Free Republic

A coalition of atheists and Christians will protest during World Youth Day against the Pope's visit to Sydney. With slogans including “Gay is great” and “Condoms save lives“, the NoToPope Coalition is planning a peaceful rally and march on July 19, the day Pope Benedict XVI travels to Randwick racecourse in Sydney's east.    “The Pope is homophobic,” coalition spokeswoman Rachel Evans said in a statement today.    “Pope Benedict also condemns millions of people to AIDS via his world-wide anti-condom policy.”    Members of the NoToPope Coalition include The Metropolitan Community Church, Atheists Sydney, The Socialist Alliance, Resistance, and Community Action Against...

The United Nations will send nearly a quarter of a million condoms into cyclone-hit Myanmar to help needy survivors with no access to contraceptives, a UN official says. So far, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) said it had sent 72 800 condoms to survivors struggling to maintain their family planning after the storm hit in early May. A total of 218 400 condoms would be delivered, UNFPA aid advisor Chaiyos Kunanusont said. "We don't want regular use of contraception disrupted. An emergency usually damages the health system, so people don't have access to condoms and contraceptives," said Chaiyos. Flights were...

Army fights STDs with free condoms 04/15/08 – By Steve Mraz, Stars and Stripes European Edition KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany — Two thousand free condoms are being placed in Army gyms and clubs around Kaiserslautern in an effort to combat sexually transmitted diseases. Clear plastic bins began showing up late Friday afternoon with stickers that read: “Readiness doesn’t end when the uniform comes off.” The bins were placed in the bathrooms of eight Army gyms and clubs that fall under U.S. Army Garrison Kaiserslautern, including the Landstuhl Combined Club, Armstrong’s on Vogelweh Housing and The Oasis on Kleber Kaserne. The condom give-away...

A school board in Arizona has decided that condoms are among the items that should be given to students attending this year's prom. The school board in the Bisbee District voted 4-1 at a recent meeting to include the condoms in a "prom bag" that will be given to prom-goers this year. A spokeswoman in the office of Supt. Paul McDonald confirmed the condoms would be handed out to the event celebrants, along with other items such as picture frames, balloons and candy. "The governing board approved [this]," she told WND. "They are to have what they call prom bags,...

"Papa loved Mama, so they got married and had babies." Thus does my earnest four-year-old summarize the mysteries of marital love. For scientific purposes that statement is terribly incomplete. For philosophical purposes, it hits the bull's eye. With those words Phil Lawler began a Wall Street Journal op-ed in March of 1996. His child's perspective stands in instructive contrast to an article in today's New York Times titled, "Talking With Children About Sex and AIDS: At What Age to Start?" The answer suggested in the lede is "How about, oh, 4?" The reporter tells us this is the subject...

[Originally titled: I don't bloody believe it - he's done it again !!!!!????] I was away this weekend [more later] ; but as I was in a minibus returning home from London I missed radio 4's sunday show - so had to wait for the ' listen again ' feature on the website. http://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/programmes/sunday/prog_details.shtmlOur Cardinal's done it again !!!??? What exactly? Well take a wild guess - he's invited to comment on one thing the church opposes; and by the time he's finished he's equivocated and compromised to such an extent he ends up saying the exact opposite !!! That...

Amid news that, in preparation for Brazil's Carnival celebrations, the government will be handing out millions of free condoms, Reuters indulges in some editorializing: Recife city also plans to distribute morning-after contraceptive pills -- a move that has angered the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy.The church opposes Brazil's much lauded anti-AIDS campaign on the grounds that it promotes contraception.Wait a minute. How exactly does the morning-after pill prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS? That's right, it does not. Therefore, the distrubtion of morning-after pills can in no way be taken as being part of an "anti-AIDS campaign." Furthermore, the church does...

If you thought Planned Parenthood couldn't go any lower, think again. The latest "public service announcement" by Planned Parenthood Golden Gate, which the organization's Web site boasts is aimed at 18-24-year-olds and set to air on MTV, features a ridiculously stereotyped homosexual flight attendant showering condoms, patches, and pills on members of his "Mile High Club" before coming on to the jet's male pilot.

