The VMA’s…

… a.k.a. the “Video Music Awards” on MTV are something that I couldn’t possibly care less about if I tried. As comedian Lewis Black put it “MTV is to music as KFC is to chicken.” In case you’re a KFC fan and are confused, it was meant as an insult… that both have taken something great (music and chicken, respectively) and created the most junky unhealthy version of it possible.

But a derogatory comment by the host of the VMA’s about promise rings got talked about to the point of absurdity on the news circuit. For those of you who don’t know, promise rings are given out by Christian groups and proponents of abstinence-only education. By wearing it, the person is promising to save sex for marriage.

I am a big proponent of self-determination, living your life as you see fit (without infringing on the rights of others to do the same, of course). So I certainly don’t look down on those who save sex for marriage or those who choose not to. It’s a personal choice. So after all of the vapid coverage of the issue, I was pleased to read an opinion piece on MSN music that really encapsulated my thoughts. For those of you with time to kill: http://music.msn.com/music/opinion/in-defense-of-losing-your-virginity/?GT1=BUZZ1

Like so many things in this world, it seems that the polarized in opinion get the most attention. I would like to think that most people are somewhere in the middle of abstinence-only and free-condoms-at-every-child’s-desk. I mean, what’s wrong with teaching that abstinence is the only way to be 100% sure that you don’t contract an STD or get pregnant, but also how to protect yourself as best as possible if you do happen to engage in sexual activity? Seems logical to me. I can’t imagine that any parent would want a child who made a foolish decision one night to pay for it for the rest of their lives with disease or an unwanted child.