(no subject)

[lwoodbloo]

I don't write about politics, probably because I like to talk about them more. But I was talking to my friend offbalance tother day over GChat, and the topic turned to Bristol Palin. I stipulate that it's possible that a teen pregnancy and a teen marriage can succeed. However, the odds are against the latter. I do believe that B's child will be given all the advantages and love that it possibly could be. B will not be your average teen mother. However, with the public assurance that B and her...baby daddy? will be married...I dunno. I feel like at least for the immediate future, their lives have been decided for them. As teenagers. And I for one believe that they've been decided in a way that her mother believes will make her vice president of the United States. It bothers me at many levels. One of them is the following: We can talk about gender equality in this country as much as we like, but men and women, biologically, are NOT equal. One gender can give birth, one cannot. And it is that fundamental difference that queers everything. A male can spread his seed with no direct consequences to himself, regarding bearing children. My opinions about what a man does in this event are worth another post entirely. A female, on the other hand, above and beyond STIs, faces a consequence a man cannot. Bristol Palin is paying the price for being a horny teenager. And honestly...I don't think that's fair or right.

Comments

[marisolicious.livejournal.com]

You're right. But at the same time, teenagers are not complete idiots. This could have been avoided if she used a condom and/or birth control. At least condoms are cheap, easy to obtain, and mostly effective, and the only way I can see a teenager not knowing to use one is if she's 12 or if she's in a third world country. So while I feel bad that she's going to be a teen mother and is being forced to marry her babydaddy because her mommy's crew wants to maintain "dignity," I don't hold her completely unaccountable. Then again, who IS to blame? Looks like Mom & Dad may not have told her about the birds and the bees, being God-fearing people and all...but thats neither here nor there.

Really, what's unfair is that she and her babydaddy are being thrown into the political spotlight. And while I strongly dislike Palin as a VP-choice and so-called-feminist, I think it's wrong of the public and the Democratic party to drag this poor girl in the mud because they want to make her mom look bad.

[marisolicious.livejournal.com]

man, i miss talking to you!

[lwoodbloo.livejournal.com]

I miss you too!

Let me see if I can get this out; I've just gotten up.

If Sarah Palin wants to make her qualifications as a mom part of her qualifications for this job, her family IS an issue. And she has no one to blame for that but herself.

[marisolicious.livejournal.com]

thats a good point. she's prancing around that she's a soccer mom, so yes, she doesn't have anyone else to blame.

[irnbruise.livejournal.com]

Of course it's wrong, but the Republicans wouldn't hesitate to do that with a Democrat's gay or pregnant child. Or to violate the freedom and privacy of a significant part of this country's population in order to impose their "morality" on others. So I have no problem with the Democrats rightly using the daughter as an example of how abstinence-only education clearly does not work. Politics is a dirty game, and I don't want the Democrats to lose yet again because they are too scared to grow balls. In this country, taking the high road gets you nowhere.

Just my $0.02.

[marisolicious.livejournal.com]

You're right, the Repubs didn't hesitate when the situation with Obama's Pastor Wright came up. I'm not saying Dems should take a higher road, but it just sucks for that girl, tis all:-)

[merina888.livejournal.com]

It's been proven that abstinence only education doesn't work. We have the data. Unfortunately conservative moralists choose to ignore the data because it doesn't fit with their belief systems. If you look at the teen pregnancy rates in other developed nations, they are lower than ours. Yet their teenagers are just as sexually active. But then they are educated to use birth control.

[iheartsarahduh.livejournal.com]

You're right. What's happening here is that because Palin preaches abstinence education, and because abstinence education is not realistic, she has no idea how to fix the situation in a realistic manner. I do think, obviously, that Bristol should have been smarter than that, but honestly, when your mother is hard core about abstinence before marriage, you're probably going to be more likely to rebel against that. I'm sure she never had the option to obtain BC pills or was even TOLD about BC options and STD prevention. I'm sure whatever she learned was on her own investigation. Which is why abstinence education does not work.

And if they're trying to say that two kids getting married that young is realistic and ideal, someone needs to tell them to come over to my house for tea. I know from pretty good experience that shit doesn't happen magically like that (Matt, I think you should have the "be a girl" talk with Bristol, haha)

Also, I keep hearing Palin and feminism in the same sentence. So feminism means being pro-life, anti-gay, pro-abstinence education, and anti-freedom of speech? Bullshit. It's offensive as hell.

[lwoodbloo.livejournal.com]

Hey, at least you weren't unlucky/stupid enough to get preggers AND decide to keep it as your own. How much sympathy would B have gotten if she gave birth AND gave it up for adoption? The Democrats couldn't have done ANYTHING with that.

[iheartsarahduh.livejournal.com]

Well, she's in a situation where I am sure all of her and her child's needs are taken care of, which is a good thing, HOWEVER, I'm kind of pissed off that they're making this to seem like a great situation for someone her age to be in and it's not.

gahhh.