jones, Administrative Assistant
Email: mjones@stu.ca
Phone: 506-452-0537
Fax: 506-452-0633
Margaret Norrie McCain Hall Room 400

General Inquiries
St. Thomas University
51 Dineen Drive
Fredericton, NB
Canada, E3B 5G3
Phone: (506) 452-0640
Fax: (506) 450-9615

Abercrombie & Fitch pitches new trashy T-shirts to America's youth

Send an email to Abercrombie and Fitch. Ask them to pull their sexualized shirts.
Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F) continues its pattern of pushing pornographic-themed material into mainstream America. Abercrombie & Fitch (A&F) has just begun offering their "New College" line of T-shirts.

The first A&F t-shirt pictures a young girl opening her blouse - exposing herself. A&F titles the image: "Show the Twins".

The second picture is of a female running nude. A&F titles it: "Female streaking encouraged."

The next Abercrombie & Fitch T-shirt is entitled: "Female Students Wanted for Sexual Research"

Abercrombie & Fitch does not merely sell a popular line of clothing – they sell a lifestyle. And because A&F clothing is popular among teens and college kids, the influence of their sex-as-recreation lifestyle is widespread.

The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and Prevention reports that Sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) remain a major public health challenge in the United States. CDC estimates that approximately 19 million new infections occur each year— almost half of them among young people 15 to 24 years of age.

Movie Review: Seven Pounds

Spoiler Alert! If you read this blog, you will find out what happens at the end of the movie. Also, if you read this blog, you will never want to see the movie. It was, in my opinion, morally appalling.

In the opening scene of the drama "Seven Pounds" (Columbia/Relativity), Will Smith calls 911 to report a suicide. Asked who the victim is, he answers: "I am." The remainder of the film, which sets out to confound the viewer at every turn, gradually explains how his character reached this desperate pass.

Although he's fond of flashing his credentials as an IRS agent, Ben Thomas' interaction with the taxpayers he visits seems to have as much to do with a hidden personal agenda as with the work of his office. Burdened by a terrible secret -- flashbacks hint at a horrific car crash -- he's out to discover a group of genuinely decent people to whom he can offer life-altering assistance, thus atoning for what he regards as a virtually unforgivable sin. Unfortunately, Ben is suffering from depression and is selfishly wrapped up in his own despair.

His carefully chosen beneficiaries include blind pianist Ezra (Woody Harrelson) and struggling Latina mother Connie (Elpidia Carrillo), who's being physically abused by her boyfriend. Ben's interest in the case of artistic printer and cardiac patient Emily Posa (Rosario Dawson) gradually flowers into romance, despite his initial efforts to remain aloof. After lying to Emily about who he is and claiming to fall in love with her, he kills himself so that she may have his heart for a transplant. Note: in real life, you cannot choose who will be the recipient of your organs should you choose to donate them.

Ben relies on the reluctant support of his best friend, Dan (Barry Pepper), who's concerned about the lengths to which Ben seems willing to go for his do-it-yourself redemption. And not without reason, since Ben's spirit of self-sacrifice, by which he would make himself into his own redeemer, extends to donating bone marrow without the benefit of an anesthetic.

Also worried about Ben's mysterious behavior is his younger brother (Michael Ealy), whom Ben assures of his love but consistently evades. We find out that Ben took over his brother's identity and lied to all of the people he meets, including Emily who he claims to have fallen in love with.

Contrary to the bedrock principal of Catholic moral theology that holds that even the noblest ends do not justify or excuse the use of wrongful means, "Seven Pounds" seems to endorse an obviously unwise and sinful choice driven by confused idealism. The message I received was that you can break any commandment if your intentions are well meaning and the desired outcome is good. Were it not for the humane character of the project as a whole, the script's muddled ethics could otherwise warrant an O classification for morally offensive by the USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting, but they require careful interpretation by mature, religiously well-grounded viewers.

The film contains a suicide theme, nongraphic premarital sexual activity, a few sexual references, occasional crude and crass language, and a couple of uses of profanity. The USCCB Office for Film & Broadcasting classification is L -- limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. The Motion Picture Association of America rating is PG-13 -- parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

I think the movie deserves the Morally Offensive rating and should not be viewed by anyone with a conscience.

