The Liberals should defiantly take the blame for teen pregnancy. It has only become a problem since they took over.

Rather than whining about the social stigma of being a teen mother, let's recognize that social stigmatization of teen pregnancy probably helps us all. Teen pregnancy is not good for the mother and it's not good for the child. No amount of government services are going to replace a father, a mother with an education, and the experience of parental responsibility. If social stigmatization discourages teen pregnancy, let's face the fact that some old-fashioned common sense may be more valuable than the nanny state.

indeed uhm what? what a weak connection between social stigmatization and reducing teen pregnancy. instead of sticking your head in the sand, think about the problem first. teen pregancy is going to happen because teens are going to continue to have sex (i suppose that you support abstinence progams to eh?) the stigmatization of teen mothers is neither a deterrent nor does it provide helpful support to those teen mothers that already exist. it's the stigmatization and holier than thou attitudes that drive teen mothers to do unthinkable things. perhaps if we had better support services and popular opion was not as ignorant as yours, teen prenancy wouldn't be as much as a "problem".

I heard 8 and 9 year olds focus on giving head at school these days, of course that's Clinton style and doesn't count as sex.

Real names. No aliases, no pseuds. Posting reserved only for registered, verified users.

People like "," or "Uhm, what?" wouldn't have the courage to reveal themselves under their own names and we could all be spared their displays of medieval brutality and ignorance.

OK Dana

It all comes down to pressure, self confidence, pop culture (ok lots of things), but basically to say things like "Maybe they ought to try closing their legs" is just ignorant and useless. I remember the first time I "almost did it with a guy" (I was 17) and it was there in the back of my mind that if something went wrong, he was going to walk away scot free and relatively unaffected and I... well, that was another story. And he was cute and I liked him and he was very persuasive and I was and still am a risk taker (but not as tough as I am now :) but I didn't do it. And he didn't force me. But scenarios like that don't always play out the same and not every 15, 16, 17 or whatever- age girl is as strong/confident and level-headed (or whatever you want to call it) as I was at that moment, and unless we want to TEACH them all to be, at a very young age, it's completely unfair to treat them with disrespect or to stigmatize them.

So for all the men (or women) making comments about "old fashioned common sense" and whatnot, walk a mile in the shoes of a teen girl, and then get back to me. Until then, say something constructive or shut up.

What scares me are comments like the last with a teen mom saying that having a baby is the best thing that has happened to her. This is not a reality for teens - and the 4 pillar approach can be valuable for this problem as it is for our downtown drug problem. There has to be support, education, assistance, and reinforcements in place that young teen women don't end up forever locked at the bottome rung of the rail in society's hierarchy of have's and have not's. The very fact that certain population groups are teens, are female, but have a very low rate of teen births should point out that it is not "inevitable" that teens will have sex leading to pregnancy. It is not their wealth that has left those unencumbered girls in the Vancouver West without such a task - but it is their environment and social supports which instills a self-respect and awareness that leaves them in power of their fates.

Sounds like a life story to me fi, so what do you suggest - chastity belts? forced abortion? mandatory birth control? Obviously the academics have no answers.

I'd suggest decent and comprehensive sex education from about grade 5, for a start - education that covers birth control, abortion and exactly how much work it is to raise a child. I have met so many kids who are just clueless - they think they can't get pregnant the first time, or that AIDS is curable or who say "well, babies are easy to take care of"....and everyone seems to think that witholding info about the consequences of unprotected sex will make them avoid it. You can't prevent what you don't know about! Making birth control either free or very cheap (the pill can cost up to $45/month) and easily available - including putting condom machines in schools - would be another major advance. Saying they should "close their legs" or "keep it in their pants" is like telling water to run uphill - no effect whatsoever. I do agree that teen parenthood should not be encouraged. The fantasy of being a mommy is rather ruthlessly exploited by the advertising world as the be-all and end-all for women. Girls are spoon fed TV and magazine images from an early age of "perfect" mommies with "perfect" babies, who have nice clothes and money and don't have to work, and the result is they think that having kids will make their life better. Reality is more like the girl in the story who's living with the rats in her suite. But god forbid you actually educate these kids while they're young that parenting is expensive, thankless, grinding work even when you're prepared for it, because then you're attacking the sacred cow of Kodak Moment (tm) parenthood. The result is that these kids get a half-assed education on sex and the results thereof, and the unlucky ones end up as unprepared parents and a drain on the public's purse.

