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The rise of abstinence only has led to the rise in teen pregnancy.
And that's silly - abstinence doesn't lead to high pregnancy rates. Sex does. And it's a very naive ignorant teenager today that has no clue where babies come from or doesn't know about sex. That would have to be a child that grew up with no radio or television - very very rare.
They know that sex leads to babies but babies lead to plentiful government handouts and costs them nothing at all. There's no downside to having baby after baby with 6 or 7 fathers.
Here on the border they even place the day care centers right on high school campuses. The is nothing at all to discourage having babies at very young ages. The mothers of these girls appreciate the extra food stamps and WIC their pregnant daughters bring in.
Teen pregnancy time and time again is a more a policy issue. We know this because when you compare regions with relatively the same demographics and teach safe sex, you have lower teen pregnancy rates. It's not a racial issue, it's not an illegal immigration issue...it is tied with economics and education (less economic and education capital, the less likely voters and policy makers will allow proper sex education). Abstinence only doesn't work. The rise of abstinence only has led to the rise in teen pregnancy.
There is a component of personal responsibility. However, can you expect one to be responsible when they don't have the knowledge of what that means? Proper sex ed gives that knowledge to allow teens to make responsible decisions.
She noted the birth rate for white U.S. teens — about 26 per 1,000 — is much lower then the black and Hispanic rates (59 and 70, respectively).
70 per 1,000!!! - and it's not likely that safe sex is not being taught just to latinas or is taught only in English. Also the abortion rate of latinas is much higher than that of white girls.
And that's silly - abstinence doesn't lead to high pregnancy rates. Sex does. And it's a very naive ignorant teenager today that has no clue where babies come from or doesn't know about sex. That would have to be a child that grew up with no radio or television - very very rare.
They know that sex leads to babies but babies lead to plentiful government handouts and costs them nothing at all. There's no downside to having baby after baby with 6 or 7 fathers.
Here on the border they even place the day care centers right on high school campuses. The is nothing at all to discourage having babies at very young ages. The mothers of these girls appreciate the extra food stamps and WIC their pregnant daughters bring in.
No abstinence leads to lack of information of proper bc methods and where to get them. You would be amazed of what teens do or do not know because of not being told. Most teen girls are unaware that in a majority of states you can get bc without your parents. When i was teaching things at pp i would actually have teens tell me they thought it was illegal to get condoms when you were under 18. The problem is malamute that the teens who are taught abstinence education generally come from the type of parents who are very tightly controlling over what their children see and hear.
And that's silly - abstinence doesn't lead to high pregnancy rates. Sex does. And it's a very naive ignorant teenager today that has no clue where babies come from or doesn't know about sex. That would have to be a child that grew up with no radio or television - very very rare.
They know that sex leads to babies but babies lead to plentiful government handouts and costs them nothing at all. There's no downside to having baby after baby with 6 or 7 fathers.
Here on the border they even place the day care centers right on high school campuses. The is nothing at all to discourage having babies at very young ages. The mothers of these girls appreciate the extra food stamps and WIC their pregnant daughters bring in.
Not abstinence, abstinence-only reproductive education. And yes, most teenagers are naive and ignorant. They don't know that you can get a girl pregnant before she has ever had her first period, that it doesn't take penetration to get a girl pregnant, that sperm lives for three days, etc. They believe that withdrawal works and that it's okay to put the condom on right before ejaculation. They don't know how to put one on or take it off correctly.
A greater disservice in my mind is that the entire focus of abstinence-only sex education completely focuses on the teenager and not on the adult that the teen will become. It ignores all the other reproductive health issues as well as ignoring the fact that most teens will one day be partners in a marriage and will need to know how to practice birth control in order to plan their families. This is the same argument that I have about the Gardisil issue--one day these teens will be adults. Most everything else we teach them in school does not have an immediate application--we are teaching them what they will need to know ONE DAY IN THE FUTURE. Why should reproductive health be any different?
I haven't heard anyone advocating "abstinence only" sex ed. in more than 15 years, a full generation.
Actually I was watching the MTV series "16 and Pregnant" a couple of days ago and one of the girls on the show specifically stated that her high school sex education program was abstinence only.
The United States has a huge black/minority population which tends to have a much higher rate of teen pregnancy. Just look at teen pregnancy rates by state and then compare that to black population percentage of those states. The higher the black population the higher the teen pregnancy rates are. Black teens have a higher rate because of many reasons, mostly because of a lack of basic education on average but it's also got a lot to do with poverty, single mother households and things like that.
The population of Black Amreicas is less than 13% of the overall population. The high numbers of teen mothers clearly indicates it's not just a racial problem.