Condoms Availability: Most models in stores through April 2005. Clickfor more information. In performance order.Models with identical overall scores are listed alphabetically. Excellent Very good Good Fair Poor   Brand & model Price Overall score Test results Lubricant Features   1 Durex Extra Sensitive Lubricated Latex $0.83 Regular   •   2 Durex Performax Lubricated 0.83 Numbing        3 LifeStyles Classic Collection Ultra Sensitive Lubricated 0.92 Regular   •   4 TheyFit Lubricated 1.00 Regular       5 Trojan Extended Pleasure Climax Control Lubricant 0.83 Numbing         6 Trojan Non-lubricated 0.54 None      ...

WASHINGTON, December 13, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - In what came as a shock to some, US First Lady Laura Bush promoted condom use "every time" in the pages of the Washington Post on December 1st. Writing on World AIDS Day Bush urged: "Practice safe sex," and advocated the "correct and consistent use of condoms" which she said, "means not just occasionally, but every time." Of note, Mrs. Bush suggested her approach was following the example of "our African counterparts". She wrote: "Let's take a cue from our African counterparts and follow the ABC method of prevention: Abstinence, Be Faithful, and the...

To activists concerned about AIDS and prisoners' rights, it's an urgent, commonsense step that should already be nationwide policy -- letting inmates have condoms to reduce the spread of sexually transmitted diseases behind bars. Yet their efforts have run headlong into a stronger political force: Authorities' desire not to encourage inmates who flout prison rules against sex. Only one state, Vermont, and five cities regularly hand out condoms to inmates. Mississippi does so only for inmates receiving conjugal visits from their spouses. Left out are the vast majority of America's 2.2 million prisoners -- many held in facilities where sex...

TEGUCIGALPA (Reuters) - The rapid spread in Latin America of the virus that causes AIDS is made worse by the Roman Catholic Church's stand against using condoms, a U.N. official said on Monday. Some 1.7 million people across Latin America are infected with the HIV virus or full-blown AIDS, and the epidemic is spreading swiftly with up to 410,000 new cases in 2006, up from as many as 320,000 new cases in 2004, according the UN AIDS program, UNAIDS. "In Latin America the use of condoms has been demonized, but if they were used in every relation I guarantee the...

Sacramento, Oct 19, 2007 / 11:01 am (CNA).- According to a study published last month in the Californian Journal of Health Promotion, there were 1.1 million new cases of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) among young Californians in 2005, the California Catholic reports.  The figure is ten times higher than previously believed.  If the study is accurate, diseases such as chlamydia, gonorrhea, syphilis, HPV, and HIV now infect almost one out of four Californians in the 15-24 age group.The authors believe that their figures are underestimated because of incomplete screening of sexually active young people and failures in follow-up testing. The...

Philippine Population Control Groups Launch Suit Against Pro-Life Manila Former Mayor By Hilary White MANILA, Philippines, October 2, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Lito Atienza, the former mayor of the Philippine capital Manila, who has earned the wrath of abortionists and population control groups for his opposition to the killer abortion drug RU-486, is facing a lawsuit by those same groups. According to Elizabeth Pangalangan, executive director of the Reproductive Health, Rights and Ethics Center at the University of the Philippines, the suit aims to "hold [Atienza] liable for acts which caused injury to women." Atienza, who is now the Environment Secretary...

A Thai bank is pitching into the battle against HIV/AIDS and handing out condoms to customers too shy to get them at the shop...

100,000 free condoms rejected in D.C. 2 hours, 21 minutes ago More than 100,000 condoms given away in a citywide campaign to reduce HIV and AIDS have been returned because of complaints that their paper packaging can be easily damaged and could make the condoms ineffective. A coalition of nonprofit groups distributing the condoms for the District of Columbia Health Department returned them after they heard complaints and noticed less demand for them. "People were saying, 'These packages aren't any good,' said Franck DeRose, executive director of a group called the Condom Project. Volunteers were told that the paper packets...

