Laura Bush is not the only one promoting masturbation. (See a review of her "book" here.) The Sheffield branch of the National Health Service has some rather interesting points on the subject of both masturbation and teen sex as well. Not only does the pamphlet suggest that teens try out masturbation as a "normal and healthy activity", the pamphlet opens up teens to the possibility that sex should be pleasurable. (Imagine that!)

The world, of course, is up in arms. Well, the conservative right blogosphere is up in arms, but when aren't they up in arms?

The controversy centers on lines like: an orgasm a day keeps the doctor away.

(The fact of the matter is that orgasms are actually good for you if you can believe that.....)

The year, if I am not somehow mistaken, is 2009. Teenage girls in the United States lose their virginity at the average age of 15. Abstinence education does not work, so what is the big fricking problem with the Sheffield pamphlet anyway?

First, sexual education should mention masturbation as at least an option to sexual intercourse. Unless you count a few accidental blindings and growing hair on your knuckles (please note the sarcasm here), masturbation is a safe activity that can be done alone in the privacy of your own home. (There are some differences to prepare for between masturbation with another person and sex with another person as noted by the eminent writers of "I Heart Female Orgasm", which may be another interesting text for a teenager.

Second, I think it is fairly well-known that sex is supposed to be pleasurable. And, reminding young women embarking on their sexual escapades that they might get some pleasure out of the act as well is not necessarily a bad thing. In my mind, it is more empowering to a teenaged girl than detrimental. According to the writers of the pamphlet, the idea is to give girls the ability to differentiate between abusive and non-abusive relationships. In this day and age, when some girls are trading sexual favors for a new bag, that might not be a bad idea.

And, call me old-fashioned, but I don't think that teen pregnancy is the greatest thing to hit the shelves since sliced-bread. An open and honest education about sex and about talking about sex is definitely a step forward to avoiding more of this kind of thing.