Does Bristol Palin's pregnancy allow Sarah Palin to still advocate for abstinence-only sex education?

It's my understanding that Palin supports Bush in his stance on abstinence-only sex education. So it's reasonable to assume that this is what she taught her kids, and didn't teach them about condoms or birth control or make those things available.

Now don't get me wrong. I'm not saying it's wrong to teach that to your kids - in fact I think what you teach your kids about sex, abortion, etc. should be a personal issue, and shouldn't be politicized at all. But since it HAS become politicized, and her moral beliefs seem to guide her to back abstinence-only education for the American public (and I assume Africa too, since that was Bush's brilliant AIDS prevention strategy there), can she still get up and say with a straight face that it will work?

Basically, if you can't teach those values in your own home (where they should be taught, not in schools), how can you say they'll work as a national policy? Should politicians back down from this issue all together?

(P.S. Please don't accuse me of bashing Bristol Palin or anything. This is life, life happens, and I'm not making any judgement calls on her. In fact, I feel sorry for her that this situation has to be played out on a national stage. However, I think that this is a valid question about Sarah Palin's policies and their implications in real life).


http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2...

Morganie - No, I wouldn't, because Hillary doesn't support funding for abstinence-only education.

Abstinence is really stupid and no teen will listen to that bs
She really shouldn't advocate abstinence-only sex education considering it didn't work on HER OWN DAUGHTER.

It's fitting that her ineffective "abstinence only" education stance would come back and bite her in the rear. She has advocated this publicly, so it's absolutely fair game. I do feel sympathy for the daughter, and her personal life being made public, but this is the decision that her parents took.

What is it that gives you the credentials, or the right, to make such inferences and publish them here as though they were accurate, by citing a failing and admittedly liberal news reporting show? I'm sure you will see differently if you pass sixth grade civics. (Sorry, sixth graders...)

You can teach your kids anything you want. You can show them the road map to success. But I guarantee you most will not listen.

I can't judge her or her daughter on this issue. I was having more sex at 15-16 then I have now so who am I to judge.

I am sorry honey.....did you do everything your mother told you to do ?
And, anyone with any intellegence knows that "one" person is not proof of any thing working or not working, as far as proving any theory, community program etc...etc....

Ha. Yes laughable.

The abstinence only group, has some of the highest rates of teen pregnancy.

Research have shown that the abstinence only groups have higher rate of teen pregnancy than others. Gee what a surprise.

Would you be saying this about Hillary if Chelsea got pregnant because she didn't use a condom?

Bristol didn't practice abstenence, obviously...

She is a creationist, so how intelligent can she possible be?

No, she will still be hawking abstinence even when her next daughter gets pregnant because mom never told her how to avoid it.

In my view abstinence is the only sure way not to get pregnant or pass along an STD. It still would not stop anyone from advocating the opinion.

Since when does complete failure of a system prevent the current Republican party from still preaching it?

What do you Americans have against condoms? Seriously.

No, it shouldn't - but since she is a hypocrite, I'm sure she will continue doing so!

We need to go back to moms at home and corporal punishment to restore the virtues of society...

This is proof that abstinence education doesn't work. If her own mother couldn't get her to keep her legs closed then what makes Palin think some random underpaid school teacher is to be the one to a room full of kids to NOT have sex. Sex education is the only option.

To the girl above that compared Chelsea Clinton to this situation: We wouldn't care if Chelsea was pregnant because her mother isn't trying to force the schools to abandon sex education curriculum's in favor of abstinence teachings.

Your premise is false and misleading. Just because she believes in abstinence-only education in schools does not in turn mean that she teaches abstinence only in her home. Many people who are for abstinence only education feel that sex education is a personal, family issue and that they would prefer schools do not discuss these matters with their children, or provide free condoms, etc. It doesn't matter what you teach your kids at home or what they learn at school. In our world of tv, internet, magazines, books, and whatnot, every teenager knows about safe sex. Blaming on abstinence only education is just using a scapegoat.

And teaching them about preventive measures has worked so well. These things are taught in school and yet teen pregnancy is a very real problem. So, if children are being taught about forms of birth control (to include condoms) why is there still a teen pregnancy problem?

Boys (and men) don't like to use condoms. Girls can't get birth control pills without a parents permission. I know of no child that will go up to a parent and say they want to go on the pill.

It's so easy to play Tuesday morning quarterback after Monday night football.

My belief is that she can still advocate even though her daughter is pregnant. She's not, it's her daughter who is. So, her kid didn't listen to her when she told her the negatives of having sex. But, that doesn't mean she still doesn't believe strongly in abstinence.

Maybe she can make her child the poster girl for what kids today should be aware of (what can happen to them and ruin their childhood if they don't keep their pants on)

Governor Palin's views on abstinence-education in public schools in lieu of sex ed have not proved to be realistic. Her daughter was obviously not taught about the real world, and her mother's 19th century opinions are coming home to roost. Sad for the family and for the soon-to-be born baby.

For statistics about abstinence-only effectiveness, please read:

http://www.stats.org/stories/contrac_v_a...