Procrastinating the morning away, I happened to find this promo article on msnbc’s Today (books) section: The Purity Myth: How America’s Obsession With Virginity is Hurting Young Women.

The article mentions many of the things that have made me gag or do a double take in recent years, from purity pledges to ‘born again’ virgins who undergo surgery to re-attach (re construct?) their hymens. All of these topics have been discussed, either in passing or at length, in many blogs–from Michelle Buonfiglio’s Romance B(u)y the Book to the Smart Bitches and others–and, from where I sit, it seems that the consensus is that it’s all fucked up to hell and back.

The thing that stopped me in my tracks, however, was this little bit:

More than 1,400 purity balls, where young girls pledge their virginity to their fathers at a promlike event, were held in 2006 (the balls are federally funded)

Hold it right there.

Federally funded? Federally funded????

Like,  you know, with my taxes and your taxes?

What the everloving fuck?

Comprehensive sexual education has been downsized, pretty much into non-existence, in many public schools because of budget restrictions, but there is money to fund purity balls? and for schools to hold abstinence rallies?

Pardon me while I go have a cow.