Original Article (Here)
Go to Planned Parenthood’s Website Info about the Pill (Here)
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If you were raised like me, for the first 18 years of my life, I was convinced I could get pregnant by merely sitting too close to a guy. When I was 17, I had a reckless, irrational and completely awesome moment on a cruise ship, (which- I think my parents still pray the rosary about.) I was convinced, I’d get pregnant. Sadly- at that time either I was unaware of the Morning After Pill, (blame a strictly Catholic Education, and a mother that gave me a book, ‘how babies are made’ and really refused to talk about any semantics.) Would I have taken it, should that option have been presented? Of that i’m not sure. Luckily, with my first pregnancy scare behind me- I entered the beautiful and sexually charged world of college.
Everyone. Was. Having. Sex.
I’m serious. People would hook up- go have sex, then go to class. I had a faithful long-term-boyfriend, and a irrational fear of std’s so I was pretty much a loser in college. Kinda.
I realize the teenage scenery is different- (although I can remember short skirts and platform 90′s sneakers with the best of them,) and I sincerely applaud Planned Parenthood for doing SOMETHING about teenage pregnancy. After the Pope’s Administration with all his ideologies about rainbows and unicorns, he never once- really tackled this issue. (I equally guffaw at how std’s have been on a steady rise with the elderly. There’s nothing funnier than a slutty grandma.) But- It’s time someone- did something, even if it’s stapling the wound closed with shoddy metal.
Might this cure a part of the problem? Sure. But PP fails to address that a $50.00 morning after pill can be a huge burden for someone with no job, and who comes from a lower-class family. Might -that- teenage girl skip the pill because she cannot pay? You bet. So- we’re back at square one.
I can honestly tell you from a kid who grew up with, “Don’t have sex. Just don’t do it.” (And my mother telling me, “Animals have sex! People make love!” Like some chorus girl on crack,) just telling someone not to do it? Not the best way to influence the masses. Because of the holier-than-thou ideas- (while we still watch shows about dead strippers/half-covered women,) on television: we’re cancelling everything we say and showing our kids by ACTIONS that sex should be ingrained in our society. (And really- it’s part of who we are.) We’re inflicting guilt and high-reaching morals instead of pure, unfiltered education. And that? Doesn’t work- we can see it in today’s numbers. Teen pregnancy is on the rise and will continue to be on the rise unless we do SOMETHING DIFFERENT. We’re not changing the landscape by putting a cardboard box on the freeway, are we?
My favorite part about the original article lambasting the pill’s availability is that he’s writing from a concerned father’s standpoint. I’m going to tell you a secret, (that’s not so secretive anymore.)
Most teenage girls do not have sex because they feel 100% comfortable in their decisions, in love and ready to take on what will come next. (This is a given, right?) Most teenage girls are having sex because like lipstick when they were 13, or boobs when they were 8, it’s a rite of passage that they so desperately want to understand and know for themselves. However- they are getting lost in it, what it means- what happens to their bodies- whether they feel shameful or vivacious- whether it means anything at all. Their bodies are ready- but their minds- are so complicated by media, and friends and the guilt of families? That they are sabotaging their own sexual escapades. Programming- they have programming already installed in their brains, and they listen, (more than you know.) As a concerned father? You need to start looking beyond your daughter, to why she’s getting the messages that she needs to do this to fit in, or feel desirable. You don’t have far to look. Do you watch ESPN? Do you like the halftime shows? (How about those cheerleaders, huh?)
It is ingrained in us, (females,) that we want to be as desirable as possible. (Anyone who states differently is either ignoring their own wants, or trying to prove society their own point.)
I could give you a MILLION examples of the over-sexualization of children and girls- and you may finally understand the internal battle within. This morning after pill? Is a seriously GREAT and NEEDED drug for those who are sexually active. (I am a firm believer that with it all comes a certain level of personal responsibility- however, I know what I can handle and my own beliefs.) I know that terminating a pregnancy? Is never an easy nor uncomplicated option. No one -wants- to abort a baby. No one wants to even imagine it. However, we’re in a very pro-life, pro-sexual freedom society. The two conflict- and pro-lifer’s fail to see beyond their own beliefs.
A better article would read: How to empower impressionable, young, women to make the best personal choices and have needed support for their decisions. It would bring up the need for a truthful look at the human body, brain functions, impulses and sex drive. It would also bring up healthy body image, healthy self-esteem and the ability to truly care more about their future than the moment. In turn? Std’s and counseling and INTELLIGENT talk about prevention and birth control use. Then? Maybe as a community we could understand when a girl decides to keep her baby, she enters into a world of immediate ridicule. She is bombarded with messages and looks and absolutely NO SUPPORT from the pro-life community that pledged their eternal damnation should she abort. They aren’t offering to babysit, or help her get through high school or college. Maybe some pro-lifers give a few bucks to the collection plate for unwed mothers a few times a year- that’s hardly comparable with the screaming and the sign toting ‘BABY KILLER’ messages these girls are hearing.
Of course they are going to take the pill, Dad. While you’re watching the half-time show and your daughter is watching your eyes oogle the dancer’s bodies, she is busy trying to rationalize the meaning of adulthood, sexual freedom and her own feelings on it all.
