That’s what McCain/Palin would have you believe children in Illinois are doing these days in kindergarten, and they’re blaming Obama. But in a way, that’s how they do it in the Netherlands and the Netherlands has the third lowest teenage pregnancy rate in the world.

I say “...in a way...” because Dutch kindergarten children embark on a learning process, beginning with the basic building blocks of sex - relationships. They’re not learning about sexually transmitted infections, for heaven’s sake, not at that age. They learn about families both traditional and non-traditional. They explore how relationships might differ as well as looking at traits healthy relationships share. They compare and contrast their feelings for their parents, their siblings and their schoolmates. They learn about respect for their own bodies as well as the bodies of others. They learn about setting, enforcing and respecting boundaries.

As they move through their school career, the basic building blocks are built upon each year with age appropriate lessons. By the time they are in their mid-teens, they know how to use condoms and importantly, how to negotiate the use of condoms - a topic sorely lacking in most sex ed classes today.

And let me repeat: The Netherlands has the third lowest teenage pregnancy rate in the world, with only five teen pregnancies out of every 1000 girls.

Meanwhile, soon-to-be grandmother and Abstinence Only proponent Sarah Palin is the Republican candidate for Vice-President of the USA - the country that tops the global list with over 50 teenage girls out of every 1000 falling pregnant each year.

Hmm. The figures speak for themselves. The Netherlands, home of comprehensive sex/relationship education, from kindergarten on up, has the third lowest teen pregnancy rate in the world. The USA, home of Abstinence Only, has the highest teen pregnancy rate in the world. The Dutch; 5/1000. The Americans; 50/1000

Wake up - and grow up - America. It’s high time you stopped equating sex with smut and put it back in its proper context as part of being human.