Actually the two states with the highest levels of teen pregnancies do NOT have large Black American populations:
When comparing teen birth rates by state, the ten states with the highest number of teen moms were almost all southern states:
Arizona,
New Mexico,
Texas,
Oklahoma,
Arkansas,
Louisiana,
Mississippi,
Tennessee,
Kentucky
Nevada.
On a percentage basis the poppulation of Black Americans in Arizona is only 3%, and in New Mexico it's only 2.3%, in Texas it's 11% and in Oklahoma it's only it's only 7.1%. In fact of the top ten states listed only three, Arkansas, Mississippi, and Louisiana have populations of Black Americans that are higher than the overall percentage of Black Americans nationally.
It appears you've reached a conclusion based on particular bias rather than fact. I'm not denying that there is a problem with teen pregancies among Black Americans but your premise of
Quote:
Just look at teen pregnancy rates by state and then compare that to black population percentage of those states. The higher the black population the higher the teen pregnancy rates are.
is factually WRONG based on the information avaialble about this issue.
If it was true states with a large percentage of Black Americans i.e. Georgia, South Carolina, Maryland and Alabama would have made the 10 ten but they haven't.
Last edited by JazzyTallGuy; 01-01-2011 at 05:26 PM..
No abstinence leads to lack of information of proper bc methods and where to get them. You would be amazed of what teens do or do not know because of not being told. Most teen girls are unaware that in a majority of states you can get bc without your parents. When i was teaching things at pp i would actually have teens tell me they thought it was illegal to get condoms when you were under 18. The problem is malamute that the teens who are taught abstinence education generally come from the type of parents who are very tightly controlling over what their children see and hear.
Why would some kid think that there was an age restriction on buying condoms? You'd have to be pretty dumb to think that. As in NO HOPE for anything ever.
I understand what you are saying, but what bubble do those kids live in and how many of them are there? They weren't "taught", through school, about contraception and where to get it and how to use it, but they're pretty good at finding a way to do the deed? Their friends don't talk? They never had a science class in middle school that taught the male/female physiology or reproductive systems and what happens when sperm meet egg? Let alone HOW sperm meets egg?
It really is the parent or parents responsibility to teach their own kids, and if some parents don't want to, then they need to keep their kids locked up and not "wonder" how their kid ended up pregnant or a soon to be baby daddy.
And that's silly - abstinence doesn't lead to high pregnancy rates. Sex does. And it's a very naive ignorant teenager today that has no clue where babies come from or doesn't know about sex. That would have to be a child that grew up with no radio or television - very very rare.
They know that sex leads to babies but babies lead to plentiful government handouts and costs them nothing at all. There's no downside to having baby after baby with 6 or 7 fathers.
Here on the border they even place the day care centers right on high school campuses. The is nothing at all to discourage having babies at very young ages. The mothers of these girls appreciate the extra food stamps and WIC their pregnant daughters bring in.
Not that silly. We've seen that in areas with abstinence only education, there is a rise in teen pregnancy.
Also the notion that having babies increases wealth via welfare is a ridiculous statement.
That's good that they provide daycare centers. That way young women who do have kids can get an education. That's a good thing.
The South consistently has the highest teen birthrates in the nation (Texas, Arkansas, and Mississippi are usually in the top spots). This is also the most religious part of the US. Abstinence education is highest in these regions. Income is lowest. There is a correlation between income, education, and abstinence only education. The lower the income and lower education achievement, the more of a likelihood for abstinence only education.
On the contrary, pregnancy rates among teens in Texas or Arkansas and teens in California or even New Hampshire are nearly the same. However, states with low teen birth rates also have double the abortion rates of states with high teen births. Mississippi teens only abort 6 out of 1000 pregnancies, while New York, which has one of the lowest teen birth rates, is at 47 out of 1000. California is at 36 per 1000.
There are always exceptions. Florida for example, they have high teen abortion rates, high teen pregnancy, and high teen birth rates.
So the issue of teen pregnancy is the same across all 50 states, the difference is in the Northeast or California, many more pregnancies are aborted, while elsewhere they are carried to term.
In any case, the statistics show that the border states have the highest concentration of teen pregnancy. The further from the border you get, the lower the teen birth rate. I suppose in that way your "income" theory would fit. Abortions are not expensive, but it can be out of reach of a lot of impoverished teens or their families.
To add insult to injury, "abstinence only" has been more common over the past 10 years, and during that time, teen births, pregnancies, and abortions have fallen consistently. We just achieved a new record low after those "failed" initiatives.
Actually I was watching the MTV series "16 and Pregnant" a couple of days ago and one of the girls on the show specifically stated that her high school sex education program was abstinence only.
Did the girls have parents? The parents failed to teach their children.
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