60 Minutes tackling abstinence only myths...

60 Minutes investigates the Bush administration's support for abstinence-only programs, programs that teach information that flies in the face of decades of social and health research. They will undoubtedly come under fire as supporting "liberal" social policies, but the growing criticism of some of the major abstinence-only is supported by decades of research.

Not only are their messages dangerous to individuals' health, but they purposefully mislead adolescents in order to further their own agenda. They teach people to ignore facts, a policy that not only endangers their health but also puts their educational future in jeopardy.

While one may fall on one side or the other on the issue of abstinence and sex-ed, certainly any rational person can accept the fact that teaching bad information in order to instill a belief is detrimental to everyone involved including the basic underpinnings of education. How can a person function in modern society if they are unable to trust basic factual information and the processes by which they are arrived.

- Murphy