Bristol Palin Proves It: Abstinence Education Is Unrealistic

Pajamas Media ^ | February 24, 2009 | Katherine Berry

[AJKauf]

When I, a parent of a 17-year-old daughter due to graduate from high school this May, originally read about Bristol Palin’s pregnancy during the presidential campaign, I shared the same sense of indignant outrage expressed by many upon hearing the news. Why on earth is a girl that age having sex, particularly when she was raised by a mother who staunchly supports abstinence-only education? Didn’t she listen?

Yes, I’ll admit my first reaction upon learning of a pregnant teenage girl is to think that it really should be that simple: telling one’s child “don’t have sex until you’re married” should be enough. Never mind the whole virginity pledge thing; explaining the risk of STDs, AIDs and teenage pregnancy should be sufficient rationale. And, just in case it isn’t, then the threat of an angry parent with “a 12-gauge double-aught buckshot” should be enough incentive for teens to “keep their britches on.” And yet, obviously, it isn’t. The Bristol Palins and Jamie Lynn Spears are proof enough that “just say no” doesn’t always sink in....

[SuziQ]

it certainly hurts the abstinence cause. Palin wouldn’t be able to promote the idea.

I couldn't disagree more. There were families all over this country saying "There, but for the Grace of God, goes MY family". I believe most people understood that you can't always control what your kids are going to do, and that your kids are going to make mistakes. What Sarah Palin showed was courage in not shuttling her daughter off to an abortion clinic so that her own political reputation wouldn't be damaged. She publicly acknowledged the problem, and showed that she loved her daughter, regardless of the mistake she'd made, and that her daughter was willing to accept the consequences of her actions.

That wasn't a negative, by any stretch of the imagination, for Sarah, politically, or for the cause of teaching kids about the value of abstinence.

[count-your-change]

No rules, no teaching, especially no “ Fornication is wrong in God's eyes”, no parental example.

But lots of, kids will be kids, we did too at that age, its not reasonable to expect chastity, be careful, its just normal.

Surprise! The kids got the message.

[riverdawg]

I asked a friend of mine, who works as a nurse in the health clinic of the local university, about this. She said that the vast majority of “condom failures” are really failures to use a condom at all. She also said that one of the most common STDs seen at her clinic is oral chlamydia.

[SuziQ]

Sarah would like to see the discussion of abstinence included in the sex education that's provided to the students in Alaska. She's never promoted the idea of having abstinence-only education be the sole education related to sexuality made available to the students.
How does that differ from your own opinion on the matter?

[dmz]

LOL...how many different ways are there to use a condom?

Are you being intentionally obtuse? If not, your comment about your own smarts needs revisiting.

Do the instructions say when to put it on? Many use the condom only when, uh, the moment is nigh, if you know what I mean. Of course, seminal fluid is potentially released prior to that happy ending.

How 'bout taking it off after it said happy ending? Quite the potential for error there as well.

And 16 year old kids are certainly well known for their attention to detail.

[danmyte]

I do not even know what to say to such idiocy...may we agree to disagree at the need to have the nanny state instruct on how to put a condom on a banana. Let me say this though, as a teacher and father of five you may be underestimating the intelligence of younger people. This is not the role for the schools as the nanny staters imply.

[agrace]

Didn’t say the 30% was entirely abstinence affected. I sarcastically suggested that abstinence education had no effect, implying that it had at least some.

[SumProVita]

It should not change Sarah Palin’s support for such programs. She can also use the lessons learned to be a catalyst for improving them. Her goal should be to do what is right, not to be overly concerned with “image.” The mere fact that she seems to operate that way is what attracted me to support her! ;-)

[Canticle_of_Deborah]

particularly when she was raised by a mother who staunchly supports abstinence-only education? Didn’t she listen?

Reality check. Sarah herself told Greta in the interview that abstinence is naive. I believe she has admitted in the past that she was pregnant with Track when she and Todd married.

Everybody wants to blame Bristol but kids will do as their parents do, not as their parents say *wink wink*. Let's stop bashing Bristol and stop changing our personal beliefs to accomodate our chosen candidate.