Tens of thousands of condoms provided free by the District to curb HIV-AIDS have been returned to the health department because of complaints that their paper packaging is easily damaged and could render the condoms ineffective. Demand at two distribution sites in Southeast set up by nonprofit groups plummeted more than 80 percent after the condoms, in a mustard-yellow and purple wrapper, were introduced this year. More than 2,000 packets a week were scooped up in mid-March, but by late May, only 400 were being given away each week. Volunteers concerned about why interest had dropped began asking people who...

Jokin de Irala | Wednesday, 22 August 2007 Abstinence education: are we asking the right questions? Research findings seem to show that abstinence only education "doesn't work". Surely that means we have to make it better, not just give up. Teenagers can tend to live dangerously and society today gives them plenty of opportunities to do so. As a result, we are seeing epidemics of youthful drunkenness, drug-induced mental illness and sexually transmitted diseases, to mention only three of the excesses young people seem prone to. This week in Britain there are calls for the legal drinking age to be...

Study Links Increase in Oral Cancers in Men to HPV The rate of oral cancer in men under the age of 45 is rising and a new study links the increase to the human papillomavirus (HPV). Although the overall incidence of head and neck cancers has fallen in the United States and the rate of oropharyngeal (tonsil and base of tongue) cancers is stagnant in females, it appears to be rising in younger men, according to a review published in the Oct. 1 issue of Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society. Cancers of the head and neck,...

New Jerseyans have captured, killed, harassed, scared and chased them. Volunteers search out their nests. For the past couple of decades, it's been a pitched battle of humans versus Canada geese for control of golf courses, parks, corporate centers, beach areas and athletic fields statewide. Now, there is a new, non-lethal tool in the fight to cut the Canada geese population: The pill. A North Caldwell man and his California partner have developed a contraceptive that could limit Canada geese births. Just like in humans, Canada geese would have to take a prescribed regular daily dose of the drug and...

The search for the "magic bullet" contraceptive, a one-shot, long-lasting solution to the state's deer overpopulation woes, has once again eluded scientists, according to the latest study by a wildlife research team. Biologist Anthony DiNicola's study of a captive herd at the Giralda Farms corporate center in Madison found that one of the latest immuno-contraceptives, called GonaCon, falls far short of being a viable vaccine. Had it worked, scientists say it would have been a godsend to towns with too many deer, and where hunting is difficult or impractical. The two-year study of 51 adult deer at Giralda Farms showed...

Refusing work duties due to faith – Legal cases rise as believers say job aspects inconsistent with religion By Michelle Martin6/21/2007 Our Sunday Visitor HUNTINGTON, Ind. (Our Sunday Visitor) – When some Muslim cab drivers in the Twin Cities began refusing to pick up passengers who were carrying alcohol — either from the duty-free shops or as souvenirs from vacation spots — it caused a small media blip.But when the Metropolitan Airports Commission considered allowing cabs to display a different colored light if they would not transport alcohol, it generated a torrent of public response, nearly all negative. In...

U.S. Appropriations Committee votes to increase funding to abstinence education By Elizabeth O'Brien WASHINGTON, DC, June 18, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The United States House Appropriations Committee reviewed a report that reveals the overwhelming pro-contraceptive bias within "comprehensive" sex-education programs, reported the Washington Times last week. The Committee read the report on Thursday before voting to increase abstinence-education funding. The new bill will provide an extra $27.8 million dollars for the Community-Based Abstinence Education Program, raising its total to $141 in funding, says the Times. The same amount will also go towards the Title X family-planning programs, making a total of...

New STD Infection Rates “4 times higher among those who used condoms during their last vaginal intercourse”: M. Genitalium Surpasses Gonorrhea among Young Adults Reports Health Journal By Peter J. Smith SEATTLE, Washington, June 12, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) – A new study reveals that a relatively new sexually transmitted disease (STD) has surpassed gonorrhea in prevalence among sexually active young adults in the United States. The disease, Mycoplasma genitalium, was first identified back in the 1980s as the smallest known bacterium in existence. Now researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle found that 1.0 percent of the several thousand participants...

