As a current university student, it's not my paternalism. It kind of sucks, doesn't it?
But it's like lots of things in life: sometimes we can't have nice things because other people, who are much less mature and sensible than you, will misuse them, so nobody is allowed them.
Also, "paternalism" is an irritating dog whistle. We are talking about "public health policy", which also means such sensible things as that you can't have plastic surgery done in a car garage or buy cola sweetened with lead acetate or Cyclamate.
I oppose making a less safe substitute available and I think how people actually act is fair game to consider.
Condoms don't substitute for something equivalent that is safer (some people try to make out that they substitute for abstinence, but that is obviously not true since abstinence is obviously not equivalent).
This device could equivalently substitute for condoms (actually, it's probably cheaper and more fun than condoms as long as you don't mind a small pinprick), but it's less safe. Thus my opposition.
Surely then you are opposed to The Pill and other contraceptives that do not hinder the spread of STDs. A major, if not the primary, reason people use condoms under usual circumstances is to prevent unwanted pregnancies.
This device is not a substitute, nor will anyone with a conscience and a brain present it that way. It is something to be used in addition to existing technologies and sensibilities. It is about increasing available information so that people are able to make more informed decisions.
That's a different sort of information (how to act to protect yourself) and abstinence-only is not a public health policy. It is a pseudo-religious politician policy.
Now I think about it, you and me both should be fighting the catholic church and the american right over abstinence-only instead of fighting each other over exactly how HIV testing kits should be distributed.
But it's like lots of things in life: sometimes we can't have nice things because other people, who are much less mature and sensible than you, will misuse them, so nobody is allowed them.
Also, "paternalism" is an irritating dog whistle. We are talking about "public health policy", which also means such sensible things as that you can't have plastic surgery done in a car garage or buy cola sweetened with lead acetate or Cyclamate.