Again, I feel the need to respond to a letter by Mr. Daniel Fioramonti from last week’s issue (“Do Your Own Research”). He states that my response to his letter of June 29 about Planned Parenthood did not contain facts. He is correct; I did leave out hard and fast statistics for a couple of reasons. The first was that I felt Planned Parenthood could and would respond with actual numbers (and I still believe that they will). The second, and main, reason that I felt my letter didn’t need actual numbers was that Mr. Fioramonti’s letter was so misinformed that it wasn’t necessary to provide them.
In his last letter, Mr. Fioramonti again states that Planned Parenthood’s literature provides “sex counseling techniques designed to get kids addicted to sex.” This is just not true. Educating people about contraception and safe sex does not get them addicted to sex (even kids). However, if it’s facts Mr. Fioramonti wants about the nonprofit Planned Parenthood, here we go:
• Planned Parenthood provides cancer screening and prevention (14.5 percent of medical services), STI/STD testing/treatment (38 percent), other women’s health services (10.4 percent), contraception (33.5 percent), abortion services (3 percent — no tax dollars are used for this service) and other services such as adoption referrals (0.6 percent).
• Their expenses are broken down this way: medical service (68 percent), non-medical domestic program services (15 percent), management/general support (12 percent), fundraising (4 percent) and international family planning (4 percent).
• Planned Parenthood provides pap smears, HIV testing, STD testing, gynecological exams and much more to women (and men) who are in need of their services. It also has education programs and counseling services. It does so much more than Mr. Fioramonti mentions, all for the good of the community.
In summation, it is obvious from his last letter that Mr. Fioramonti does not understand any of the good that this organization does (one of the reasons that Congress did not stop funding the organization).
Some people feel helping the poor with health services (see above list), education to make their own life choices and even spiritual guidance in making those choices is a very valuable service to our community. I am one of those people and welcome Planned Parenthood into the western communities.
Andrew L. Rosen
Wellington
Mr. Morelli, no, handing out condoms does not cause people to become addicted to sex. Sex causes people to become addicted to sex. Abstinance programs also do not work. I am not happy with anyone getting HIV, STDs and unwanted pregnancies, but since they happen, let’s find ways of preventing them. And if you think that none of these things happened when you were growing up in the 40s you are incorrect. Religious upbringing might be a good way to start, although this was tried for centuries and hasn’t been shown to work. Why not teach people good morals – and you DO NOT need religion for this! I would rather follow the Golden Rule and treat people properly and behave morally because it is the right thing to do, not from fear/guilt as most religions teach or from believing in some supernatural notion!
“Educating people about contraception and safe sex does not get them addicted to sex (even kids).” How about handing out condoms? Who does that? I forgot, was that the educational system or PP?
“Planned Parenthood provides cancer screening and prevention (14.5 percent of medical services), STI/STD testing/treatment (38 percent), other women’s health services (10.4 percent), contraception (33.5 percent), abortion services (3 percent — no tax dollars are used for this service) and other services such as adoption referrals (0.6 percent).”
You know I believe that if society was still back in the 40’s when I grew up we wouldn’t be having children contracting HIV and STD’s. In fact I not only never inhaled Weed, I never even knew it existed. So maybe we might give some thought to the causes and then we may not need the solutions.
You may not like it if you are the typical progressive, but religious upbringing is the antidote to your secular solutions.
My dear Mr. Morelli,
Being raised in a religious house that does not have the Golden Rule as a family member is like a condom with a hole in it. To each his own, my friend. Which road do you want to travel on? Better still, where do you really want to end up?
Dian Francesca Cuccinello
Carlisle, MA