Gisele Bundchen Blasts Roman Catholic Church's Opposition to Condom Use, Abortion Thursday, June 07, 2007 RIO DE JANEIRO, Brazil — Gisele Bundchen is the biggest international star on the runway during Rio's Fashion Week, but she's also making headlines for criticizing the Roman Catholic church's opposition to condom use and abortion. Bundchen, who paraded Tuesday night for the Colcci label, told the Folha de S. Paulo newspaper that the church's take on contraception is hopelessly outdated because it was adopted when "the women were virgins, the guys were virgins." "Today, no one is a virgin when they get married," Bundchen...

Editor's Note: Abstinence funding is at risk! Rep. John Dingell (D-Michigan), Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, is letting an opportunity to protect teens from sexually-transmitted diseases (STDs) and promote a healthy lifestyle slip through his hands. The funding for these programs is set to expire on June 30. As chairman of the Committee, Rep. Dingell controls whether this program will be reauthorized. Contact Chairman Dingell and the members of the Energy and Commerce Committee and let them know that "condoms as candy" is a bad recipe for our children! To take action, click here.The teacher announced to...

EDINBURGH, May 30, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Scotland is reporting an all-time high in the number of abortions being committed; as a solution the country is offering more ‘sex-education’ in schools and free condoms. 13,081 pregnancies were “terminated” in Scotland in 2006, compared with 12,603 the year before, with the highest rates among those women aged between 16 and 19. The level of abortions among those aged under 16 also reached a record high of 362 in 2006, from 341 the year before and 309 in 2004. The BBC reports that the greatest increase is in so-called “medical” or chemical abortions,...

ALGIERS (AFP) - Algeria has 10 million free condoms to distribute but there are no takers, a senior medical official in the conservative Muslim country said Wednesday. "In Algeria, where AIDS spreads mainly through sexual contact, 10 million free condoms are waiting in warehouses of the national pharmacy but there are no takers," said Mohamed Mesbah. Some 19,000 of this north African country's 33 million people -- 0.05 percent of the population -- live with AIDS, according to the UN agency UNAIDS. Algerian authorities offer dramatically lower estimates. At the end of last year, it said there were 746 AIDS...

ANKENY, Iowa - Several classrooms at Des Moines Area Community College were evacuated after college officials became nervous about a suspicious package. College officials called police and postal inspectors after the box was delivered Thursday. What they found inside wasn't a bomb — it was a box containing 500 condoms. The package was sent to a teacher of a human sexuality class, and was sent by a person who had been a previous speaker at the class, said Rob Denson, the college's president.

Condoms Lead To College Evacuation Prophylactic Miss-Delivery Empties Classrooms Several classrooms at Des Moines Area Community College were evacuated after college officials became nervous about a suspicious package. College officials called police and postal inspectors after the box was delivered Thursday. What they found inside wasn't a bomb -- it was a box containing 500 condoms. The package was sent to a teacher of a human sexuality class, and was sent by a person who had been a previous speaker at the class, said Rob Denson, the college's president.

See for example this thread first. A great contribution to knowledge Des Moines Area Community College Mistaken for bombs A box of condoms Inspired by the girls decolletage?

Box of condoms leads to evacuation Sat Apr 28, 4:52 AM ET ANKENY, Iowa - Several classrooms at Des Moines Area Community College were evacuated after college officials became nervous about a suspicious package. College officials called police and postal inspectors after the box was delivered Thursday. What they found inside wasn't a bomb — it was a box containing 500 condoms. The package was sent to a teacher of a human sexuality class, and was sent by a person who had been a previous speaker at the class, said Rob Denson, the college's president.

SAN FRANCISCO, April 17, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Planned Parenthood Golden Gate (PPGG) has just released a "Safe is Sexy" television ad that features a young couple being interrupted from having unprotected sex by their Guardian Angels. The ad, which will appear on MTV, VH1 and FX, shows a sloppy-looking male angel eating popcorn at the head of the bed watching in delight. Then his female counterpart appears imploring him to do something. He accesses a TV remote and rewinds the scene of the couple in bed. This time the woman asks her male partner if he has any protection,...

