People pray for a lot of reasons. Some pray for forgiveness, for guidance and for serenity. Some use prayer as 'wishes' (Lord, please let me win the lottery), some prayers are fruitless (Lord, please don't let the cancer take her) and some prayers are just plain stupid (Lord, please stop AIDS).
The Bush Administration's dispersement of monies to reduce the transmission and spread of AIDS is an example of stupidity. A large portion of the funds go to religious-based groups that teach 'abstinence-only' education and do not provide condoms or teach safe-sex as a way to protect against the spread of AIDS.
No one denies that abstinence is the only way to stop the spread of STD's or the only way to not get pregnant. But science (oops, pesky facts again!) prove that condoms reduce the rate of transmission. This federal money spent with 'conditions' and based on a religious philosophy is dead wrong. (That wasn't meant to be a pun)
We'll close with our own fruitless prayer, "Lord, please guide the Administration in its noble efforts to fight the Global AIDS epidemic with all of the tools we have and not simple-minded and wrong-headed moral agendas. Too many people are dying when we have the power to do good instead of evil. That is Your true calling and we pray those in power will heed Your message. Amen."
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