Culture of Death Accomplishments

From attacking conscience protections, to funding abortion and unrestricted human embryo research, the President takes aim at pro-life protections.

After only 2 months in office, President Barack Obama is clearly the most pro-culture of death President in history. Here's why:

1. President Obama reversed the Mexico City Policy four days after taking office. Instead of restricting foreign aid to organizations who directly support abortion, American taxpayers will be funding abortions overseas, all while trying to make ends meet in the midst of a recession.

2. The new omnibus budget increases money spent on the abortion industry, including an increase of $7.5 million to $307.5 million for Title X Domestic Family Planning and a 19% increase of $88 million to $545 million for International Family Planning.

3. President Obama signed an executive order forcing American taxpayers to fund unrestricted embryonic stem cell research. As pointed in a column by Charles Krauthammer, President Obama “pointedly left open the creation of cloned -- and noncloned sperm-and-egg-derived -- human embryos solely for the purpose of dismemberment and use for parts.”

4. President Obama has started the proceedings to rescind the “conscience clause” regulations put in place by President Bush, which protects healthcare professionals and medical students who refuse to perform abortions for moral reasons. (To speak out, go to www.Freedom2Care.com)

5. President Obama nominated one of the most pro-abortion governors in the country, Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius, to be Secretary of HHS, which oversees millions spent on the abortion industry. Sebelius hosted infamous late-term abortionist Dr. George Tiller and his staff at the governor's mansion.

6. On March 17, 2009, for the first time in eight years, the Obama State Department released $50 million to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), an organization linked to China's one-child policy and coerced abortions. Unsatisfied by the $50 million mark, House members, led by pro-abortion Rep. Louise Slaughter, are asking for even more money in the next budget Congress will consider.

7. Under Obama’s proposed healthcare plan, the same advocates that are pushing for taxpayer-funded abortions and wiping out parental consent laws, were front and center at the Healthcare Summit in Washington, DC to present their solutions.

Fishermen find infant girl in trash bag

Police are asking for the public's help in finding a mother after two fishermen make a disturbing discovery Sunday -- an infant girl in a trash bag at Lake Artemesia.
"When you see something like that it doesn't go easy on you," says Will Perdue, one of the fishermen who found the child as they fished at the 38-acre lake.

Will Perdue and Joseph Dean didn't know each other before Sunday. Perdue says they were "just trying to clean up trash" when they found the bag around 3 p.m.

"You don't do it that way -- by disposing a trash bag," Dean says. "Hospitals is where you take them."

Police hope someone comes forward to report a mother who may have been pregnant but no longer is, or someone who may know what happened. If you know anything that may be helpful to police, call 866-411-TIPS.

The tragedy has Prince George's County Police Cpl. Erica Johnson reminding people that "Maryland has what is known as the 'safe haven law.'" Under that law, a child up to 72 hours old can be left at a hospital, police station or fire department without any questions.

Dean wants to see the person responsible for dumping the baby brought to justice.

"If I was the person who that baby belonged to, I would give them the chair," he says.

Woman Accused Of Ending Daughter's Pregnancy, Dumping Baby In Trash

A South Florida mother says she ended her teenage daughter's pregnancy and dumped the infant's body in the garbage. Miramar Police Detective Yessenia Diaz says 39-year-old Tonuya Rainey admitted giving her daughter medication from a Miami clinic to end the pregnancy.

Rainey is not a nurse, but works in the medical field. The daughter told police she gave birth two weeks ago over a toilet. Rainey later said she placed the infant in a bag and dumped the body in the garbage. Rainey said the infant was born dead, but her daughter claimed she saw it breathing.

Rainey was arrested Friday and faces felony charges that include performing the termination of a pregnancy without a physician license, unlicensed practice of health care professional, child abuse and improper disposal of human remains.

US births break record; 40 pct out-of-wedlock

More babies were born in the United States in 2007 than any year in the nation's history, topping the peak during the baby boom 50 years earlier, federal researchers reported Wednesday.

