Letters to the Editor

Abstinence solves health issues

Dear editor,

    Perhaps instead of handing out “emergency contraception,” it would be better to educate the student body about the dangers of illicit sex.
    I’m not just talking about the dangers of “emergency contraception,” either, although the dangers of it are many. Perhaps if girls knew facts, like “if you are on birth control (i.e., the “pill,” shots, etc.) you are 10 times more likely of contracting an STD,” they would think abstinence is a better option and there wouldn’t be a need for these “emergency contraceptives.” Perhaps if college girls knew that they are four times more likely of getting an STD than they are of getting pregnant, they would think twice before “getting caught up in the heat of the moment.”
    From your article: “Before Student Health Services began offering the pills, the staff of Student Health Services was forced to send people to the Baldwin County Health Department.” How sad that no one thought of educating these females who came into the health service department, but instead felt forced to send them somewhere to get emergency contraception?
    Also from your article, “‘You shouldn’t be stupid and abuse it but mistakes do happen. It is a good safety net,’ said Ann Harlen, freshman pre-mass communication major.” I wonder if Ann Harlen knows that some of the possible side effects are blood clots, stroke, heart attack or, in short, death?
    As far as other solutions for this “problem” at school, perhaps the best thing would be the educating of these women about the dangers of having sex outside of marriage. For example, from “Sex Has a Price Tag” by Pam Stenzel, it is nearly statistically impossible to have sex with someone who is not a virgin who has not had contact with an STD. About 57 percent of teenagers and college students who are sexually active have HPV (an STD that is the main cause of cervical cancer in women). As you can see, an obvious plus of abstaining from sex before marriage is that you have a zero percent chance of contracting an STD.
    As far as emotional and psychological benefits of abstinence go, there are several. From the book “Unprotected,” one reason women are so much more affected by illicit sex than men is because women release the chemical oxytocin during sexual intercourse. This causes a woman to feel deeply bonded to the man with whom she is having sex. When two people have a “one-night stand,” the woman involved leaves with emotional anguish for which she has no explanation, whether or not she is going to get pregnant.
    If someone is trying to argue that birth control is about women’s rights (as I found in some of the comments left by students at the end of the article), why not think about women’s right to health or life? When I think about my rights, I’m not thinking I will take a pill that may or may not kill me. I think about the freedom of choice—the choice to make decisions that will benefit myself as well as those around me.

    Sincerely,

Rachel Liu

Conflict part of human nature

Dear editor,

    Human nature is to conquer and own anything in one’s power. Having said that, war is a way of life among the single sentient being on the planet earth, a.k.a the Homo Sapien. History has shown this time and time again, whether it be radical Islamo-fascism, or the stupid, heartless ignorant followers in the Westborough Baptist Church (visit http://www.
godhatesfags.com if you have not heard of this detestable logic).
    I have found, through following current events and submitting to common sense, the single most important factor in any kind of organized human contact is that one’s thoughts and ideas originate from whatever background and upbringing/
brainwashing one has experienced in one’s lifetime. The simple fact is that it is “us” against “them” in any kind of cultural, national or otherwise controversial conflict.
    The apache videos of insurgents being dealt with (visit http://www.youtube.
com/watch?v=PDWsy3xHNek for an example ‘WARNING VERY GRAPHIC’) proves this. Those who follow the Wahabi, or any other radical sect of Islam, believe that us westerners are evil just as strongly as we believe they are. History, time and time again has shown that civilizations survive on one principle and one principle alone: Whoever is the strongest militarily and willfully comes out on top.
    The problem (in my opinion) with the United States of America is that we have granted people enough freedom to oppose the very principle upon which this country was founded: revolution through force. The simple fact is that it is “US”; being the true believers in freedom and liberty against “THEM,” who promote more government regulation and appeasement.
    This line of thought benefits those who would like nothing more than to see this great country which was founded upon such liberty and freedom fall. I am not prejudice against Muslims, Christians, Wiccans, Pagans or any other such belief system. I am simply observing the historical trends that have predominated human history. Can different cultures and belief systems coexist on the same hunk of matter that we call the planet Earth? Yes!
    Ultimately, in order to do so, different cultures, belief systems, and nationalities will have to lay down their overzealous fanaticisms one way or another and discontinue the ignorant and wasteful conflicts that result from such petty differences. After all, until humankind becomes advanced enough to colonize other worlds within the vast expanse of the universe, all religions, creeds and nationalities will have to live together and deal with each other in the limited “lebensraum” (livingspace) that our planet provides us.
    Until then, such conflict will continue; and I for one, believing myself to be true to the thought and logic of our founding fathers, will be prepared to defend the freedoms and liberties granted in the constitution of the United States of America to my grave.

    Sincerely,

Isaac Turner,
Junior ,
pre-engineering

Posted by Colonnade Archives on Apr 4 2008. Filed under Letters to the Editor, Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry