When it comes to self-control, the government has a hard enough time practicing it — let alone promoting it! That’s why last week’s announcement from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) was so important. After years of burying its head in the sand and throwing billions of dollars at an STD problem it helped create, the government finally admitted what the Bible and common sense made abundantly clear: abstinence and monogamy are the only ways to avoid disease.

In its 2015 “Sexually Transmitted Diseases Treatment Guidelines,” a two-word change made all the difference. Five years ago, the CDC used to say abstinence and monogamy were “a reliable way to avoid disease.” As of last Friday, the agency agrees it’s “the most reliable way.” That may not seem like a radical edit to most people, but in this administration, moral purity is as foreign a concept as political transparency.

For years, FRC and other groups have fought the spread — not just of infection and disease — but the mentality that sexual liberalism should be promoted in schools, prioritized in health care, and paid for by taxpayers. As a result, the government is spending $16 billion a year cleaning up the mess it helped make with the “if-it-feels-good-do-it” approach. With more than 20 million new cases of STDs cropping up every year, America’s biggest health crisis may be the one nobody’s talking about. A monster strain of gonorrhea is spreading, and experts say it might be worse than AIDS. That explosion, along with the spike in chlamydia infections, syphilis, HIV, Hepatitis, and herpes is panicking the medical community, which sees that young people are disproportionately affected — “accounting for half of all new [sexually-transmitted infections].”

Fortunately, the CDC is finally acknowledging that the only way to stem the tide is to put new energy into an old strategy: saving sex for marriage. And thanks to Congress, the government will have another $50 million a year to try. Under GOP control, the House and Senate just authorized the biggest raise for abstinence education since President Obama significantly slashed funding in 2009.

“If sex education were on the ballot,” the National Abstinence Education Association (NAEA) has said, “abstinence education would win by a landslide — and not just with Republicans.” Most people wrongly assume that the “save sex” message is a conservative one. Not so, says NAEA’s Valerie Huber. In extensive polling, Huber’s organization found that almost eight in 10 Democratic parents support abstinence education. Altogether, 85% of moms and dads think young people could benefit from the abstinence message.

Even the American College of Pediatricians recognizes that programs teaching kids to wait until marriage are about a lot more than postponing sex. “They assist adolescents in establishing positive character traits, formulating long-term goals, and developing emotionally healthy relationships… These programs increase the likelihood of strong marriages and families — the single most essential resource for the strength and survival of our nation.”

Somewhere along the way, too many adults started operating from a position of lower expectations, as if teenagers were incapable of exercising any self-restraint. It became assumed, not discouraged, that children would have sex. With or without the government’s help, it’s time for parents to speak up and encourage their teens to do what’s counter-cultural. Too many moms and dads think their kids aren’t listening to what they say about abstinence. Think again. Parents are the single biggest influence on their children’s sexual decisions. If the cultural influences from Hollywood and the media are committed to marketing promiscuity and immodesty at every turn, then as parents, we have to be just as committed to helping our teenagers fight those temptations.

It’s time for parents to challenge their children to live by a higher standard — otherwise, they’ll continue meeting the low standards the culture sets for them.

Wells Fargo Mortgages Credibility with Ad

Wells Fargo may be the first American bank to feature a lesbian ad — but it may also be the last. The outrage over these in-your-face commercials is finally reaching a boiling point with consumers, who are sick and tired of watching companies pitch agendas over products. American powerhouses like General Mills, Tiffany & Co., Amazon, Starbucks, Tylenol, Target, Nabisco, Alaska Airlines, and even Betty Crocker are tripping over themselves to pander to 2.3% of the buying public with intense LGBT advocacy.

Like us, Rev. Franklin Graham has had enough. In response to Wells Fargo’s new ad, the son of evangelist Billy Graham is making an enormous withdrawal: his ministry’s accounts. On Facebook, Franklin challenged Christians to take a long, hard look at where their money is going. Are your dollars financing the war on your values? If so, maybe it’s time to do something about it.

“Have you ever asked yourself — how can we fight the tide of moral decay that is being crammed down our throats by big business, the media, and the gay & lesbian community? Every day it is something else! Tiffany’s started advertising wedding rings for gay couples. Wells Fargo bank is using a same-sex couple in their advertising. And there are more. But it has dawned on me that we don’t have to do business with them. At the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, we are moving our accounts from Wells Fargo to another bank. And guess what — we don’t have to shop at Tiffany & Co., there are plenty of other jewelry stores. This is one way we as Christians can speak out — we have the power of choice. Let’s just stop doing business with those who promote sin and stand against Almighty God’s laws and His standards. Maybe if enough of us do this, it will get their attention.”

Obviously, companies have every right to express their views. But consumers have rights too — including the right to respond. As Christians, we’re called to be good stewards God’s money. Organizations like 2nd Vote and Faith-Driven Consumer help shoppers do exactly that. At the end of the day, money talks — and believe me, these CEOs are listening.

See Rick Run…

The question these days isn’t “who’s running for President” but who isn’t running! The GOP is loading up with bona fide conservatives in a race for the nomination that might be the most interesting one in years. Last week, former Texas Governor Rick Perry was the latest to throw his cowboy hat in the ring, taking a second stab at his goal after a disappointing 2012.

After health problems complicated his run four years ago, Perry is rebooting his campaign with the same values that made the Governor popular in the first place. With Lone Survivor‘s Marcus Lutrell behind him and American Sniper’s widow, Taya Kyle, cheering him on, Perry beefed up the race’s Texas contingent. As the Governor of one of the most successful economies in the union, Perry has an edge in leadership, explaining that “We are just a few good decisions away from unleashing economic growth, and reviving the American dream,” he said near Dallas. “It can be done because it has been done — in Texas.”

Hoping to replicate the success the Lone Star state has had, Perry also has an opportunity to take his staunch pro-life, pro-marriage message on the trail. As one of the most effective advocates for the unborn, and one of the many Governors to challenge the court’s dictate on same-sex “marriage,” Rick will be a formidable candidate. Add in his military service and support, and the Governor is well on his way to shrugging off the 2012 blues.

This is a publication of the Family Research Council. Mr. Perkins is president of FRC.