Democritus, glad you agree with me that abstinence-only sex education is completely worthless. HRS still doesn’t get the importance of education even after I reiterated it. He thinks it’s a fairy-tale made up by the evil feminist conspiracy.

RObert conjured up some links to fantastic information. I’ve stuffed them up my sleeve just in case I bump into Philo, Boaz or Runner.

HRS,
I guess you haven’t looked at the Marie Stopes site I provided a link to or you would’ve praised the ‘feminists’ at the ‘abortion clinics’ just this once for supplying condoms that are being distributed via the centre’s network to all registered WYD pilgrims during this week, even though Marie Stopes contacted WYT organisers a few months back to offer the condoms but their proposal was ignored!
Ignored! What does that say about the RR?

Aren’t you pleasantly surprised, HRS, given that you accused feminists and abortion clinics for doing nothing about prevention?

I only hope that the pilgrims ignore the pope and not the condoms- we don’t want more STIs and unwanted pregnancies.
But wait, there’s more!
Their free 24-hour hotline will provide World Youth Day pilgrims with 24/7 access to sexual health help and advice as their not-for-profit service.

Oh and why don’t you also have a look at RObert’s links; they’re really worth it if you want to ensure yourself that the Religious Right carefully tiptoe around some Bible quotes and cherry-pick others.

I’m not sure why you insist on ‘a list’ that has to come from academics persé.
Ideas and facts of reducing abortion rates are plentiful and easily found. David Palmer and others and I have provided ideas on how to reduce the abortion rate (or rather, unwanted pregnancies).
Some of these ideas are pro-active, others reactive (mainly David's).

It also helps to have a good social network for children in place such as childcare services, health care, and even parental leave…

HRS

Please refer to this link:

http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/unplanned-pregnancy-study-sparks-call-for-safesex-campaign/2008/01/29/1201369135964.html

Unless you consider the age newspaper as a feminist mouthpiece. It quotes 60% of unplanned pregnancies are due to contraceptive failure of condoms or the pill. (did not include any other types) and makes exactly the case I was.

The religious right chooses ignorance and enforce pregnancy.

Lititia,
I think you are not giving out information on how to reduce the abortion rate because you don’t have any.

Normally very little progress is ever made in any area unless risk management principles are being applied, and the idea that abortion should be made more readily available in Australia when the abortion rates are not currently low, or are not significantly decreasing, is against all principles of risk management.

Your remark that if someone doesn’t like abortion then don’t have one is a totally flippant remark, and well below the standards of what should be required of a university academic.

I can imagine your method of “liberal sex education”.

If you don’t like abortion then don’t have one – Class dismissed.

Celivia,
It doesn’t matter that much what the Marie Stopes company is doing or has on their web-site. The real question is, is it reducing the abortion rate or not?

If you can’t answer that, then it is probably not.

Democritus,
The Marie Stopes abortion company is one abortion company only, and their survey in Australia was quite localized (as they well know).

Broader research is necessary, preferably by a completely independent and non-biased organization (and I wouldn’t include a university in that).

Lititia,
"... thus those of us who are not christians should not have christian values imposed upon us."
Exactly, very well stated!
There's no reason why Christian morals should set the standard rules.
They are free to believe whatever they please but their beliefs should not interfere with other people's freedom.

HRS,
Oh so first you say that ‘abortion clinics’ don’t do enough. Then, when I show you that some at least do quite a lot to prevent pregnancies, you say that it doesn’t matter what they do because there is no evidence that education and contraception reduces the abortion rate. You disregard all the evidence from other countries, too.

Well, I suppose I’ll have no choice but to let you keep filtering and selecting the information that support and maintain your irrational beliefs, just like the religious right always do.
Just like them, you ignore what you don’t want to believe and cherry pick what fits in with your view.

Don’t you acknowledge, in general, that when people learn and have knowledge about defense, protection and anticipation in their everyday life, they reduce their risk?
For example, people who have been instructed on how to safely drive a car are much less likely to cause accidents than people who know very little about road rules.
Similarly, people who have been instructed on how to have safe sex are much less likely to cause or end up with unplanned pregnancies than people who know very little about contraception and safe sex

Doesn’t this sound logic to you?

I can tell you from experience that my adequate knowledge about contraception and sex has prevented unplanned pregnancies for me.
There is much reason to believe that this knowledge would also help other women to prevent pregnancies.

Dear HRS

First, I am not representing the university or speaking as an academic in my postings. My article was as Vice-President of Liberty Victoria - the Victorian Council for Civil Liberties. Online Opinion and I disclosed my employment in the interest of transparency.

Secondly, in all postings addressing your comments you ignore anything others say in response if they are not suited to your blinkered view.

Robert, others and I have posted comments on the Bible and abortion which undermined your arguments completely as such you then conveniently ignore them as if they were never written.

Thirdly, none of us are obliged to reduce abortion rates. That is your particular obsession. As others have pointed out, if you want that information it is out there publicly available but if you don't like the group releasing the information you choose to ignore it. I am not concerned with the numbers of abortion as I have already stated therefore I am not posting information on how to reduce the rate of abortion others have provided that information for you.

Stating that you can choose not to have an abortion if you oppose the process is not flippant it is a fact. As someone who cannot get pregnant you need to exercise a bit more restraint, you can control your own fertility but not others. This is an inherently intimate part of an individuals life and should not be controlled by others, man or woman. Seeking to control the body and fertility of others is the most insidious form of authoritarianism.

It is a sad thing when assumed that anyone standing for the unborn, is against contraception, education and choice. Of course we can not enforce, or wipe out abortion - would not everyone be happy with that in an ideal world? But, more information (unbiased - not like sites such as abortion.org), about the risks (physical and emotional), ultrasound of the baby for the woman to see before deciding (that is not manipualtion - just showing her what is there - not just "matter" as the abortion web site states), and exact information on how the procedure would happen (maybe even one of those actual footage ones like they show in College to Bio students). Once again, not manipulation, if it was indeed just "matter", it shouldn't upset them at all. Though, last time I noticed, "matter" didn't kick, have a heart-beat, and depend on it's mother for life. Indeed, better education of how a woman's body works (ovulation, cycle, egg-life etc.) and use of other contraception with that etc., is always a neccessary thing. Women should be the ones to teach their daughters, but mothers need to learn it first. I think the womens movement has sadly pushed that away. It has now become easier to pop a pill, than care how it works or how their bodies work etc. I will be teaching my daughter as soon as she gets to that age. Also, people need to understand, that sex means more than instant pleasure. No form of one contraception can fully protect from conception. That is why it is better in marriage. But there's another topic!