Most think it's OK for schools to provide birth control to students

Polls like this are the main reason I why ignore public opinion
polls. According to the AP article:

"Sixty-seven percent support giving contraceptives to students,
according to an Associated Press-Ipsos poll. About as many —
62 percent — said they believe providing birth control reduces the
number of teenage pregnancies."

I understand the teenage pregnancy problem is a complicated
and it has no easy solution but I don't think schools handing
out birth control is the solution. Shouldn't the word school in
the article send off some red flags. If they haven't even completed
their general education maybe participating in behavior that leads
to pregnancy and STD's might not be the wisest of choicest. I know
what people are going to say, "Teenagers have raging hormones
and it's only natural." Basically that is what the mother said in the
article:

"Kids are kids," said Danielle Kessenger, 39, a mother of three young
children from Jacksonville, Fla., who supports providing contraceptives
to those who request them. "I was a teenager once and parents don't
know everything, though we think we do."

Then the parents that have no problem with handing out contraceptives
to 15, 16, and 17-year-olds should do so on their own and not ask
our public schools to do so. Our schools should be providing reading,
math, and science education and not attempting to be a health clinic. We
are starting to ask too much of our public school systems while they failing to
do their primary task. How about teaching young people responsibility and
critical thinking? YOU are responsible for YOUR actions and health, not your
school or your parents for that matter. Even wanting to lay the responsibility
for providing contraception for teens at the door of schools spells immaturity to
me.

And for people who want to strictly look at this issue as a matter
of public health I will point you to the well known side effects
of the pill and also the effectiveness rate.

Enough with this "kids are kids" and are going to do what they are going
to do. Should we not teach adolescents self-discipline just because they
are going through hormonal changes? Should we not teach teenagers that
the ultimate responsibility for their life choices falls on them? Should we
not teach young people to think critically about the impact of what they do
today will have on tomorrow?