Abstinence Education Ignores Options

Assistant Secretary for Children and Families Wade Horn’s letter in defense of abstinence education (Dec. 27) as the only certain defense against STDs is comparable to asserting that if you never leave the house, you won’t be hit by a car.

As with many other “faith-based” initiatives, abstinence education is grounded in a mordant fear of sexuality, impurity and difference. One would think a government official responsible for children’s health would favor education over ideology. Youths, as well as adults, should be presented with all the options -- medical, psychological and social -- along with the recognition that life is far richer and more complex than fundamentalists want it to be.

Paul Zelevansky

Beverly Hills