There's no denying that teen pregnancy will continue to exist; believing otherwise is simply naive. Debating whether or not the pregnancy was a mistake or a blessing isn't wholly relevant either. Regardless, teen mothers generally need support. In my school district (Coquitlam) the teen mother support program (such as it is considering Coquitlam is the province's third largest district) has been shunted off to the 'alternate school.' Thus, teen moms are essentially being labeled as 'behavior problems' that can't be in the same high schools as their non-maternal peers. Heaven forfend other teens would see up close the challenges (and yes, the joys) of being a teen parent. No we probably can't afford teen parent support programs in every school; but there ought to be well supported programs in at least some of our schools where moms can continue to be part of the regular school culture and their graduation can be celebrated with their peers as an even greater achievement given their additional parental responsibilities.

A few things that seem disturbing 1) the lack of responsibility and accountability of the teen father, and 2) Rhea's promotion of the wide availability of the birth control pill for teen girls - a move which would benefit largely the pharmaceutical companies and not the long-term health of the girls. The majority of research evidence out there underlines the fact that adding exogenous hormones to our systems - especially when they are not fully mature - is not a good idea (though I am sure Wyeth-Ayerst and Merck would claim differently). Health education all around - including that of the public is a definite need. It would also be useful to acknowledge why some girls seek out such type of attention before the time they are able to handle its consequences. These girls often do not have their needs met by either their home environment or their social and educational circles - and they are usually eager to find a level of connection - be it from a one time sex partner or a life time baby. Unfortunately, we are a society that tries to treat symptoms as opposed to causes.

Re the comment that abstinence programs don't work, I'm wondering where you got that idea. It's worked in Uganda to reverse the trend in HIV infection (and the only African country where it has). An April, 2003 study in the Adolescent and Family Health Journal reported that increased abstinence accounted for 67% of the decrease in teen pregancy, rather than increase in contraceptive use. Besides, contraceptive education does little to address the emotional downside of premature sexual activity. Furthermore, the Not Now, Not Me program in Rochester New York saw the sexual activity rate for 15 year olds plummet from 46% to 31% and the pregnancy rate of 15-17 year olds fell from 63.4 per thousand to 49.5 per thousand. This program used billboards, tv ads, school posters and lessons, interactive websites and radio ads. It worked. So those who say abstinence programs are useless are talking through their hats. Chris Kempling Quesnel

Sorry chris but i'm not saying the abstinence should not be mentioned. and as the study you mention suggests, abstinence does lower teen preganancy. OF COURSE IT DOES! if you don't have sex, you don't get pregnant. The problem with abstinence programs chris is that they preach abstinence only and do not promote other forms of birth control, nor do they promote sex education. abstinence program also, typically, mislead youths with misinformation regarding condom use and other forms of birth control, pregnacy, and abortion. basically, abstinence program do little more than scare people into not having sex. how healthy is that? also, didn't one of the authors of the study you mention promote the rediculous notion of virginity pledges?

