In the "what other things can government schools do to your kids" department, Rick Perry, the governor of Texas, has ordered that all girls attending Texas "public" schools be shot with HPV (human papaillomavirus vaccine).

Here is a quote from the AP Story:

'Perry, a conservative Christian who opposes abortion and stem-cell research using embryonic cells, counts on the religious right for his political base. But he has said the cervical cancer vaccine is no different from the one that protects children against polio.

“The HPV vaccine provides us with an incredible opportunity to effectively target and prevent cervical cancer,” Perry said.'

And isn't it wonderful to know the implications left unspoken? First, there is the idea that, regardless of your choice, your property, income, gas, and many other things will be taxed in order to fill state coffers. That money will then, in large part, be used to pay for the failing Texas school system, which, in turn, will force your daughter (if you don't have enough money left to pay for a private school after you've been shaken down by the government) to get the HPV shot.

Perry, the "conservative Christian" (no less a politician with a bent towards statism) sees no distinction between a virus one contracts due to certain consensual and intimate activities, such as sexual intercourse, and polio. Should we assume that he ordered these shots simply because he can? Because he is the chief executive in Texas? Or are there other implications as well? Could it be that he not only wants to weild his power, but also that in the public schools, sexual activity will not only occur, it will be more prevalent than in private schools?

One does not have to get into the interminable debate about whether policies like this will "inspire" sexual activity in public schools. Rather, one ought to look at the root problem of a system that can forcably take peoples' money and also forcably inject their children with biological materials whether they like it or not.

Here is the rest of the story (as Paul Harvey would say):

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/16948093/