After reading Ruth Marcus’ piece in today’s Washington Post, here; I was flabbergasted by the thought of just how much and how far some Americans feel the US Government should be involved in our day to day lives. For the moment, let’s forget the fact that Marcus is mixing apples with oranges with regard to a personal story vs. a birth control program for pre-teens and teens in our public schools. The Latin American girl Ana that Jenna Bush refers to in her book most likely doesn’t have a Planned Parenthood option in her native country. There, it is “use a condom” or take you chances. Marcus is making an enormous leap of faith when comparing an American teen with a Latin American teen in an area where UNICEF is present.
But here is the rub that I think very few people in Washington are talking about; liability. Seriously! Imagine if 5 years from now the pill that is being offered to girls in our public schools suddenly is recalled? What if someone decided that they got pregnant, contracted HIV or even an STD after receiving “instruction” from someone at school. There must be ambulance chasers all across American salivating at the mere possibility of latching on to one of these “victims of Big Brother”.
If someone can sue McDonald’s and win over a coffee cup after she removed the lid and put it between her legs while driving, then who is to say that the type of litigation mentioned above is off limits? After all we live in a litigious society – Do I need to remind you of the judge who sued the dry cleaner for loosing his favorite pair of pants?
In just about every arena involving teens in America today there is no accountability that falls on their shoulders. We blame their parents if they misbehave, we blame teachers if they appear uneducated and on and on. We, as a culture, have romanticized the teens years to the extent that we have pretty much given our teens a blank check from the age of 9. Even many colleges across the nation have had to impliment remedial classes for Math and English and other subject areas because they have decided, in the name of the all mighty dollar, to accept students that 20 years ago would never even make it past the preliminary acceptance filter.
Teen pregnancy is another area that seems to be taboo in our culture. After some 15 years as a teacher myself, I can only recall two cases where the parents remained civil for the sake of their child. All the others were cases where the young girls’ families took the brunt of the responsibility along with help from Uncle Sam in the form of WIC and other subsidized government programs. Meanwhile, many American couples unable to conceive on their own are forced to go overseas to adopt a child. I would much rather prefer to see pregnant teens opt for giving their unborn children up for adoption that strap the entitlement system with more and more fiscal responsibility. It gives the teen mother the opportunity to still follow her dreams and also gives a married or committed couple the possibility to raise a child is much more positive and calm setting. But there again is that “nasty” word, responsibility.
