Rodentius Trojanus

Ellen "The Rat" Ratner hands out some typically sage advice on "public health":

Yesterday on "Fox and Friends," Jim Pinkerton and I debated a Fox news poll concerning children and the availability of contraception. Fifty-seven percent said giving contraceptives to children as young as 11 years old "was a nutty idea"; 26 percent said it was a brilliant idea. The most interesting poll result, however, was that a full 83 percent of those polled said that 11-year-olds were having sex.

Hm, I wonder if those folks thought the idea was cuckoo because they don't believe that a response tantamount to endorsement is an intelligent method of solving a problem? Nah, that makes too much sense. By the way, if you believe that giving 11-year-olds contraception is a brilliant idea, chances are you're one of the people they need protection from. Notice that Her Rattiness assumes that children have no self-control, and doesn't even consider self-discipline or moral guidance as a proper course of action. Nope, little boys are walking erections, and little girls are like banks greedily waiting for a deposit. Both are mindless sexual automotons. Heck, why not start handing out condoms in Kindergarten? "Here ya go, Johnny. You and Suzie have safe sex behind the jungle gym; but first, finish coloring your picture of Heather's two mommies."

The Rodent continues in the same insipid vein: Parents who abuse their children, (or parents who do nothing when their children are abused by others – family members, boyfriends etc.), cannot provide quality sex education to their children. These parents should not even be allowed to sign on the dotted line to allow their children to receive health services through the school clinic system, as many of these parents have secrets to hide from the authorities.

As far as I'm concerned, if you abuse your children, or through inaction and disinterest allow the abuse of your children, you forfeit any and all rights to them. It's that simple. Again, she offers no proposal of moral tutelage or zipper control. Just give the little rabbit a rubber.

Many of the people opposed to giving sexually active children contraception though the school system also believe that we should not have needle exchange for those who are addicted to drugs. The argument is the same; if we don't treat it then somehow it won't be as big a problem.

Actually, this isn't the argument at all; it's a deliberate distortion of what opponents say. I've never heard anyone who decried sex education for children dismiss it on an "out-of-sight, out-of-mind" basis. They offer counter-solutions, such as abstinence teaching. We just can't have that, though, because abstinence has religious connotations, which are anathema to training up good little lusty drones.

The only overlap The Rat wants with religion is the missionary position.