[jennyjenny]

Well, if being in labor and delivering a baby isn't good enough reason to have to be away from your other kids for a for a little while, I guess I don't know what is. I must be one of the most irresponsible parents on earth because there were several times after my kids were over the age of 12 that I walked out to the mailbox without them-—almost daily, actually.

[WildcatClan]

This article is ridiculous and tritely paints human beings as mere animals that cannot possibly control primal instincts. I like Sarah but I do wish she would take a break from the media. They are not going to give her a break, ever. This woman is attacked incessantly on a personal level and her continued participation in national media events defies understanding.

I think to be a great Governor of Alaska is not a bad thing at all. I think that she should continue to do, as she is now doing and concentrate all her efforts there. I think also Palin has become this “build your own” candidate for so many in the GOP just as Obama was for the Rats. I want GOP politicians to have supporters and not fans. Palin is a patriot and a conservative but this incredible support she has, mere months into Zero’s reign, is premature at best.

I do not believe her to be near ready for primetime, on the national scene. Below are just a few things that I oppose and some I merely question. Her view on illegal immigration is the one that I vehemently oppose as she is attempting to re-package Shamnesty. :

Predatory lenders got us into the housing crisis. (Oct 2008)

Taxpayers cannot be looked to as Wall Street bailout. (Sep 2008)

Smoked marijuana when it was legal under Alaska law. (Aug 2006)

Support charters & home schools; not private school vouchers. (Oct 2006)

Took no action on Alaska’s “sanctuary cities”. (Sep 2006)

I do support capping carbon emissions. (Oct 2008)

Fund cellulosic biofuel research in Farm Bill. (Oct 2007)

Only a very small percent of Islamic believers are extreme. (Sep 2008)

Supports a path to citizenship, but no amnesty for illegals. (Oct 2008)

[wintertime]

I know a kid who was in a serious drunk driving accident.

I guess we should stop telling kids not to drink and drive.
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

Excellent point!

Our schools preach zero tolerance for smoking. They don’t give up on the message because some children choose to smoke.

[Skooz]

So, if a teen who has attended “comprehensive sex education” gets pregnant, that is proof that “comprehensive sex education” doesn’t work?

[okie01]

So, if a teen who has attended “comprehensive sex education” gets pregnant, that is proof that “comprehensive sex education” doesn’t work?

However, if 47 countries try socialism and 47 fail, that is NOT proof that socialism doesn't work.

If fifty convicted killers are paroled and all fifty commit another murder, that is NOT proof that rehabilitation doesn't work.

And, if the Top 10 most expensive school systems in the country also happen to be the Bottom 10 worst performing school systems in the country, that is NOT proof that we don't need more money for education.

[antiRepublicrat]

I was talking about failure during actual use.

As far as oral chlamydia, first let’s give a big round of applause to “It’s not sex” Bill Clinton’s contribution to media-learned sex education. Proper sex education lets kids know it is sex and you can get diseases from it.

[abigailsmybaby]

You could say the same thing about preaching to homosexuals about using protection so they don’t pass AIDS around. How’s that working out?

[RobbyS]

The irony is that her biggest fans have a poor conception the society she lived in. That comes from the movies.

[Theophilus]

But no, we’d rather prescribe to them (A) 15 years of cold showers or (B) a hedonistic sex-fest life.

Our culture is exceedingly mis-anthropic and inhumane. Like harpies we steal what is best in life if not life itself from our children. We enslave them with constantly expanding tax commitment to pay for government ponzi schemes. We spend their inheritance to "educate" them in liberal institutions filled with bitter, cynical, perverse and/or depraved professors. We encourage debt and all consuming careers in order for them to heap up utterly worthless yet expensive material things. And the icing on the cake is how we ruin God's 1st and sweetest common gift: the marital relationship. I'll tell you, the divorce lawyers and the soddomites are merely defacing a corpse because we tell our strapping young men and blooming young women that they have to finish an education, establish a career and then search for a mate like they would buy a car, always test driving, sometimes leasing and never knowing love and creating beautiful children with eternal souls.

Hey, Bristol we had our first when I was 22 and our latest at 38 and I can tell you it was a lot easier at 22 :-)

[LearsFool]

Well said. Very well said.

[Oztrich Boy]

So your solution is to restrict breeding to a 12 year period after the birth of the first child?