Several liberal and “progressive” bloggers are gleefully pointing out the supposed hypocrisy that Sarah Palin represents because she believes in abstinence as a means to battle teen pregnancy.
“It didn’t work for her daughter, did it?”, they point out.
I won’t jump on the fact that they’re using a single point of reference to belittle a society-wide education plan, that’s neither here nor there. What I will question them on is if they believe that education is the be-all, end-all to combat teen pregnancy?
I ask, because on Page 25, (pdf, 6.7M, 145pp) of the State of Alaska, Department of Education & Early Development, Content and Performance Standards for Alaska Students (Revised Mar 2006) it says this under Skills for a Healthy Life:
7) understand the physical and behavioral characteristics of human sexual
development and maturity; and
8) understand the ongoing life changes throughout the life span and healthful
responses to these changes.
I’m guessing that abstinence isn’t the only piece of the system that failed in the case of Bristol Palin, eh?
Update: Damian is on the education theme too.
Cheers,
lance
The democrats platform is like a well used 1976 MGB sports car: looks smart from a distance but is mechanically weak, more rust than metal and prone to backfires.
Fingering the real life problems of Sara Palin’s family is likely to bring her more sympathy than criticism. Stuff happens to everyone in life and few people tolerate piling on for no good cause.
If the Dems want to be holier than thou…well that just another aspect of their ’76 MGB platform. Just see how far it goes before falling apart…
Help me understand this twisted leftist logic:
If I promote non-alcoholism in my family; but one of my children becomes an alcoholic, then I am a failure and to be criticized?
If I promote and value education, but one of my children drops out in grade 11; then I am a failure and to be criticized?
If I promote pacifism, but one of my children joins the army; then I am a failure and to be criticized?
If I promote an atheism, but one of my children becomes a Baptist; then I am a failure and to be criticized?
If I promote abstinence, but my daughter becomes pregnant; then I am a failure and to be criticized?
Is not this, the new leftist philosophy.
In reality, what I find most admirable in Palin’s case … is that the family has rallied around the pregnant daughter. The family will offer support, love, and acceptance giving the child and mother to be a fighting chance in this world. Furthermore, Sarah Palin, has set an example for her daughters and all young women that yes … you can be a loving mother … and at the same time one hell of a success in business and even politics.
Compare that to the utter stunning and gutter level hypocrisy coming from the Left. How stupid and supercilious. Don’t they realize, that by their actions they are offending millions of women who had children before they were married. Don’t they realize that 70% of African American families don’t have a father in the household. That by diminishing Sarah, they are diminishing all of them.
Leftists … beyond contempt … beyond parody … fools.
Yea, you say your against drugs and you kid is caught smoking a joint – your a hyprocrite!!
Left brained = Insanity.
batb…exactly.
The left has their knickers in a knot as usual at the prospect of having someone with high morals and Christian belief in the Whitehouse. If American libs think like Canadian libs-lefties they dread the freedom(authority) that these parents(Palin and others) have with their children.The left want the Nanny state to be in control of the kids…handing out the Pill and condoms, abortion on demand,with no parental influence, all for the sake of perpetuating the illusion that with free sex, there are no consequences, privilege with no responsibility, pleasure with the illusion of no pain.
They even go so far as to say the Palin’s had ‘no control’ over their 17 year old.What parent’s have control over their 17 year old?
“I suppose it would all be much more palatable to the left if the Palin family simply announced that Bristol would receive a state-funded abortion.”
The Palin family announcing anything that is up to Bristol herself would be “unpalatable” to me.
I don’t speak for the whole left but, “palatable” to me would be a person who at the very least accepts that teen pregnancy exists and can be reduced with sex education and birth control.
“And I’m not sure where this crazy idea comes from that if you teach your children abstinence, they don’t know the facts of life: The two are not mutually exclusive.”
Batb, the crazy idea is that proper sex education is *replaced* with abstinence education, as it would have to be – why teach about sex and give out condoms when you’re trying to convince them not to have sex.
Convincing teenagers not to have sex strikes me as good practice, frankly, so it’s too bad.
“her burden’s are the country’s gain: they have a VP in waiting who, when approached by the legions of parents with special needs, understands to her core what is needed, and what needs to be done.”
This has to be one of the most un-republican things I have ever read. What, do they want my tax money for their problems? F*## them, right?
“Hey Ronnie,
Go get your shine box.”
Nothing says political acumen like pretending you’re a clownish thug from a gangster movie.
The left thinks that just because abstinence education isn’t 100% effective, it should therefore be abolished?
I wonder if they’d apply the same logic to the pill and condoms and all that stuff?
“If I promote abstinence, but my daughter becomes pregnant; then I am a failure and to be criticized?”
