Colin Powell & SEX

[CrimsonTide4]

Friday February 15 2:03 AM ET
Colin Powell's Stance on Condoms Draws Fire

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Comments by Secretary of State Colin Powell (news - web sites) encouraging the use of condoms to fight the spread of AIDS (news - web sites) have drawn fire from some conservative supporters of the Bush administration who suggested the remarks were at odds with White House policy.

During a teleconference on the music television network MTV on Thursday, Powell told a global audience he believed condoms were part of the solution to the HIV (news - web sites)/AIDS crisis and encouraged their use by young people who were sexually active.

In my own judgement, condoms are the way to prevent infection and, therefore, I not only support their use, I encourage their use,'' he said in response to a question from a young Italian.

Powell added, ``Forget about taboos, forget about conservative ideas with respect to what you should tell young people about it. It's the lives of young people that are put at risk by unsafe sex, and therefore protect yourself.''

The administration of Republican President Bush (news - web sites) has not taken a stance against condoms. But the White House strongly advocates abstinence as the best option for preventing sexually transmitted diseases and promotes ``abstinence-only'' programs to curb teen-age pregnancies.

Former Republican presidential candidate and Christian activist Gary Bauer (news - web sites) said on Thursday that condoms gave people a ''false sense of security'' and told Powell to ``follow the lead of the Bush administration which he serves.''

The conservative organizations Focus on the Family and the Family Research Council said Powell's comments directly contradicted the policy of his boss.

``Colin Powell is a career soldier. He knows what it means to follow the commander in chief. We have to assume he wouldn't contradict his boss without approval,'' said Dr. James Dobson, president of Focus on the Family. ``If that's not the case, the president needs to publicly repudiate these statements immediately.''

White House spokesman Ari Fleischer (news - web sites) told The Washington Post that Powell's message was consistent with White House policy. He said Powell ``limited his answer to people who are sexually active.''

[ladygreek]

Colin Powell shows that he gets it and Bush doesn't. The whole issue is how to prevent the spread of AIDS. The Bush position that the way to do that is to abstain from sex unless you are married is ludicrous. There are many wives out there who have contracted the disease from their husbands.

AIDS does not discriminate against race, color, creed, or marital status. But the virus cannot pass through latex condoms. So the best way for everyone to be safe, other than abstention, is the use of such condoms.

[Rain Man]

Question for ladygreek?

Can condoms protect you from SOUL TIES? I think not!

Abstainance IMHO is key.

RM

[12dn94dst]

This is the issue:

Originally posted by ladygreek
The whole issue is how to prevent the spread of AIDS.

NOT premarital sex and/or "soul ties"

The Bush position that the way to do that is to abstain from sex unless you are married is ludicrous. There are many wives out there who have contracted the disease from their husbands.

EXCATLY! You name one married couple who's going to be "ok" with not having sex to prevent AIDS.

AIDS does not discriminate against race, color, creed, or marital status. But the virus cannot pass through latex condoms. So the best way for everyone to be safe, other than abstention, is the use of such condoms.

That statement is so true, I'm going to quote it again.

AIDS does not discriminate against race, color, creed, or marital status. But the virus cannot pass through latex condoms. So the best way for everyone to be safe, other than abstention, is the use of such condoms.

[CkretCrush8]

Originally posted by Rain Man
Question for ladygreek?

Can condoms protect you from SOUL TIES? I think not!

Abstainance IMHO is key.

RM

I agree that the best way of prevention is abstinence! However, I also agree with what Colin Powell stated on MTV. For people out there having sex, and we know there are many, they need to protect themselves by using a condom...point blank. Not everyone has the willpower or determination to abstain from sex.

As a Christian, I further agree with you that abstainance is the only thing that can protect and prevent soul ties . You get a high 5 on that one.

[straightBOS]

What about non-Christians???

I am a Christian who works with young girls who are DEFINITELY non-Christian and have no interest in religion. What about them, are they just out of luck?

I cannot reach them on a religious level because they have no idea what I am talking about and will EASILY tune me out.

If we live in a secular society, and we want to be proactive, we have to understand that what may seem right to us may not make the same sense for a non-Christian. And, if we want to be a part of the solution we must do SOMETHING.

Bush's stance is really, "if you are not abstinent then,......" (Notice the trailing off towards nothing)

I refuse to be a passively observant Christian as the people around me die from lack of education and the opportunity to make a decision that, although I might not make, can keep them alive.

Also, although AIDS does not see color, a disproportional number of its carriers and victims are Black, young and Female. As a Black young female, I refuse to ignore my people because they choose to have sex.

[ClassyLady]

We are well past the time when we need to be shy about issues. Some things are okay not to talk about, like if your sister is stripping to pay the bills. That's fine. Not talking about that is not hurting anyone. But, being too embarrassed or afraid to talk about the reality and dangers of sex is why AIDS is so prevalent today. Pretending that is doesn't exist isn't helping anyone. It's hurting our young people, especially our young black women, who don't know how to protect themselves.

I applaud Colin Powell for being strong enough to step out of his comfort zone to educate and inform the people. That takes courage because some people still consider the topic taboo.

Personally, I agree that abstinence is best. But, is it realistic to tell young people with their hormones raging within them not to do what they really, really want to do? I don't think so. We need to tell them that abstinence is best, but also give them options if they choose not to abstain.

And for Dubya's stance, he's basically condemning anyone who differs from his values to death because he chooses not to educate them. Regardless of religious or moral beliefs, everyone in this country deserves equal rights and protection under the law.