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New Publications: 
- Good advice on 'Don't Ask, Don't Tell' (Washington Post)
Mr. Gates and Adm. Mullen did their duty Tuesday. They explained the steps they're taking to be ready when Congress finally repeals "don't ask, don't tell." Congress should be listening to them and to Mr. Powell. - Woman Says Sex-Change Tax Battle Also Helps Others (New York Times)
A woman who battled the IRS over a tax deduction for the costs of her sex-change operation says she feels like she won a victory for all transgender people. - Study: Abstinence program most effective at delaying sex among youths (CNN)
Wagoner, president of Advocates for Youth, said that in his opinion, the abstinence program does not go far enough toward helping youths who are sexually active make informed choices about contraception. He would like to see federal funding for programs aimed at abstinence and safe sex. - An Advocacy Ad Stirs a National Debate (New York Times)
Never has there been a Super Bowl spot that took sides on a contentious social issue — until now. - White House Proposes 9% Increase in Global-Health Funding (Wall Street Journal)
The Obama administration proposed a 9% increase in funding for global health needs in its fiscal 2011 budget, pledging to spend more to combat preventable diseases and reduce deaths among women and children at a time when it is tightening its belt elsewhere. - Abstinence-only programs might work, study says (Washington Post)
"There is no data in this study to support the 'abstain until marriage' programs, which research proved ineffective during the Bush administration," said James Wagoner, president of Advocates for Youth.
The articles are based on a recent study by respected researchers John B. and Loretta S. Jemmott and compare results for young people receiving three kinds of programs: an “abstinence-only” intervention, designed to help teens wait until they are ready; a “combined intervention” which included information about abstinence as well as contraception and condoms; and a safer-sex-only intervention with no information about abstinence.
The study focused on young African American preteens in an urban area and found that this new type of abstinence-only program can help some very young adolescents (average age 12) delay sexual initiation for up to 24 months.
It is important to note that the study provides no data in support of the failed abstinence-only-until-marriage programs of the Bush era. The abstinence-only program in this study would not have been eligible for federal funding during the Bush years because it did not fit the “8 point definition”. The program goal was to help early teens avoid sex until they are ready—a totally different objective than the federally funded abstinence programs already proven ineffective by the long-term Mathematica study “which showed no impact on teen behavior”.
Prime Time Show Tackles Tough Issues and Raises Questions for Parents
by Martha Kempner
A few weeks ago the television show Private Practice, a spin-off of Grey’s Anatomy that is so heavy on the soap opera aspect and light on the medicine that it can barely be called a medical drama, began a story line where the teenage daughter of two of the main characters started getting into trouble. In one episode her mother comes home early to find Maya fooling around on the couch with a boy, even though they were both supposed to be in school at that moment. Her mother exploded at her for the kissing part, told her she was going to kill her, and shipped her off to live with her father. I was distressed that teen sex was the enemy, when clearly the real problem in that moment was that they were cutting school.
So, two weeks later when it was revealed that Maya was pregnant, I was quite concerned about how the show’s writers were going to handle this plotline.
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