Who said she’s a failure? You’ve totally missed the whole point.
“you can be a loving mother … and at the same time one hell of a success in business and even politics.”
She isn’t an expert in law though. So she therefore needs the services of a lawyer to defend her in a “legislative ethics investigation in Alaska into whether she abused her power in dismissing the state’s public safety commissioner”
You talk about her like she’s the greatest woman ever. Not foolish at all.
Skip:
Your comments regarding Bristol are what I have been thinking all along. I think there is some back story there as well….some risk taking to defy her mother or to get noticed or something. Is she the 3rd child?
Abstinence worked for me and my sisters (all 3 of them) but as has been mentioned, it was a different time. But I think things are slowly turning around.
speaking of abstinence, it didn’t work for the virgin Mary!!!!
sorry, couldn’t resist:-)))
Angryflower: Nice … change the topic.
Hey angryflower,
Go get your shine box.
In general terms, those with “right” wing beliefs use hard work in the marketplace to put bread on the table. Whether skilled or unskilled, smart or not so smart, they are self reliant folks.
Those that are raving mindlessly about Palin are “Left” wingers who want someone else to help them pay for their bread or cover up for their mistakes.
Its no wonder they are screaming about Palin. Her self reliant nature contrasts dramatically with their “someone else has to do it for me” character. And they know it. Makes them crazy to be exposed as irresponsible and as lazy as your average government worker.
Heads exploding on the left. Like Chinese fireworks.
Perhaps Kevin has no daughters?
The progressives might want to do a fact check. The highest abortion rates in the US are in NYC. A city that provides publicly funded birth control facilities. I wonder is there is a teaching moment with that statistic as well.
Bottom line is that people, teens in particular, can get caught up in the moment, get drunk, are too embarrassed or feel pressured to not use contraceptives. There is also the fact that all birth control methods, except abstinence and surgery, can fail. The press has no idea what the situation was with this girl and her boyfriend.
They look like self-righteous bullies. Almost every person has a friend of family member that has had this happen to them so the media beating up on this girl and her mom will backfire. The MSM is by extension calling all working women with pregnant teens a failure.
If Bristol Palin had aborted her child, whether out of her own choice or because her mother talked her into it out of some desperate sense of political expediency, it would all have been a private matter, a case of a young woman using medical services that Dem’s say, and a lot of other say, all women have a right to.
Instead, she is keeping the child, and she’s going to marry the father, and now she’s being vilified by opportunistic hate-mongers who sniff a political opportunity?
What’s wrong with this picture? Are Democrats utterly without sense or shame?
‘Therefore, to them, Palin’s pregnant daughter is a wedge issue to be directed at conservative Christians in the hope that McCain will lose their votes.’
If thats true and I suspect it is – they couldn’t be more wrong if they tried. Christians will rally to her big time, because they know they themselves screw up one way or the other every day of their lives.
These attacks will deeply offend them, the Democrats will bury themselves – they can’t seem to help it.
Sarah Palin’s own words when told that this could get ugly…she said “Do you know the difference between a pit bull and a hockey mom? No? A hockey mom wears lipstick.” This woman is sharp. The left has often underestimated some of the best politicians of our time…Ronald Reagan and Maggie Thatcher come to mind.
If Sarah Palin is not demonized and totally discredited by the liberal media then she will undoubtedly win the election for McCain.
Sarah Palin has more executive experience than Obama and she has an approval rating in Alaska of 80%.
The democrats are terrified of the thought that a smart attractive woman with a membership in the NRA who successfully fought corruption in the Alaskan oil business is now running on the McCain ticket.
Sarah Palin’s speech on Wednesday evening at the Republican convention will be a barn-burner. Watch for the polls by the end of the week because Sarah Palin is going to change the outcome of this election.
As for the Canadian federal election? Who cares.
I haven’t commented on this topic, that seems to be all over the place like cow pies. But now I think I’ll weigh in:
I’m pro choice, but always believed it was “choice”, not pro-abortion — and certainly not the sort of abortions that Mr. Obama seems to think are perfectly fine. If that is the direction the pro choice platform wants to move in, then they have lost a supporter. If that is the direction the Left wants to take the pro choice platform, then I will never again consider any of their canidates on this issue. There are limits of decency, of humanity that should not be crossed, and they have crossed them with a smirk and a smile. That Bristol Palin wants to keep her child I support as her choice; it is a woman’s personal right to “choose” not make a decision based on what political movement’s ideology says is best (and I juxtapose that w/ Mr. Obama’s statements about his own daughters and ask, where is the woman’s choice there?)
