The Revealer agrees with Nicholas Kristof‘s condemnation of the Bush Administration’s stipulation that 1/3 of oversees anti-AIDS money go to the “promotion of abstinence” (an Orwellian phrase in more ways than one), and as usual he’s out there reporting from places other journalists ignore and talking to people who rarely make it into the New York Times. But — also as usual — Kristof can’t see religion in anything but utilitarian terms. “In fairness,” he writes, “there is a growing body of evidence that promoting conservative religious and social mores can reduce the scourge of AIDS.” Yeah, and police states are great on petty crime. Besides this phrase’s tip of the hat to social orders that make the trains run on time, it’s a backhanded insult to true believers as well. Faith does not stand or fall on whether it makes for good social policy. Kristof goes on to declare that “the only religion that [promotes abstinence] effectively is Islam.” Unfortunately, he doesn’t explain why he thinks Christians can’t keep it in their pants, but his latest column, “When Prudery Kills” (coming soon as a sex-ed motion picture) is still worth a gander.