Before I spiral off on my rant, I want everyone to know I agree with Barack Obama that kids should not be used for political promotion, beyond the family portrait of one form or another. Show the picture of the happy family at most, and then leave them alone.
There is a problem in drawing the line with the Sarah Palin family, however, and I can't put my pencil on the wispy line between Sarah's basking in the glow of her son who will be deployed to Eye- Rack, and the declaration that her unmarried and pregnant 17 year old daughter is out of bounds. If you want your children's lives to be a private family matter, make sure you keep them a private family matter.
...And the Palin family pregnancies were not brought to the forefront by those mean old Liberals, either. They were a matter of public discussion and speculation in Alaska for the last year. A governor who hides her pregnancy for seven months before she publicly owns up to it is bound to cause talk, but that's another story. What I think is interesting in McCain's Palin problem is the stark light it throws on republican so called family values, and the effect of conservative policies on America's children. Here are some plain old "Liberal" facts...
80% of all Teen pregnancies are "unintended".
The United States of America has the highest teen pregnancy rate in the industrialized world.
Compare the US rate (44 per 1000) with the United Kingdom (27 per 1000) and you see how far out in last place we really are.
The United Kingdom has the worst teen pregnancy rate in Europe.
One third of US girls get pregnant before the age of 20.
There are three quarters of a million children born to teenaged girls each year in the USA.
Abstinence programs have no effect on teen sexual activity, but more kids who have abstinence training engage in unprotected sex.
And now the biggie...The Alaska governor has the line item veto. What item did Sarah Palin personally strike from the budget last year? Funding for a state program to help unwed teen mothers find a place to live.
John McCain and Sarah Palin are on record opposing funding for pregnancy prevention programs that involve teaching information about contraception.
John McCain has made a lousy choice for his Vice Presidential running mate, not because she has a pregnant teenaged daughter, but because Sarah Palin shares McCain's Barefoot and pregnant policies toward providing information to America's children, and both of them are willing to force their own ideas on ALL of America's children even though a majority of Americans oppose McCain's policies.
Let me rephrase that...John McCain wants your children taught something most of us don't accept and in fact oppose.
Conservatism is a vile philosophy in these respects...And John McCain has sold his soul to the worst of its proponents in order to help himself win the presidency.
And the fact that John McCain has sold his soul is his real problem. The fact that he allowed his handlers to choose a completely unqualified running mate is merely a symptom of McCain's emasculation.
We must protect America's children from these people.
Peace,
Steve
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"Conservatism is a vile philosophy in these respects...And John McCain has sold his soul to the worst of its proponents in order to help himself win the presidency.
ReplyDeleteWe must protect America's children from these people."
There it is there. Appreciate the rant.
As if McShit wasn't dangerous enough by his haphazard self, now he has a Right Wing Dingbat VP that had to inquire of reporters as to exactly what the duties of the vice President are.
Isn't that High School level gov't? Jr. High?
Well, I think it's clear that Miss Congeniality spent more time under the bleachers than she did in the classroom.
Just found your blog tonight, LOVE IT! Keep up the good work!
ReplyDeleteRobyn