That Bristol Palin is pregnant is a surety, but no one knows if she used contraceptives or not — to say that she wasn’t is a lie as much as to say she was. Even so, as the mother of 5, two of which came about due to contraceptive failure, I can honestly say that even contraceptives don’t work all the time. There is a deep hole in the line of thinking that somehow handing out free contraceptives and demos to students on how to use them will some how be the magic bullet, and they will never suffer a pregnancy or STD due to this — this has been the failure of the present sex education in our schools.
If this is some attempt to paint Gov. Palin a hypocrite and bad mother, because she believes in teaching abstinence (although from what I have heard she doesn’t have a problem with teaching a comprehensive sex ed., just a problem with the more explicit material that passes as “education” — want some examples? check out some of Planned Parenthood’s materials for teaching sex ed.) anyway, if this smearing of her daughter is supposed to be a smear against her, then it is a very feeble one. One can only teach one’s child, set a good example, and hope for the best. From what I’ve seen she hasn’t condoned her daughter’s actions, but nonetheless supports her choice to have and keep the baby (and get married to the father as well) — in which case she has shown that she believes her child will have to grow up and take responsiblity, and that she is not a hypocrite concerning her abortion stance.
And Dolly and others who seem to view this one instance as public example of how very bad everyone’s morals are today (especially Gov. Palin’s or her daughter’s), abstinence may have worked for you and your sisters; it works for many young women today. But then as now, there were a lot of women who became impregnated out of wedlock — “Bristol Palins” have been around for a very long time. Going from that standpoint, I find it very shameful that people would be so eager to pin the proverbial Scarlet Letter on the girl, or (the main target) her mother — especially women, who should know better.
Loved this one:
“Sarah Palin uses French Canadians as bait to catch giant king salmon”
http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q=MTRhN2Q1YTg4OGE4ZjkzMjM5YjgyNzdiZTQwYjdmYWM=
Nah thats a myth, salmon won’t eat them either.
angryflower: “…why teach about sex and give out condoms when you’re trying to convince them not to have sex?”
angryflower, what a caring and concerned parent does is teach our kids about sex and ALSO try to convince them not to have sex until they have found and married the partner in life who will deeply love, respect, and honour them and their life together.
What a parent who believes in abstinence and its many benefits DOESN’T do is give out condoms to young teens. That’s tantamount–after teaching them about sex and counselling abstinence unti they’re mature enough to enter into a sexual relationship–to encouraging them to use them.
We don’t, for instance, give kids life jackets and then encourage them NOT to use them.
When a parent counsels abstinence for the good of their child and explains why, if their child should become pregnant or contract an STD, her child won’t have to say, “Mom, why didn’t you tell me?”
Sarah Palin doesn’t have a favorite web framework. She is a web framework.
Sarah Palin was the first one to know that Scoop sucks
Sarah Palin is the reason compasses point North
Sarah Palin begins every day with a moment of silence for the political enemies buried in her yard.
Sarah Palin always beats the point spread.
Sarah Palin once bit the head off a live Osprey snatched from the air as it tried to fly off with a fish she caught.
Sarah Palin uses French Canadians as bait to catch giant king salmon.
When Sarah Palin booked a flight to Europe, the French immediately surrendered.
Sarah Palin plays Whack-a-Mole with her forehead, and always gets a perfect score.
Sarah Palin knows who was on the grassy knoll.
Sarah Palin’s finishing move in the VP debate will be pulling Biden’s still beating heart from his chest & taking a bite.
McCain/Palin ’08
Here is a good one:
Obama claimed today as his experience which qualifies him for the WH, running a campain with 2500 employees and a budget of a few hundred million. He compared that to Sarah Palin’s job as mayor of a small town with 50 employees. Here is a news flash for Obama, a little known fact to his supporters.
Sarah Palin ran the state of Alaska with a budget of 11 billion dollars annually and 15,000 employees.
People have seriously missed the point on this one. This episode proves that condoms don’t work.
What’s that you say? She didn’t use a condom?
Well she didn’t use abstinence either.
Now let’s drop this slag-the-family nonsense and move on.
This is such a great post. A 72 yr old man is kicking the shit out of two tit sucking pups, whom on record has never done an honesty’s days work.
He’s losing the polls because of Obama’s dream of change that every damn useless news channel hangs onto his every word.
He’s a very smart man. Does the far left whom have been pushing Obama change at every opportunity. They thought that he would pick they most experienced man for VP, whitch he had several. They expected it, but he throws the curve ball. A woman from Alaska, who has no experience at all in the “BELTWAY” of Washington politics. The who of who, and you do me a favor and I will scratch your back.
I bet he knew everything about this family and relates. He said he did not make up his mind until a week ago. He had people up there. The mother and father knew. They are not blind, Sarah told him and his people, they had meetings before she was announced as VP.
