Colorado Gov. Bans Abstinence-Only Sex Ed, Permits Homosexual Adoption

LIfeSiteNews ^ | 5/16/07 | Gudrun Schultz

[wagglebee]

DENVER, Colorado, May 16, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter signed into law Monday two bills legalizing homosexual adoption and banning abstinence-only sex education.

Ritter defended his decision to sign H.B. 1330, which permits homosexual couples to adopt, by claiming the law would “strengthen families and provide children with as stable an environment as possible,” The Colorado Springs Gazette reported.

Jim Pfaff, president and CEO of the Colorado Family Institute, told Focus on the Family’s Citizen Link that both bills were examples of paybacks to financial supporters.

“Both bills show that this was a Legislature that was willing to pay back its benefactors,” he said. “Their agenda is to expand rights and legal acceptance of the homosexual lifestyle. What we need to be doing is strengthening the capability of mother-and father households to adopt.

“It’s a clarion call to the Church, that we need to be addressing the adoption issue.”

Pfaff said Ritter’s support of a ban on abstinence-only sex education will take moral teaching out of the classroom and undo the success already apparent with abstinence-only programs currently in use in the state.

“It’s a radical reversal of what has been working in Colorado,” he said. “We have seen a noticeable decrease in out-of-wedlock births among teens. Now, all that progress has been wiped away with the stroke of the governor’s pen.”

Both laws were strongly opposed by the Colorado Catholic Conference, Catholic News Agency reported May 15. The law permitting adoption by homosexual couples or unmarried heterosexual couples bypasses the normal legal review process of adoption, the CCC warned. It “fails to recognize the intricacies of adoption law and processes, and is not in the best interests of the children or people of Colorado.”

As well, the law “clearly circumvents the expressed will of Colorado voters who rejected Referendum I in November of 2006. Referendum I would have allowed same-sex couples the possibility of adopting children,” the CCC pointed out.

The law requiring all sex education courses to include contraceptive instruction will undercut the effectiveness of abstinence-only teaching, the CCC said. “Although this law does address the need for abstinence education it also mandates the teaching of contraceptive methods and practices. This legislation will eliminate a public school district’s ability to retain local control over the content of human sexuality courses taught in their schools.

Philadelphia Cardinal Justin Rigali recently told the U.S. legislature that “so-called ‘comprehensive’ sex education programs that mention abstinence within the discussion of premarital sexual experimentation is not an appropriate alternative.”

“‘Comprehensive’ sex education,” he said, is “more accurately described as compromised education. The abstinence message is mentioned, but then undermined with the false message that premature sexual experimentation does no real harm if steps are taken to avoid pregnancy.”

Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput challenged Ritter in January to be sure his actions as governor reflected his professed Roman Catholic faith--Ritter ran as a pro-life candidate in last fall’s election. Catholics and pro-life groups in the state expressed disappointment with the governor’s decision in March to sign a law requiring all Colorado hospitals, including Catholic institutions, to offer information on abortifacient drugs to victims of rape.

See related LifeSiteNews coverage:

Catholic Colorado Governor Signs Bill Mandating Catholic Hospitals Give Information on Abortion Drug
http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2007/mar/07031602.html

[Clintonfatigued]

Your ping list will want to know about this.

[Clintonfatigued]

This is astonishing. Bill Ritter was long isliked by party liberals because he was pro-life and an aggressive crime-fighter as Denver District Attorney.

He has moved so far left, I’m surprised he doesn’t have whiplash. What a shame.

[Clintonfatigued]

Spelling corection:

disliked*

[Clintonfatigued]

Can ballot initiatives be placed for a vote during the 2008 general elections?

[metmom]

ANOTHER REASON TO HOMESCHOOL

This ping list is for the “other” articles of interest to homeschoolers about education and public school. If you want on/off this list, please freepmail me. The main Homeschool Ping List by DaveLoneRanger handles the homeschool-specific articles.

[Clintonfatigued]

Just when you think that public schools couldn’t sink any lower, something like this happens.

Public education was never a success story, but until recently something like this was unthinkable.

[metmom]

I’ll say. Is there a Colorado ping list?

[ChessExpert]

“Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter.” No party affiliation?