Bishop Thomas V. Daily, head of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, has criticized Mayor-elect Rudolph W. Giuliani for supporting the distribution of condoms in the public schools. In a statement issued Friday afternoon, Bishop Daily, the spiritual leader of 1.6 million Catholics in Brooklyn and Queens, said he was "disappointed and dismayed that our Mayor-elect, Rudy Giuliani, has indicated that he supports this dangerously irresponsible policy." On Tuesday, Schools Chancellor Ramon C. Cortines said that he planned to modify the school system's condom distribution program to provide parents with the ability to decide whether their children should be allowed...

I've lost count of the number of news stories that, over the past decade, have breathlessly predicted the Holy See was on the verge of approving condoms. All were groundless. All served their purpose, though, inasmuch as they created a public expectation for the change their instigators wished to see occur. Framed as a medical crisis (the AIDS epidemic), the change campaigned for is a change in moral teaching. Ruth Gledhill of the London Times, who's had a rough couple weeks of it herself, puts up a post in extenuation of a recent floater by the Financial Times, which reported...

Edward Cardinal Egan and Brooklyn Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio yesterday declared a holy war against the city's distribution of 26 million free, subway-themed condoms, calling it an immoral "anything goes" policy that degrades society. In a rare joint statement attacking Mayor Michael Bloomberg's administration, the Catholic leaders said they were particularly disturbed that the "NYC" branded condoms were handed out by city workers to young teens on the streets Wednesday. "The decision of the City of New York to distribute [26] million free condoms to the public — and minors as well, according to news reports — is tragic and misguided,"...

BANGALORE, India — The Indian government says the Church is playing a crucial role in the fight against AIDS, a disease that has assumed epidemic proportions on the subcontinent.“The Church has taken up HIV/AIDS as a very serious issue and we are very happy about the commitment of the Church in this,” Mayank Aggarwal, joint director of the National AIDS Control Organization, told the Register Jan. 29.“Religious leaders hold mass support in this country and we are working very closely with the Church in spreading awareness on AIDS,” said Aggarwal.Asked whether Catholic opposition to condoms is a sticking point for...

NYC To Hand Out Free Condoms On Valentine's Day (CBS/AP) NEW YORK If you need to buy flowers or chocolate for your Valentine on Wednesday, you're on your own. The condoms, however, are free -- courtesy of New York City. Taking advantage of the holiday for lovers, Mayor Michael Bloomberg's administration was to unveil the official city condom in midtown Manhattan, where volunteers were to hand them out free at Fifth Avenue and 50th Street. The health department's condom program already distributes 1.5 million free condoms each month, but the regular wrapper doesn't allow for tracking the effectiveness of the...

"A 20-year-old Swedish man could face up to five years in prison for stealing condoms while holidaying on the Thai island of Phuket. On Saturday morning the man arrived on the island accompanied by his mother, Expressen reports. Related Articles Alligator found in Malmö bushes 9th January 2007 Jailbird released after friend faxes prison 9th January 2007 Big Brother star's implants to go under the hammer 9th January 2007 Article Options Send to a friend Printable version Submit to Digg.com And on the very first evening he looked to have found a holiday love interest in a bar at the...

The Roman Catholic church has taken the first step towards what could be a historic shift away from its total ban on the use of condoms. Pope Benedict XVI's "health minister" is understood to be urging him to accept that in restricted circumstances - specifically the prevention of Aids - barrier contraception is the lesser of two evils. The recommendations, which have not been made public, still have to be reviewed by the traditionally conservative Vatican department responsible for safeguarding theological orthodoxy, and then by the Pope himself, before any decision is made. The rethink, commissioned by Pope Benedict following...

There is a "lack of awareness" over condom sizes A survey of more than 1,000 men in India has concluded that condoms made according to international sizes are too large for a majority of Indian men. The study found that more than half of the men measured had penises that were shorter than international standards for condoms. It has led to a call for condoms of mixed sizes to be made more widely available in India. The two-year study was carried out by the Indian Council of Medical Research. Over 1,200 volunteers from the length and breadth of the country...