People I think McCain is doing the classic end run. How many has talked about anything else since Sarah was announced. All I can say is keep throwing them curve galls old man, because you are the classic.
“Sarah Palin ran the state of Alaska with a budget of 11 billion dollars annually and 15,000 employees.”
Plus, there was a $1,200 tax rebate that came from raising taxes on oil companies.
“The tax raises when oil prices are high, and falls when oil prices are low. This give amazing incentive for the oil companies to produce more oil, which increases supply, and lowers prices for everyone including the taxes they themselves pay the state. When oil prices are low the tax moves to a 10 percent tax on the gross, instead of the net tax of 25 percent when prices are high. Instead of, not in addition to. The oil companies in Alaska with the Palin proposal pay the state minus their operating expenses along with pipeline and tanker charges. In this way, the oil companies are not taxed for the cost of doing business.”
While economic conservatives surely want to hear much more from her, they see things right now as “so far, so good.”
http://tinyurl.com/56ebk6
“The explicit sex-ed programs will not find my support,” she wrote in a 2006 questionnaire distributed among gubernatorial candidates.
Explicit sex-ed programs are a new approach that is embroiled in controversy all over the States. Its not sex-ed as most people think of it. Its a field-trip hands-on type of program that a LOT of American school systems are not comfortable with. Neither is she. Big deal. If a local school wants to do it, they’ll have to pay for it themselves. Big deal.
Some reason why leftist parents (all one of them) can’t teach their own kids about sex, or does the school system have to teach them too?
Tim in Vermont at 10:14 PM
odd that HE would compare himself to the one running for second slot, while he’s supposed to be running for top slot:-))))
and running a campaign is essentially a single focus job, running town is a multiple focus job, and a state is far more complex than a campaign
“only ugly women go to university” that’s a pretty funny uncle you got there new @ 10:11. Hilarious, that’s a real knee slapper. I bet the guy is a laugh a minute at your family gatherings with all your beautiful uneducated women.
stop pregnacy. both Mo and “new” recommend boinking underage boys. you couldnt get more disgusting if you were mikey moore.
http://www.masada2000.org/BetterWorld.html
By the way, here is the New York Times rowback on the Alaskan Independence Party thing.
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/02/alaska-party-official-says-palin-was-not-a-member/
It seems that her husband was a member, so, I guess under current standards of decency by the left, that makes the lies and distortion ok.
Obama has little relevant experience in many aress and has chosen somebody as VP to backstop some of those weaknesses.
Palin, “a heartbeat away from becoming president”, can chose anybody she wants as VP if the situation arises. That VP can fill in the blanks and can be chosen for governing not for campaigning.
So, even if she didn’t have more experience than Obama already she will never have less.
Teen pregnancies happen. Kinda sad it did. Kinda annoyed the dems are making it an issue. Expect that they are hurting their candidates’ chances by making it an issue. Small comfort, but comfort nevertheless.
new, you say, um, let me get this straight now. You went to a GIFTED school and your one disadvantage (you probably mean advantage) is you can handle dumb people because you are among the smart people, in fact society is full of dumb people and the issue is how to handle them.
Furthermore, Palin is not smart (probably because she’s pretty?), but it was her husband, who looks smart, or one close to her who directed her to this stage. Correct me if I’m wrong, but that has to be the most boneheaded explanation of anything I have ever heard…please tell me your pulling my leg.
Please people, don’t feed the troll.
Bart F. at September 2, 2008 3:44 PM
I’m with Bart. Lets get our noses out of family buisness no matter who. Its shows a lack of class with less maturity.
JMO
Thank you for deleting new/haye/food media’s posts,he’s one screwed up individual.
So an unmarried pregnant teenager is supposed to split the Evangelical Christian vote, hahahahhahahahahahah
There once was an unmarried pregnant teenager who had a son who just so happened to be Jesus Christ.
I think the unmarried pregnant teenager is more likely to divide the moderate democrats than the Christian Evangelicals.
There seems to be an automatic assumtion by many that Bristol Palins’ pregnancy was unplanned.
Maybe someone will ask HER if she actually WANTED a child…
She is, after all, engaged to marry the father.
Abstinance is not perfect, but the 1950’s had fewer pregnancies that after the 1960’s sexual “liberation”.
I think their family is a great example of what you do when a teen makes a mistake. Not all teens make this mistake and many remain holy until marriage. What the Left does not understand is that human beings are not beasts ruled by sexual desire. Sure, sexual desire is a powerful force since God wants us to be procreative, however we also have self-control, which while not perfect is better than the secularist vision of humanity whereby we can’t keep our peckers in our pants. Often we can, and many people always do.
We are more than the beasts that leftist think they and we are.