$$$ for Christian Groups

President Bush's $15 billion effort to fight AIDS has handed out nearly one-quarter of its grants to religious groups, and officials are aggressively pursuing new church partners that often emphasize disease prevention through abstinence and fidelity over condom use.

Link.

The secularists are appalled, of course, but let's break it down.

Are they appalled at the emphasis on abstinence and fidelity over condom use? That's fine, but reasonable people can disagree on which of the two approaches is more effective. He is the President, so he ought to be able to make a judgment call in an area that, to the best of my knowledge, rests within the discretion of the executive branch.

Or are they appalled that Christian groups are getting the money? If so, why? The money is just being spent to combat AIDS, so it doesn't really matter whether the money is going to Christians or atheists. Assuming the money is spent properly, of course. And there, I think, is the real rub: the money isn't spent properly. The result of all this funding: certain groups have a lot more disposable income for administrative perks. It's a type of graft, and it's common with such foreign aid programs. Are the secularists ready to abandon the foreign aid programs or slash them back? If so, I can appreciate their position. But what I really think is happening is that they want their share of the graft.