There is both good and bad news from the more than 4.3 million births:

• The US population is more than replacing itself, a healthy trend.

• However, the teen birth rate was up for the second year in a row.

The birth rate rose slightly for women of all ages, and births to unwed mothers reached an all-time high of about 40 percent, continuing a trend begun years ago. More than three-quarters of these women were 20 or older.

For a variety of reasons, it's become more acceptable for women to have babies without a husband, said Duke University's S. Philip Morgan, a leading fertility researcher.

Even happy couples may be living together without getting married, experts say. And more women – especially those in their 30s and 40s – are choosing to have children despite their single status.

The new numbers indicate the nation is experiencing a baby boomlet with fertility rates higher in every racial group. On average, a US woman has 2.1 babies in her lifetime. The highest fertility rates were among Hispanics.

But it's not clear the boomlet will last long. Some experts think birth rates are already declining because of the economic recession that began in late 2007.

"I expect they'll go back down. The lowest birth rates recorded in the United States occurred during the Great Depression – and that was before modern contraception," said Dr. Carol Hogue, an Emory University professor of maternal and child health.

The 2007 statistical snapshot reflected a relatively good economy coupled with cultural trends that promoted childbirth, she and others noted.

Meanwhile, US abortions have been dropping to their lowest levels in decades, according to other reports. Some have attributed the abortion decline to better use of contraceptives, but other experts have wondered if the rise in births might indicate a failure in proper use of contraceptives. Some earlier studies have shown declining availability of abortions.

Cultural attitudes may be a more likely explanation. Morgan noted the pregnancy of Bristol Palin, the unmarried teen daughter of former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin. The young woman had a baby boy in December, and plans for a wedding with the father, Levi Johnston, were scrapped.

"She's the poster child for what you do when you get pregnant now," Morgan said.

Teen women tend to follow what their older sisters do, so perhaps it's not surprising that teen births are going up just like births to older women, said Sarah Brown, the chief executive for the National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy.

Indeed, it's harder to understand why teen births had been declining for about 15 years before the recent uptick, she said. It may have been due to a concentrated societal effort to reduce teen births in the 1990s that has waned in recent years, she said.

The statistics are based on a review of most 2007 birth certificates by the National Center for Health Statistics, part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The numbers also showed:

• Cesarean section deliveries continue to rise, now accounting for almost a third of all births. Health officials say that rate is much higher than is medically necessary. About 34 percent of births to black women were by C-section, more than any other racial group. But geographically, the percentages were highest in Puerto Rico, at 49 percent, and New Jersey, at 38 percent.

• The pre-term birth rate, for infants delivered at less than 37 weeks of pregnancy, declined slightly. It had been generally increasing since the early 1980s. Experts said they aren't sure why it went down.

• Among the states, Utah continued to have the highest birth rate and Vermont the lowest.

CDC officials noted that despite the record number of births, this is nothing like what occurred in the 1950s, when a much smaller population of women were having nearly four children each, on average. That baby boom quickly transformed society, affecting everything from school construction to consumer culture.

Today, U.S. women are averaging 2.1 children each. That's the highest level it's been since the early 1970s, but is a relatively small increase from the rate it had hovered at for more than 10 years and is hardly transforming.

"It's the tiniest of baby booms," said Morgan in agreement. "This is not an earthquake; it's a slight tremor." - AP

A mother is appealing for women to have sex with her adopted Down's syndrome son.

Truly nauseating...

Lucy Baxter says she will even pay for a prostitute so he can lose his virginity.

The mother has now set up a Bebo page for Otto appealing for potential dates to come forward.

The leading campaigner has three other adopted sons with Down's and works with the charity Mencap.

She said: "I'd like all my boys to find love and enjoy sex.

"I always look at what other people are doing and why shouldn't they do the same things?

"I strongly believe, and have always said, that society has a learning disability when it comes to Down's syndrome.

"If he doesn't get a girlfriend, I will feel really bad, because I have sold him this thing that he is like everybody else. That's why I'm working overtime to get this sorted for him."

Otto enjoys acting and has appeared in local stage versions of Macbeth and The Canterbury Tales.

