These are sure signs of addiction. We have in some cities clean needle exchanges in order to prevent the spread of disease among drug addicts. We recognize that such individuals are addicted and will take actions to feed their addiction regardless of the danger of disease, yet we do not wish to see the same parallel with regard to sexual addiction. Birth control, the more common and popular term because it connotes responsibility, is a mainstay in our society. As I write this letter, the U.S. Congress is moving to require that health insurance for federal employees cover the cost of contraception.
Contraception is seen as the responsible way to act.
People who engage in sexual activity without using some form of birth control are viewed as being irresponsible and even foolish. Yet, true responsibility would be to avoid sexual intimacy if a child is not desired. This is too difficult, however, and is not considered by most people. It is something considered so difficult to give up that people would rather take pills or take other extreme measures in order to continue their practices rather than stop. Although abstinence is the best and only sure-fire way to avoid pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases, children in schools often are subjected to sexual education that mentions abstinence only in passing.