Condom testing reveals best brands (Bush abstinence-only education remark)

[Gothic Sponge]

http://www.cnn.com/2005/HEALTH/01/04/best.condoms.reut/index.html

<snip>

The group says its review of contraceptives was not politically motivated, although there is an intense debate among health professionals and advocacy groups about the focus on abstinence-only education by the Bush administration.

"We plan our testing programs quite a while in advance. This is purely accidental," said senior editor Nancy Metcalf.

------

It almost sounds like she's apologizing.

I hate Bush world!

[ogradda]

1. i bet they find the best brand

is the one who donated the most to the republicans :eyes:

[Gothic Sponge]

2. I would love to know who did.

Why would they support Bush?...Abstinence-only education would hurt their business.

[ET Awful]

4. This was a study by the "Consumer Union," not the condom companies

they aren't hurt by the Chimperor in any way.

[ET Awful]

3. I have two comments . . .

Number one, if it's not politically motivated, why do they hilight Planned Parenthood and their "weak" condom (I'm not sure about you, but I don't inflate my condomes with air before I use them).

Second, what's with the sexist closing remark: "A U.S. government report published last month shows 98 percent of all U.S. women who have had sex have used birth control." Even as a man I have a problem with this statement. Why focus on a percentage of WOMEN who have used birth control, especially in an article about condoms which is a decidedly male contraption? Why is the onus always on women to provide the "safe" in safe sex?

[Warren Stupidity]

5. inflation tests condom strength.

That is probably a good test.

Men don't get pregnant.

[ET Awful]

6. No, inflation does not test strength because it subjects them

to a completely different type of test than they would ever undergo in a real life situation. That's like saying that dropping a car out of an airplane is a valid safety test for the vehicle. It's a completely different type of stress than the item will ever encounter. A condom will break from puncture, from brittleness due to age, from breakdown of the materials by using petroleum based lubricants, but NOT from being inflated to the size of a blimp. Sorry, but the human penis does not ejaculate compressed air.

It doesn't matter if men get pregnant, the responsibility is shared. Good job of exhibiting 1800's mentality though.

[Warren Stupidity]

7. ah well I expected that...

Inflation is one way to measure the strength of the material. You may think it is a ridiculous test, I'm certainly no expert, but generally CU does a fair job and has no axe to grind, and the test is traditional for condoms.

Men haven't been getting pregnant since way before 1800, and I expect they wont be getting pregnant in the near future. As such, like it or not, call me a sexist pig, whatever, ultimately the woman in a sexual relationship has a greater self interest in fertility, or lack there-of, than the man does. You can of course decide that this simple fact stated by me means that I think men have no responsibilty for birth control, which you, by the way, conflated with 'safe sex', which is not the same thing. I didn't say that. I didn't imply that, and I suspect you know that.

Shall we dance some more?

[ET Awful]

8. Gee, I bet you really charm the ladies don't you?

I don't care if you get pregnant woman, birth control is your problem, not mine, now lay down and spread your legs.

You're a real charmer.

[Warren Stupidity]

12. hmmmm....

You can of course decide that this simple fact stated by me means that I think men have no responsibilty for birth control, which you, by the way, conflated with 'safe sex', which is not the same thing. I didn't say that. I didn't imply that, and I suspect you know that.

From which you deduce that I meant: "I don't care if you get pregnant woman, birth control is your problem, not mine, now lay down and spread your legs."

Are you always this dishonest when having a discussion?

But we digress. Here is why, if you are doing statistical studies of birth control practicies and effectiveness your sample population is generally women: women are the ones who get pregnant. You could study men, but that really wouldn't be the best way of getting at the information you need, your methodology would be suspect, etc. etc. On the other hand you wouldn't be ruffling the feathers of some misguided feminists either, so perhaps you do have a point.

Here is a little mental experiment. You and I have sex, you get pregnant. I, as you have predicted, run away to brazil. You run away to costa rica. Guess what? Your pregnancy ran away with you. I'm an irresponisble shithead and you are still pregnant. Male responsibility for pregnancy is a social convention, female responsibility for pregnancy is a physical reality.

Care to go another round?

[Name removed]

14. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[PA Democrat]

11. Yes, but they do contract and transmit STD's, including AIDS n/t

[Warren Stupidity]

13. of course

and that is why statistical studies of 'safe sex' practices use both men and women. On the other hand, statistical studies of birth control do tend to focus on the female population, a fact which apparently makes me a filthy sexist pig. Oh well...

[arwalden]

10. About That....

>> "A U.S. government report published last month shows 98 percent of all U.S. women who have had sex have used birth control." Even as a man I have a problem with this statement. Why focus on a percentage of WOMEN who have used birth control, especially in an article about condoms which is a decidedly male contraption? Why is the onus always on women to provide the "safe" in safe sex? <<

What's there to have trouble with? It seems to be a simple statement of fact.

Wouldn't the woman being polled also respond in the affirmative EVEN IF it was the man who provided and used the condom? Even if the man took all the initiative of making certain that the condom was used properly... the woman would still truthfully respond "yes" when asked if she had used a condom during sex.

I see nothing wrong here.

[ET Awful]

15. The point is that it's irrelevant to the article and tries to shift

responsibility. If it was, say, an article about the sponge, a diaphragm, or the pill, perhaps it would be relevant, but it's not.

[arwalden]

16. How Does It Try To Shift Responsibility?

It's a statistic. It's not unrelated. And it's certainly not misogynistic. I fail to understand why anyone would become overwrought over this statement.

>> A U.S. government report published last month shows 98 percent of all U.S. women who have had sex have used birth control. <<

So... returning to the question in the subject line: How does the above statement try to "shift responsibility"? :eyes:

[ET Awful]

17. Overwraught? I see nothing overwraught about anything I said.

The fact is that if you are discussing a decidedly male product and attempt to cite statistics involving female use of products (which do not necessarily include the product involved in the main article), you are, in fact, attempting to shift the focus and responsibility for the use and implementation of said product away from the people who actually use the product.

[arwalden]

19. Following That Logic...

I imagine that someone could argue that Astroglide lubricant is a "male product" since it is commonly applied "on" the penis. I guess it doesn't matter that both people benefit from it, eh... or that both people are using the product. :eyes:

The same is true for condoms. Even though the male wears it, both people benefit... both people USE the condom.

There's nothing sinister going on in that article or in that final sentence. It merely stated a fact. :tinfoilhat:

[pinniped]

9. It's just too bad the piece of shit's* parents didn't abort their...

omen offspring.

There is no doubt the world would be better off.

[jmowreader]

18. This isn't the first CU condom test

Consumers Union has tested rubbers for as long as I can remember, and they do a good job of it.

And I agree with the poster who said a woman would answer in the affirmative to the birth control question if a condom was used.

[LisaLL]

20. Undue Credibility

"although there is an intense debate among health professionals and advocacy groups about the focus on abstinence-only education by the Bush administration."

To say there is an "intense debate" about abstinence-only education blurs the distinction between evidence and propaganda.

All of the *credible* medical groups, researchers, doctors--basically anybody who understands how to evaluate research and effectiveness are *opposed* to abstinence-only education because there is no evidence that it decreases teen pregnancy. The opposing side is made up of RW religious persons and politicians who have no training,or understanding of research.

To call it an "intense debate" or "controversy" devalues the evidence and makes it sound like two reasonable and equally qualified groups have a difference of opinion.