Bizarrely, it was sent to a few random SF Gate editors and not me. Here’s the email response from pro-abstinence ULTRA Teen Choice (Unification Church) to my column, Abstinence does not make the heart grow fonder (ps, here’s their page on adhering to gov’t funded Title V, here’s the latest news on ULTRA):
—–Original Message—–
From: ULTRA Teen Choice [mailto:rurban@ultrateenchoice.org]
Sent: Tuesday, January 15, 2008 1:18 AM
To: [redacted]
Cc: [redacted]
Subject: Inaccuarate columnaHi,
Your column by Violet Blue is not accurate regarding the reference to ULTRA Teen Choice (www.ultrateenchoice.org). ULTRA Teen Choice does not receive any government funds. It is wholly privately funded. Furthermore, the “article”, or should we say hack job, does not seem to recognize the fact that abstinence from sexual activity is the only 100% sure way to avoid sexually transmitted diseases, emotional issues, pregnancy and a host of other issues. The majority of teens nationwide, and almost half of teens in Washington DC have never had sexual intercourse according to the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System. These youth want support, encouragement, and accurate information, and that is what they get with the ULTRA Teen Choice program, as the major part of our program is Clubs for youth who wish to stay sexually abstinent.
Furthermore, Ms. Blue seems to miss the fact that perhaps Jamie Lynn Spears needed encouragement and peer support, not a condom. What makes her so sure that Ms. Spears became pregnant due to directive abstinence education? It seems that just the opposite is true.Sincerely,
Richard Urban
Co-Founder
www.ultrateenchoice.org
202-544-5081
* BTW, the phone # is on their website, so I left it intact.
