"The second purpose [of the bill] was to increase the number of children receiving sex education. Illinois’ existing law required the teaching of sex education and AIDS prevention in grades six through twelve. The old law read:
Each class or course in comprehensive sex education offered in any of grades 6 through 12 shall include instruction on the prevention, transmission and spread of AIDS.
Senate Bill 99 struck out grade six, changing it to kindergarten, in addition to making a few other changes in wording. It read:
Each class or course in comprehensive sex education in any of grades K through 12 shall include instruction on the prevention of sexually transmitted infections, including the prevention, transmission and spread of HIV. (emphasis added)
Certainly, Obama wasn't flat out lying about the part about protecting elementary schoolers from sexual predators - the bill contains a small section on that. However, in no way does it comprise a majority of the bill nor can it be said to be the bill's primary purpose. Furthermore, while the bill may not explicitly state that teachers must educate children about the actual "act of sex" it is a mystery to me how it would be possible to teach about STDs without mentioning how they are transmitted and what their symptoms are. Yes?
Another fun nugget of cheerfulness - TNS Media Intelligence Campaign Media Analysis Group (TNSMI/CMAG) and the University of Wisconsin Advertising Project analyzed the political ads being (officially) produced/sponsored by each respective campaign. Both campaigns are spending approximately $15 million per week across all states and territories (about $7.8 million per candidate/week). McCain's ads are typically paid for by McCain and the RNC while 97 percent of Obama's ads are paid for solely by his campaign. The study found that 77 percent of Obama's ads qualify as "negative" while only 56 percent of McCain's are "negative. The organization is nonpartisan.
In case you're curious, the breakdown by state:
Table 1: Advertising Spending by State
| McCain | Obama |
Colorado | $553,000 | $522,000 |
Florida | $1,040,000 | $1,327,000 |
Iowa | $352,000 | $148,000 |
Indiana | None | $263,000 |
Michigan | $761,000 | $954,000 |
Minnesota | $472,000 | $18,000 |
Missouri | $353,000 | $504,000 |
Montana | None | $37,000 |
North Carolina | $245,000 | $300,000 |
North Dakota | <$1,000 | $22,000 |
New Hampshire | $225,000 | $172,000 |
New Mexico | $214,000 | $155,000 |
Nevada | $365,000 | $297,000 |
Ohio | $812,000 | $801,000 |
Pennsylvania | $1,612,000 | $948,000 |
Virginia | $312,000 | $868,000 |
Wisconsin | $487,000 | $432,000 |
* Money spent by the Obama campaign in Minnesota was in the Rochester market,which also covers parts of northern Iowa.
Anyway...happy day for us! McCain's bounce is certainly finished, but if he continues the emphasis on the economy and keeps us thinking about my girl Sarah, I think the polls will remain close if not tied until November 4th. :-) Happy reading!
Links!!
Illinois SB 99 www.ilga.gov/legislation/fulltext.asp?DocName=&SessionId=3&GA=93&DocTypeId=SB&DocNum=0099&GAID=3&LegID=734&SpecSess=&Session=
Negative campaign data:
http://marcambinder.theatlantic.com/archives/2008/09/obamas_run_more_negative_ads.php