Shirin, I am not promoting the pill as the be-all and end-all contraceptive for teens. I am well aware of the issues around it and that it doesn't work for everyone. I'd rather see free condom machines in schools. Ideally I would like to see ALL contraceptives cheaply available, both for men and for women. As for abstinence - yes, it does work, and should be taught as part of a comprehensive curriculum that includes various birth control options. Abstinence only programs don't work because they don't give the kids who experiment any information. These are the ones most likely to get pregnant/catch an STD, and by then it's too late. You cannot withold information and then expect people to make sensible decisions. And comparing Canadian society to Uganda is comparing apples and oranges. Birth control/family planning in Uganda is based on abstinence or on marriage, and your average Ugandan teens are not constantly bombarded by a culture that commodifies sex and makes it seem like the pinnacle of acheivement to get laid. I'm also extremely puzzled by the fact that teen fathers aren't mentioned anywhere in this article. It seems to say that the entire burden of caring for kids should fall squarely on the mothers, never mind that the father is equally responsible. There is no mention of how the father's life is affected, nor of any father who contributes. This is an issue not confined to teens either - North American culture assigns all the shit work of kids to mom, and all the blame if anything goes wrong, while dad is praised simply for taking an interest in the fruit of his loins. I find it sad to see this stereotype perpetuated in this story.

None of this stuff is any good for us. The Ugandans stone women to death for adultery, or sell them into slavery. Won't work here however much you approve of their statistics.

We can't force teen fathers to do anything without handcuffing them. Their lack and their loss are personal, based on their socialization as good little free enterprizers. They rarely even discover what they've thrown away.

We treat each other like crap, abandon each other at the first sign of trouble, bitch about the cost of allowing others to live indoors or eat food as if cost were relevant to life at all. We lie to each other in advertising to get money for nothing, and then scratch our heads when our kids turn out to think life is like a soap opera, or a survivor betrayal fest, or a religious tract, or a perfume ad.

Then we wail where oh where did we go wrong? And blame it on anybody but ourselves. Merry Christmas.

You really want to fix it? Cherish them. Fuss over them before they get knocked up. And afterward too. Love them. Tell them the truth, and help them learn how to recognise lies. Give them jobs. Give them hope. A way to live and grow and prosper. Get happy, and for God's sake quit calling your children a burden. Really.

Also chris, upon closer look at the study you cite, the organizational links that some of the authors is questionable, such as, focus on the family and the institute for youth development (which has been a recipient of grants under the faith-based initiatives of g.w. bush). So next time you want to cite a study to back up your claims chris, try a study conducted where the authors’ religious/neo-conservative biases are not so glaringly obvious.

Sorry if the details offended you, Daniel. I was painting a picture of a well-adjusted teen girl (me :) and a point Shirin later elaborated on ("girls often do not have their needs met by either their home envionment..") because from personal experience this is crucial to the decisions teens make.

Chris, a 31% pregnancy rate and 49.5 per thousand 15-17 year olds is still pretty high; was that based on actual birth rates? So is that after abortions? How many teen girls got pregnant and decided to abort rather than face the wrath of religious condemnation? That 31% could have been further reduced by education.

I was not offended in the least Fi. In fact it is quite likely that some of these not-so-well adjusted teens will turn out to be well-adjusted adults, despite early pregnancy. Probably the only answer is "lock up your daughter".

I disagree, Daniel. More like "lock up your sons or teach your daughters to kick ass" (more what I was taught- it works). I've met enough women and girls in my lifetime who have lived restricted lives because of that attitude you profess. It's bullshit- and you know it :)-

Hmm, all this attention focused on how terrible it is for young people to have sex. Of course, no one ever considers the possibility that the opposite might be true. That it's more damaging to people not to engage in sex when they're young. Yet the countries and states with the most punitive attitudes towards sex are the scariest places on earth.

Speaking as somebody who was a sexually active teen, I can tell you that sex itself isn't damaging as long as the teens adequately educated about the physical and emotional consequences and prepared to deal with them. A lot of them aren't - they just have this great romantic vision of what sex is or should involve. I had a friend who had sex not because she liked it, but because it was a way to "keep a boyfriend" and she thouht that if she put out, he'd value her more. Didn't work, she ended up very badly hurt emotionally. Fortunately she was smart enough to use birth control, because there was no WAY she was prepared to raise a baby at 16. I was extremely lucky in that my parents gave me a thorough knowledge early on about what sex involved emotionally as well as physically, and told me it was my decision when to start but to make sure I protected myself. I started having sex when it felt right for me, and did it because I liked it, not because I had illusions about what it meant or what it could get for me as a bargaining point. I wish more teens had the same kind of education available, because this kind of issue can be a tougher test than any the school will throw at you.