Dress Up Against AIDSCondom Couture by Adriana BertiniDecember 1, 2006 to March 11, 2007Dress Up Against AIDS features fourteen magnificent garments designed and produced by Brazilian artist Adriana Bertini, made entirely of men's and women's condoms rejected by industry quality tests. By appropriating an object of protection and using it to create works of vibrant and original style, color, and texture, Bertini seeks to raise awareness of and inspire the use of condoms, the critical vehicle for preventing AIDS. These colorful, sensual clothes, including ornate evening dresses, vivid skirts and tops, and elegant suits, demystify and destigmatize condoms and "refashion"...

The Family Un-Planner The Bush administration's crazy new HHS appointment. By Amanda SchafferPosted Tuesday, Nov. 21, 2006, at 4:50 PM ET On Monday, the federal office that oversees the nation's family-planning program got a new boss who doesn't believe in birth control. Eric Keroack is a Massachusetts obstetrician-gynecologist who argues that abstinence until marriage is the only healthy choice for women. Until recently, he served as medical director of a pregnancy-counseling organization that runs down contraception and gives out scientifically false health information—for instance, that condoms "offer virtually no protection" against herpes or HPV. Keroack also promotes a wacky piece of...

Pope Benedict XVI is considering concessions over the use of condoms to fight Aids — but the Vatican’s overall ban on condoms will almost certainly remain intact despite the relentless rise in deaths from Aids in Africa, Vatican sources say.Medical and theological experts advising the Pope have suggested that married couples could be allowed to use condoms when one of the spouses is HIV-positive or a drug user. Vatican watchers said that this would “open a small chink” in the Vatican’s uncompromising opposition to condoms. There was no question of reversing the basic doctrine laid down in Humanae Vitae, the...

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - A study commissioned by Pope Benedict on the use of condoms to fight AIDS has passed its first hurdle and is now being reviewed by top theologians for possible use in a Papal document, a cardinal said on Tuesday."This is something that worries the Pope a lot," said Cardinal Javier Lozano Barragan, head of the Vatican's Pontifical Council for Health Pastoral Care.The Catholic Church opposes the use of condoms and teaches that fidelity within heterosexual marriage, chastity and abstinence are the best ways to stop the spread of AIDS.It says promoting condoms fosters immoral and hedonistic...

U.S. prisons should make condoms available to inmates and test for HIV as part of a broader effort to curb the spread of AIDS among blacks, hit disproportionately hard by the incurable disease, experts urged Thursday. The National Minority AIDS Council advocacy group, backed by U.S. black lawmakers and medical leaders, issued a series of recommendations aimed at U.S. policymakers to slow the epidemic among blacks, 10 times more likely than whites to have AIDS.

Branding condoms with famous names is not a new trend in China. In September 2005, the Guangzhou Rubber Group produced two condoms with the brand names Clinton and Lewinsky.

The people have spoken in the U.S. The precious gift of democracy has been savored once again. Such unimaginable freedom we have, and yet, there are those who take liberty for granted, and live (talk) the illusion that the grass is greener "over there" -- wherever "there" is. But think of those who lived through the Soviet years, or those who now live in the "People's Republic" of China. Listen to this: Some poor Chinese shmuck had a truly brilliant marketing scheme for selling condoms. He put the images of Lei Feng and Mao Zedong on the wrappers. You've got...

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Nearly two-thirds of young Indian men expect the woman they marry to be a virgin, but nearly half have had sex with prostitutes, according to a poll. The survey of more than 2,500 men aged between 16 and 25 conducted by India Today magazine across 11 cities found that 49 percent claimed to have had sex with a sex worker while 37 percent said they had had a homosexual experience. But 63 percent of young men in conservative India said they expected the women they married to be a virgin. The average age of their first...

EUFAULA, Alabama — Here in this courtly, antebellum town, Alabama’s condom production has survived an onslaught of Asian competition, thanks to the patronage of straitlaced congressmen from this Bible Belt state. Behind the scenes, the politicians have ensured that companies in Alabama won federal contracts to make billions of condoms over the years for AIDS prevention and family planning programs overseas, though Asian factories could do the job at less than half the cost.