3 ms·

> I reject the thinking that "people are going to do what they want" and we are helpless to influence their behavior so we should just accept whatever they are

by fao_ 6y ago

> I reject the thinking that "people are going to do what they want" and we are helpless to influence their behavior so we should just accept whatever they are doing no questions asked and work around it with public policy if it causes a problem. The reason I reject it is because I would argue what people want to do does not spontaneously arise in their minds, but rather is influenced by popular culture, marketing, and more. Hmm, let's see how well that worked with sexually active teenagers in the bible belt, shall we? https://www.healthline.com/health-news/abstinence-programs-ineffectual-and-stigmatizing-study-finds https://www.healthline.com/health-news/abstinence-programs-i... https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/08/23/545289168/abstinence-education-is-ineffective-and-unethical-report-argues?t=1618416915152 https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2017/08/23/5452891... https://www.publichealth.columbia.edu/public-health-now/news/abstinence-only-education-failure https://www.publichealth.columbia.edu/public-health-now/news...

gnull 6y ago
If one of the attempts did not work, it doesn't mean that none of them will.
vict7 6y ago
Excellent point! Seems like some are more interested in pushing their own beliefs and morality on others rather than examining the evidence of what makes effective (or ineffective) public policy.
rayiner 6y ago
That just proves that Sunday school can’t do much in the face of a culture that overwhelmingly normalizes casual sex in TV, movies, music, etc. That doesn’t mean that societies committed to the opposite don’t exist. And many do—such as much of Asia. We can argue about the merits of say Bangladeshi society (where I’m from) but we have almost completely escaped the global AIDs epidemic.
- fao_ 6y ago
  Bangladeshi society focused more on education and healthcare initiatives, not propaganda -- at least according to wiki

by fao_ 6y ago

gnull 6y ago

If one of the attempts did not work, it doesn't mean that none of them will.

vict7 6y ago

Excellent point! Seems like some are more interested in pushing their own beliefs and morality on others rather than examining the evidence of what makes effective (or ineffective) public policy.

rayiner 6y ago

That just proves that Sunday school can’t do much in the face of a culture that overwhelmingly normalizes casual sex in TV, movies, music, etc. That doesn’t mean that societies committed to the opposite don’t exist. And many do—such as much of Asia. We can argue about the merits of say Bangladeshi society (where I’m from) but we have almost completely escaped the global AIDs epidemic.

fao_ 6y ago
Bangladeshi society focused more on education and healthcare initiatives, not propaganda -- at least according to wiki