In the summer Olympics we see 12 year old girls competing in "Women's" gymnastics. These kinds of messages are being received loud and clear.

Not to mention the ample bosoms and bare midrifts diplayed by the teenyboppers in freezing temperatures this year. Ain't TV wonderful as a teaching aid!

12 year olds are not allowed in Olympic gymnastics. The age was increased to 15 several years ago.

As someone who works with teens on a regular basis, I think that it's too late to reverse the sexualizing of teenagers. Check out the content in "PG" and "PG-13" movies... we're talking cultural shift here. I know that curriculum changes are glacially slow in the public system, but does anyone know what's in progress? I've been told by parents who are friends of mine that if you don't talk to your kids about sex by the time they're 7, they'll learn about it from TV, movies, their friends. So is the VSB or the province working on new sex-ed guidelines at all, I wonder? I mean, there's some very smart people working there, too. The "SafeTeen" program, for instance, is an excellent local in-school workshop program for teens that focuses on non-violent assertiveness. There's M and F programs (seperate) and both cover sexuality. The guys program includes a section on how "making the move" for teens should include talking about what's okay. The girls program includes some basic self defense. I like their approach because, although it's not entirely comprehensive, it does give some relevant communication skill training without requiring instructors to be explicit about sexuality. I mean, it's an uncomfortable thing for a male or female teacher to have a frank discussion about sexuality with a group of 30 kids that they will then have to continue to see every day... I mean, to really address any kind of education reform takes time time time, but in the near term I'd like to see more support for workshop programs like SafeTeen (and Condomania? I don't really know anything about their program, but it looks cool). I think to have an impact at schools, these programs need to have repeat contact with students instead of cramming it all into a one-off workshop. But right now schools and school boards don't have the support (read $$) to do that. My $0.02.

Going back 65 years to my religious history studies, to the best of my recollection, the Virgin Mary's age was an estimated 14 when she gave birth to Jesus and she was also unmarried. I don't intend to offend anybody's feelings, but these are the facts to consider. The girls in the story may be irresponsible and foolish, but they are human beings and it is the innocent children who suffer the most so that multinationals can take more money out of the province and Canada.

http://www.monbiot.com/archives/2004/05/11/waging-war-with-the-virgin -soldiers/

Let's expand the discussion a little and instead of just focusing on the problems for teen mothers lets examine the problems all mothers experience in one form or another. I'm talking about the huge lack of quality, affordable child care in this province and country. Yes, the issues are even more complex for young mothers but remember over 70% of mothers are in the paid work force in Canada. The 2nd highest percentage in the world. Yet, we only have enough licensed child care spaces for 12% of children. When I say child care I mean full-day programs, early childhood development programs, pre-school, nursery school, before and after school care. A whole range of services that allow parents (mothers) to engage fully in their communities (work, school, volunteer) while providing our children with the highest quality early education and care. I now expect the backlash that says "why should I pay for your kids" or "you had kids you pay for them" or "mothers should be at home 24/7 where they belong"....to all this I say in advance - we're days away from 2005 - women are in the workforce and are here to stay, Canada needs our $25 billion in taxes, children thrive in quality environments so lets collectively do the right thing for all our children.

Also, I must say I thought it was a very well researched article. Congrats Judith.

I am angered (but not surprised) that the young men who are getting these young women pregnant, are not in this conversation. We would not have this problem if the men would step up to the plate and take care of their children.This would alleviate some of the poverty and the struggles that the women have.It is the same old sexist crap that the woman is the slut and the man is the player.I come in to contact with many young moms in my work and more times than not the men are just a faded memory too weak to take responsibility. They should try and support a child, go to school, budget no money and not lose it. These women should be commended for having the courage to step up when the men were too scared to do so, running back home to mommy and daddy to leave the hard work to the women in society. Really you men should be ashamed of yourselves for being part of the problem and not the solution!!!

