Con-damnation

The Pope recently visited Africa and spoke about Catholic values and finding peace in war-torn areas. The most newsworthy tenet he reiterated was the ban on the use of condoms as a means of birth control, instead promoting abstinence as the only means of protection. Africa has been ravaged by the AIDS epidemic and condom use is still considered the best defense against its spread, after dismissing abstinence as a realistic widespread practice. The Pope also claims that condoms facilitate the spread of AIDS, a comment which, I believe, implies the Pope’s assertion that condom use and abstinence are alternatives, and condoms do not fully protect their users. In reality, the alternative to sex with a condom is sex without a condom, the former being the safer alternative to the latter, given that sexual activity cannot be prevented.

It’s as though Pope Benny has cited walking to work as an alternative to wearing a seatbelt. Seatbelts don’t cause car accidents, but use of a seatbelt may prevent against injury in the event of one. Either way you can’t prevent everyone from driving. It sure as heck beats walking to work.

Anne Adoryan