[paltz]

A dem indeed. Imagine how blatant the party description would have been in this article if he was gop’er.

[gondramB]

The text of the law about Sex Ed.

>>(3) Therefore, the general assembly hereby declares that the objective of this act is to reduce the incidence of sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancy, and abortion among teenagers by ensuring that school districts and teen pregnancy prevention programs that offer instruction and information concerning human sexuality provide teenagers the science-based information they need to make responsible
and healthy decisions, with a primary emphasis on abstaining from sexual activity. For teenagers who become sexually active, school districts and teen pregnancy prevention programs that offer instruction concerning human sexuality shall both encourage such teenagers to return to
abstinence and teach the effective use of condoms or other means of contraception.<<

So the emphasis must be on abstinence but with science based, medically accurate information on disease and contraception.

I suspect I’m going to be in the minority here, but I do not disagree with this.

http://www.leg.state.co.us/CLICS/CLICS2007A/csl.nsf/fsbillcont3/8BE351914A5391DD8725726400804B00?Open&file=1292_ren.pdf

[fieldmarshaldj]

Prior to the RINO cretin Owens, the rodent Governors had Republican legislatures to reign them in from their extremism. Thanks to Owens, it’s all gone now. The Stalinist wing of the CO rodents now have a hard-on for August Willie Ritter. Backwards and downwards.

[Pinkbell]

Abstinence only. Here is a link where you can see the effects of the abstinence program in Uganda. It was very successful.

http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/sexuality/se0074.html

[goldstategop]

Colorado Democrats are extreme California style leftists - and Governor Bill Ritter is no pro life moderate. He's a bona-fide CINO.

"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus

[wintertime]

The slippery slope continues.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Christians really must begin to fight back. How? Answer: Spiritually!

1) Christian churches must focus firmly on repentance and salvation through Jesus Christ. Just as in an airplane, the flight attendant says, “Put on your OWN oxygen mask first, then help others.” Christians must focus on become strong in Christ, first.

2) Our children are a biggest and most important mission field. Yet, 70% to 80% of Christian children attending government school are **not** Christian when they leave. 12 years of Liberal/Leninist preaching of Secular Humanism wins. When are Christians going to wake up and realize that their precious little child’s grain of “salt and light” is being diluted by a tsunami of atheistic proselyting.

2) Christians **MUST** remove their children from government schools! They **must** begin to widely adopt homeschooling, and open free schools for those who can’t. They should welcome non-believers into these schools as much as they are able.

3) Christians must ban together to elect representatives who will CLOSE government school cesspools DOWN!

4) If Christian **really** want to get even, then preach the gospel. Do as Mormons do. Expect members to tithe ( rich and poor). Expect that your youth and retire couples will serve a 2 year mission in the U.S. at their own expense to all both rich and poor.

Finally, to those government school defenders who have tender sensibilities. I am NOT **personally** insulting you. Because I am making **general** statements about the condition of our government schools does NOT mean that I am **personally** insulting you because you think they are wonderful and send your children to them. So..please,,,do not ping the moderators complaining that your feelings are hurt and you feel insulted.

[Uri’el-2012]

Colorado Democrats are extreme California style leftists - and Governor Bill Ritter is no pro life moderate. He's a bona-fide CINO.

But Bill Ritter snookered Brother Chaput.

[colorado tanker]

Lots of ballot measures are being plotted, but it’s too early to gave a good handle on which ones are really going forward. As you can see, though, the Dems have served up several fat, juicy, targets of opportunity, in spite of the modest results of the last General Assembly (from their perspective).

[Kuksool]

To illustrate how far Left Ritter has gone, my own RAT Governor, Blago, didn’t do this garbarge in regards to sex education. So much for local control of education.

[Kuksool]

I hope CO conservatives will channel the backlash againstthe CO Left into Bob Schaeffer’s Senate campaign.

[colorado tanker]

I have high hopes for Shaffer, but he stumbled with an amateurish announcement of his candidacy that got almost no press.

[Dumb_Ox]

Ritter ran as a pro-life candidate in last fall’s election.

He started out pro-life, but was harangued by party leadership into a de facto pro-choice stand before the primaries, as I recall.