I am very saddened by this article and the response here. What does it matter if these woment are teens or not? if they should or shouldn't have gotten pregnant are all matters that are no longer of consequence for them - they simply have to deal with reality. I was not a teen when I became pregnant but I suffered many of the same problems - I was 25 with my first child and 27 with my second and life was great and two parents made many plans and had many dreams. Yet I became a single mum because my husband succombed to mental illness and was put away in an institution by his parents. Suddenly I had lost the moral and financial support of my partner. I had quit my job at 25 to be a stay-at-home mum. So having no income we were forced to move out of our condo with nothing but our clothes and some bedding because that is all I could fit into our car with the children along with a few of their favourite toys and books. The furniture was sold off to pay the bills and someone else took over the lease. I had two young children to look after but I could not find a job that would allow me to afford childcare AND rent AND groceries AND bills. My mother is my only family and she works and does not have much herself, so I could not live with her in small one bedroom apartment for long and she could not offer me any free childcare. I had no friends since we had moved to Vancouver when we were married to start a new life and all my time was taken up with caring for children and our home. All the dreams and plans we had for our children were shattered as I was consistently turned away from decent housing because I had children and was forced to accept social assistance in order to pay any rent or bills and stand in food lines in the cold with my children for groceries. My mother did what she could to supplement our groceries and bought us a futon to sleep on and I had a low table that me and my children could sit around on the floor to eat. My father lives in Calgary and once a year he sent us $100 for Christmas even though he has his own business and a wife with a second income and can afford two or three vacations to the tropics every year. I was constantly a target for men - they offered much for my family but in return I was stripped of my dignatiy and pride, along with my clothes. This was the only way to provide for my children. For two years we lived in a one bedroom apartment like this. Then I discovered a house for rent nearby and ahd the idea that I could rent out one or two rooms to university students or look after other children to earn more of an income. With no credentials and no contacts the latter did not work so we had students. for two more years I cooked and cleaned and looked after my own two children and three young students. Everything that they paid me had to be kept secret or I could never get ahead as the meagre income would be deducted from the $900/month I recieved from the government to fed, clothe and shelter me and my children. After a few years I was able to start working and going back to college as my children became old enough to go to school during the day. Now, after eight years of hardship and hardwork I finally have a job that pays me $15/hour and a decent place to live. I can finally stop standing in food lines, but I know owe about $50, 000 to the gov't and others in order to get here. I still can't afford to send my kids to every birthday party, field trip or event that I would like to. But I have regained my dignity and we have enough. Many Canadians are very uncaring and/or blind to what is happening in their communities. They are willing to send millions of dollars in charity to foreign countries, and yet they are not willing to help the people in their own cities, because they are somehow less deserving. I have often thought I should have taken my children to some other place where everyone is poor but they take care of each other and contribute to the benefit of all. I am ashamed of the Canadians here that are judgemental and selfish. Until you yourself have had to deal with a life crisis or had to go a week without anything but vitamin pills and water so your kids could get enough to eat, has no business making any comments about such things.

I agree with sgregson in regards to day care assistance being a required necessity for not only teen mothers - and since a dual income family is virtually a given circumstance for many living here, a solution for child care needs to be a priority of our government for the sake of propogating the population if nothing else. I've come to know one of our new janitorial workers at the hospital where my lab is located - who works the night shift. She told me of all the certification courses she had previously completed - including one for airport employees' course (which gained her an interview for Air Canada) for which she and her husband (a mechanic) had taken out a student loan. Unfortunately, Air Canada initiated its massive lay-offs at that point - and she eventually resigned herself for her current position as a night janitor - so her husband can care of their youngest child when home in the evening. If the gov't gave at least some incentives for major corporations to provide for subsidized child care - it would certainly alleviate part of the strain.