He persuaded his mum to help him find a girlfriend after being rebuffed for three years - and says presenter Fearne Cotton is his ideal woman.

He said: "I'm on a mission to find a girlfriend. I'm looking for girlfriends everywhere."

Miss Baxter, 50, of Abingdon, Oxfordshire, has never married but has four adopted sons - James, 25, Otto, 21, Titus, 14, and Raphael, seven.

She said: "Everyone else his age is having sex and enjoying being young adults, so why shouldn't Otto?"

Miss Baxter is a respected member of the Down's Syndrome Association and has been at the forefront of research into the condition.

A charity spokesman said: "Lucy has worked tirelessly to break down the stigma attached to people with Down's Syndrome."

As Lent Begins, 3 Prominent Catholic Universities Celebrate Porn, Promiscuity

MANASSAS, VA, February 26, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - As Christians worldwide kneel in prayer to begin the holy season of Lent, students at three Jesuit Catholic universities are busy celebrating extramarital sex, homosexuality, cross-dressing and pornography, the Cardinal Newman Society has revealed.

From February 23 to 28, Georgetown University is hosting "Sex Positive Week," sponsored by feminist and homosexual student clubs.

On Monday, the event "Sex Positive … What's That?" featured a speaker from Black Rose, an organization "which provides a forum for the many different expressions of power in love and play. This can include dominance & submission, bondage & discipline, fetishism, cross-dressing, to name a few."

A talk on Ash Wednesday, "Torn About Porn?" was advertised to include "discussion about arguably alternative forms of pornography that are not supposed to be exploitative, but rather radical and empowering."

On Saturday, February 28, pornographic film director Tristan Taormino will speak at the university on "Relationships Beyond Monogamy" - one day after speaking in downtown Washington, D.C., about "Anal Pleasure 101." She will discuss her book "Opening Up: A Guide to Creating and Sustaining Open Relationships" with Jenny Block, author of "Open: Love, Sex, and Life in an Open Marriage." Taormino is also the author of "True Lust: Adventures in Sex, Porn and Perversion."

On Tuesday, the Student Diversity and Cultural Affairs Office of Loyola University Chicago presented the film "Brother to Brother," about a homosexual African-American who is transported in time to cavort with the allegedly homosexual writer Langston Hughes.

The film is part of a semester-long "Color of Queer Film Series" sponsored by the university. Upcoming films include "Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros" about a 12-year-old boy who falls in love with a male police officer, and "I Exist: Voices from the Lesbian and Gay Middle Eastern Community in the U.S."

This week is "Transgender Awareness Week" at Seattle University, which includes a session on allegedly transgender Bible heroes and heroines and "Criss-Cross Day," where students are encouraged to "come dressed for the day in your best gender-bending outfit." The events are sponsored by the university's Office of Multicultural Affairs and the student Trans and Allies Club.

"These obscene abuses of Catholic values come just as Christians begin a holy season of penance, fasting and almsgiving," said Patrick J. Reilly, President of The Cardinal Newman Society. "That Catholic universities would permit these events on their campuses at any time of the year is unthinkable, but to do so during the holy season of Lent is unconscionable."

"The saddest part of this story is that there is no indication that these universities are ashamed or embarrassed by what is taking place on their Catholic campuses. Parents and potential students might begin to wonder how these universities can in good conscience consider themselves Catholic when they allow such perverse distortions of Catholic values to take place."

Visit the Cardinal Newman Society at: http://www.cardinalnewmansociety.org/

Contact:

Georgetown University

President John J. DeGioia
Office of the President
204 Healy Hall
37th & O Streets, NW
Washington, DC 20057
Tel: (202) 687-4134
Fax: (202) 687-6660

Seattle University

President Sundborg SJ, Stephen
President's Office
901 12th Avenue, P.O. Box 222000
Seattle, WA 98122-1090
Administration Building 109
(206) 296-1891
SUNDBORG@seattleu.edu

Loyola University

Michael J. Garanzini SJ
President
mgaranz@luc.edu
Phone: 1 - 312 - 915-6400