Posted by
Annathema on Saturday, October 27, 2007 5:51:53 AM
It's not new news, but I can't get over the whole birth control pills in school issue. What kind of epic failure in parenting is going on that the school board feels that the Pill should be available to 11 year-olds? Without parental notification? A child can't get a tetanus shot without a parent's signature, but they can get a birth control pill? What?
I am currently on the Pill, and have been in the past, for medical reasons I will not elaborate on. I was tested several times for my blood pressure rate to make sure that this pill would not adversely affect my health. If I had had high blood pressure, I would not be taking this drug. That's what it is ultimately, a drug. There are risks involved, which is why I believe that the decision to pass these pills out in schools is absurd. And the idea that the parents of these children are not informed that the schools are giving their kids drugs is positively outrageous.
Now, the school is supposed to have updated medical records, but an eighth-grader hasn't had a physical since before fifth grade. If that child developed a blood pressure condition, and had not been diagnosed yet, then the Pill would be the last thing you would want to give them. There could be any number of complications that would make a gynecologist refuse to prescribe birth control pills, and I find it difficult to believe that a school nurse could catch them all. Then again, I highly doubt that there'd be much of a medical exam.
I'm 22 years old. I have no children of my own, but I have a younger sister who is turning 13 next month. The school will call my mother if my sister draws a comic strip with the words "butter knife" in it, but there would be no phone call if my sister went in and asked for a drug? Does this make sense?
Here's a great situation...
"Don't tell my mom, she'll freak if she finds out I'm having sex!"
She'll freak more if you have an adverse reaction to a pill she didn't even know you were taking, kiddo.
And imagine how happy she'll be if you get an STD!
"How can she have syphilis, she's a virgin!" "Actually Mom, I have to tell you something..."
Great conversation, I'm sure...
Do not get me started on the violation of privacy issue. They are children, and they live with their parents. Privacy? Ha! In my house, "childrens' privacy" consists of closing the door while you use the bathroom... and locking that door is prohibited. Parents should know where their children are and what they are doing at all times. This includes knowing if their child is having sex (which shouldn't be happening anyway if the parent is doing their job), and being informed by the school if their child requests a birth control pill. Lack of parental responsibility is the root of the problem, and keeping parents out of the decision to give potentially harmful drugs to children at school is not a solution.
End snarkfest, begin meerkats.
I've become addicted to a show called Meerkat Manor over the past year. The new episodes air on Friday evenings on Animal Planet, and the third season is ending next week. This is a little soap opera of meerkats, and the editing of the footage collected by the university creates some interesting storylines. I'm not going to re-cap the whole three seasons, but I felt compelled to add meerkats in today. One of my favorites, Mozart, died this week's episode. There have been a lot of major deaths this past season.
I'm going to include meerkat facts at the end of every post. Snarkfests and Meerkats. Enjoy.