In response to J's list of angst(s) - although the plight you found yourself in was difficult to say the least - it is unfortunate you feel that what charity people do give should come first to you before those in developing countries who don't have a socially inclined gov't. Having travelled through East Africa and seen the horrors left in Afghanistan - due largely to Western influence in that land - I have to quote Jon Donne "No man is island..." sentiment. It is only in a place like Canada that someone in your position could be given the opportunity to turn your life around with the aid of food banks and government assistance - so do not begrudge your fellow Canadians their empathy with those not half as fortunate. Perhaps one day you yourself would be able to give to those in need - since we are only as strong as our weakest link (and that doesn't end at our border). Looking at the immense tragedy in south east asia - I hope you do appreciate what you do have.

Kellie, I certainly sympathize with you over the lack of responsibility displayed by many young fathers. I don't mean to lessen that responsibility one iota for those who danced but now don't want to pay the piper, but isn't that the message all young males an inundated with in our 24-hour media world. Get what you can for nothing, accept no responsibility unless your lawyer recommends you cut a deal and, if all else fails, declare personal bankruptcy and or run home to mommy. As unfair as this might seem to the struggling mother, she might take the longer view and realize she and her baby are probably better off not having to support or put up with such selfish little boys.

Touche, Allan!

I think it is unfair to take a blanket approach in saying that young men aren't, or don't want to be involved in the care & lives of their children. I would suggest that in many cases, teen fathers are involved in the lives of their children. Perhaps this is not made as visible as teen mothers. As far as I am aware, there are no education and/or parenting programs to support teen dads. I have personally seen mothers and their families actively work to control the involvement and access of fathers and at times, to separate fathers from their children forever. Systemically, the court system has always had a bias towards mothers, over fathers. This is changing, as the courts perhaps see that many fathers can and should be viewed as the prefer- able, more stable parent, with support equal to that which a mother might receive. Some women fail to name the father on the birth certificate, or even at times to name, or involve, the father at all. They are not held accountable for erasing one entire side of their child's history and biology. I would like to hear how the mothers & fathers of young men teach their sons about respect for women and encourage their sons to step up to the plate and also do so themselves. I do get weary hearing people always discuss the ways that society needs to educate and support their kids, when parents and other family members have the biggest, most important role in teaching and modelling to their offspring values of respect, care and support for family, no matter if that fits with the outdated 50's model. A lot of parents are not aware of how they are imprinting & modelling values to their children, especially with respect to consumerism, sexualizing & violent media. I believe publically funded education & parenting support programs are necessary for everyone, not just teen parents. Same with universal daycare. All the research is there. Pay now by providing quality care in the early years or pay later, in funding for health care, mental health system & addictions services, criminal justice system, etc. Children need all the love & support they can receive. Parents and families deserve the best support that a fair & just society can provide.

As Ed pointed out, the Virgin Mary was said to be 14 and unmarried when she had Jesus. Loretta Lynn was the same age when she had her first child. During the Middle Ages when life was "nasty, brutish and short," thirty was considered to be a ripe old age. If people didn't have children as teenagers throughout history, the human race would have ceased to exist long ago. It is only recently that childhood has been artificially extended to include the teenage years, before that it was "old enough to bleed, old enough to breed." There is nothing wrong with teenage motherhood per se, they can be as responsible, as mature and as caring as any mother. The problem is that we no longer live in the villages that it takes to raise a child and hence the need for supportive social programs. There is, however, another side to this issue that many may not be aware of - at the same time the government is cutting funding for support to young, single mothers, they are increasing funding to adoption agencies to promote infant adoption. This is a return to the bad old days when babies were taken from underage, unwed mothers as a matter of social policy. If the necessary supports no longer exist more young women will be conned into lifelong trauma to benefit infertile couples who feel entitled to the children of others through the institution of adoption. This will also represent a substantial saving for the government and lessen the foreign adoptions that can often result in increased medical costs.

I feel that instead of downing on teen moms people should try to help them...talk to them..they dont know the situation..so people can not understand it..so before all you "adults" talk about teen mothers...look at how you judge them without knowing what happened to them...

