Teenage pregnancies and the battle to end them...

[lizbud]

One other random thought that entered my mind this morning as we walked....so many people tie 'moral' in with sex. I find that absurd as sex is probably the one activity we do so very little of, in proportion to all our other activities!!! To say one is moral, or, immoral based on one usually inconsequential part of our day (week, month, year, whatever ) really confuses who we are, in total, as a person.

I'm not sure I follow the logic of this statement. Do You mean
morality depends on the frequency of a behavior?

[Lady's Human]

I think in a way she was stating that morality is the whole person, not one part of what that person does.

[Giselle]

You know, Pops, I think you've given all of us a lot to think about. I really had to ponder over what you said about a person receiving a gift and not acknowledging it. That really opened up a new page to me. From what I gather, life is a gift given to us. But so many young and old people today do not acknowledge it. They don't realize what a gift this life is. They don't understand the emotional bliss they can receive when they abstain from dangerous activities. They're too consumed with physical pleasure. While physical pleasure can give you momentary happiness, it is only temporary. Young people today don't realize the full extent of emotional happiness. They aren't even fully mature in the mind; how can they expect to go through the actions of intercourse and expect to feel a fulfillment that can only happen through a committed relationship? I don't know how or when or why, but teens today are in a rush to grow up. They're in a rush to skip all the emotional and intellectual maturity that is crucial to a happy life and sacrifice their childhood for a few moments of physical pleasure that may make them feel "grown up". It's sad.

America is continually pushing its youth to grow up, but I don't think anybody ever expected children to go out and start "growing up" in such a detrimental way.

Part of me wants to agree with G.P.Girl, but another part of me wants to disagree. Yes, sex is a very taboo subject in our society (I think it's taboo in EVERY society). Open communication *might* encourage a few girls here and there to wait, it might convince people to use protection, it might even curb sexual tendencies. However, I think other societies which are even more conservative regarding sex have even less teens experiencing with intercourse at an early age. When you are afraid of something, you don't go out and put yourself in a position that will encourage your fear. If a person does not know a single thing about sex, s/he will likely not go out and do it. Also, "protection" is certainly not the only way to control birth. Obviously, you're a high school student, but just the fact that you said that protection (I'm guessing you mean condoms) is the only way to prevent birth shows that kids in America don't even receive adequate education regarding sex anyways. For what it's worth, people don't even need a physical object, such as a condom, as a method of birth control. There is something called Natural Family Planning, aka the Rhythym method, the Calendar method, etc.

(P.S. When I said "the battle to end pregnancies", I meant that in a positive way.)

[Cataholic]

I think in a way she was stating that morality is the whole person, not one part of what that person does.

Thanks, LH! That was EXACTALY what I meant.

And, Pops....the difference here, for me, is that my God doesn't forbid all those things you were mentioning. I do drink, for example, and 'my' religion doesn't forbid it. As for the others....well, I DO choose my morality. I don't feel out of touch with God at all. Not one bit.

And, I might argue a bit with your examples on food, cleaning, exercise, etc. Anything done to an excessive fault is harmful. Sure, it has the added benefit of doing some good, too, but, it is harmful. They even have a disease named for some of the obsessions- OCD, comes to mind, immediately.

For me? Living the life I want to live, the one that I am comfortable with, works for me! I am happy, and I am 'good'...as in to others(most of the time, sometimes the ignorance of my neighbors drives me to less than kind things ). That is morality.

[K9soul]

I think morality is one of those things that has different meaning to any person you ask about it. There just really can't be any set definition of it (although of course, everyone has their own definition of it), so it becomes a conundrum when bringing it into a debate such as this.

My main point in my own posts were looking at what would probably reduce the teen pregnancy rate in the country as a whole, not in what I think should be enforced or done as a parent (and in teen, I mean unmarried, still in school, etc. My mom was married at 17 and had a child, my sister, at 18). Would I have agreed with all the things that some other societies practice in their culture such as PCB mentioned in keeping the two genders from mingling so freely? No, I wouldn't have. Because my society has not been that way, and with it going on all around me, there's no way I would have been happy with such restrictions put only on myself. BUT if my entire society and culture had been that way from the time I was born, I doubt I'd have thought much of it, and I doubt I would have been less happy because of it. In fact I think I would have been happier, seeing as how I was such an outcast in my school for being "different" than the sexually active girls.

In a culture such as ours where it is so encouraged (by peers, by marketing, etc. etc.), I really don't believe there is any sure fire parenting method that will make a child in this society 100% immune to the temptations and the possiblity of engaging in sex, although I do believe there are things that can be done to help bring that risk down. Those are the things that come down to individual beliefs and all of us could talk all day until we are blue in the face about what we agree or disagree are proper parenting methods .

[Cataholic]

K9Soul- VERY well said.

[Lori Jordan]

Ok i know everyone has already posted but.....The thing with saying about Morals? It does not mean because the parent may drink or do drugs that there child is going to run out and get pregnant i really dont believe that.Just because i was in that position myself i was 16 when i had my son and it had nothing to do with how i was raised or influenced it was my choice.I made it was not the best choice i had to grow up overnight and that was not a great thing for a sixteen year old.
I do not regret having any of my children i just wish i would of waited!!! I had to put my schooling everything i wanted to fufil in my life behind me,I worked my butt off to get where i am today!And yes im proud some kids that have kids dont have ambition to go out and finish there schooling and make something of themselves.Alot just sit around on Welfare,and that is the truth.
All you can do is talk to your kids about what can happen and how fast there life will change.I know mine has and im so proud of my kids they have done everything they have wanted too and now in college and im proud of that what Mother wouldnt be and the end of everything i raised my kids on my own,,I thank god everyday that i have made it through the bad times and i have alot too look forward too in the years to come..

[Giselle]

Ok i know everyone has already posted but.....The thing with saying about Morals? It does not mean because the parent may drink or do drugs that there child is going to run out and get pregnant i really dont believe that.Just because i was in that position myself i was 16 when i had my son and it had nothing to do with how i was raised or influenced it was my choice.I made it was not the best choice i had to grow up overnight and that was not a great thing for a sixteen year old.
I do not regret having any of my children i just wish i would of waited!!! I had to put my schooling everything i wanted to fufil in my life behind me,I worked my butt off to get where i am today!And yes im proud some kids that have kids dont have ambition to go out and finish there schooling and make something of themselves.Alot just sit around on Welfare,and that is the truth.
All you can do is talk to your kids about what can happen and how fast there life will change.I know mine has and im so proud of my kids they have done everything they have wanted too and now in college and im proud of that what Mother wouldnt be and the end of everything i raised my kids on my own,,I thank god everyday that i have made it through the bad times and i have alot too look forward too in the years to come..

That reminds me...How's your pregnant 14 year old step-daughter doing? Yikes, must be frightening for her to be heavy with child at such an early early age =/ She should have given birth by now, correct?