Though having been a part of the raising of four daughters does not necessarily make one an expert, it has given me "some" modest insights I might never otherwise have gotten-, I hope at least. And my view is, that there are two central aspects, which once understood make everything else fall into place, and which are the backdrop to this matter of "our" daughters who get caught out by, not so much a "bad", as simply a "choice", that in our social form, and throughout history to here, places them in a terrible bind between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea-, and "can" really ruin their day and their lives. (Mommy and daddy having wads of cash and "a good position" can help, of course.) The first aspect is, the social aspect of current capitalism, I think, which is best got by The Fruit of Somebody's Loins. "We can't force teen fathers to do anything without handcuffing them. Their lack and their loss are personal, based on their socialization as good little free enterprizers. They rarely even discover what they've thrown away." And as free, Free Enterprisers, with no clearly defined "social" responsibilities, and certainly no morality of right and wrong that anyone really takes very seriously, in practice, except when it applies to the other guy and is to our opportunist advantage, we tend, for too long, to be mere walking hard-ons looking for a warm hole to ejaculate the heat and pressure of our loads into. (When I was young, it was summarized in the street mantra of, "Find 'em, feel 'em, fuck 'em and forget 'em." Which I hear in the background of some here, from such as Daniel and a few other "no namers". What does one expect from males steeped, teased and encouraged on, in the "marketplace" of a "dog eat dog", everyone for themselves, devil take the hindmost social form and morality-, but the reactions and predatory mindset of dogs in heat. Ehhhh! That's the entrepreneurial spirit, baby. Why even you ladies sell it, sittin' on that gold mine between your legs, as you do. We're just in the same "Free Marketplace" looking for a few freebies. (Sound familiar?) And then, there is the other sad side of that, of course, and much, much more, only hinted at here, expressed by Kellie, who likewise presents her view of it very well, I thought. "These women should be commended for having the courage to step up when the men were too scared to do so, running back home to mommy and daddy to leave the hard work to the women in society. Really you men should be ashamed of yourselves for being part of the problem and not the solution!!!" And it's true. Simply true. And males with any intelligence and elementary morality at all, know it's true, just like women do. And eh, you Christians, even your priests and "ministers of the lord" are part of the problem and the "sick" atmosphere out there. You are as much, if not more of the problem, because of the higher expectations folks, in their ignorance and naivete, place in you. Time to 'fess up boys and girls, we are all a part of and the products of a social form built on an organized system of usery. We are all using and abusing each other. You guys are simply placed in the structure of things, in relation to girls and women, like Eurocentric culture is in relationship to the rest of the world, to be better at it, and take "greater" advantage. It's all just too fucking sick to continue a whole hell of a lot longer. That, or we deserve extinction as a species.

well... i think a big issue is about contraceptive use in schools... with all the teen moms and all that there are both good sides and bad sides. the good side is that all the guys and chicks could protect themselves. the bad side is that they would go around screwing all the time. and there is a percentage of contraceptive failure. soo.... yeah.

well... i think a big issue is about contraceptive use in schools... with all the teen moms and all that there are both good sides and bad sides. the good side is that all the guys and chicks could protect themselves. the bad side is that they would go around screwing all the time. and there is a percentage of contraceptive failure. soo.... yeah.

whoops that was only supposed to go there once.

I believe by providing all this support for teen pregnancy we are sending out the wrong message - a 16, 17 yr old is just not ready to be a mother - she doesn't have 2 pennies to rub together, doesn't have the skills to provide a secure home - the guy is not involved or soon walks - most have conceived while leading unhealthy lifestyles - drugs, smoking, alcohol - thus endangering the baby - and the circumstances under which they bring up their children are far from good for either the mother or the baby. This is a huge societal problem - Any kid under the age of 21 who is unable to take responsibility for her own future should not be allowed to decide about keeping the baby - if her family or that of her guy wants to come through with the support - emotional, financial then they can make a decision - but society should not have to bear the burden of these irresponsible teen moms!! We are sending the WRONG message. This is very apparents because usually most of these girls, do not end up with just the one child - history keeps repeating itself - no dad - just a single mom and her kids raking up welfare checks and complaining the government and society does not do enough!!