Monday, September 01, 2008

Politics and Teen Pregnancy Combined

So the big news these days is the Republican ticket. McCain announced his choice a few days ago, and oddly, it was a practically unknown person, the governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin. Sure, it's great that it's a woman, but just because she's a woman, doesn't mean she's great. Turns out she is very conservative, evangelical Christian, pro-life, pro-gun, has zero foreign policy experience, and very little experience being a governor, either. However: that's who McCain picked, for some bizarre reason.

Palin (who is 44) has 5 kids (each of whom has a very strange name - see my last post), ranging from 18 to 4 or 5 MONTHS old (the baby happens to have Downs). I don't really understand how she can be GOVERNOR with all those kids to deal with, never mind Vice President of the COUNTRY! She must have help. Very good help.

I just found this interesting commentary on her Governor-of-Alaska web site:
Multi-task indeed! I'm calling the Manic Mommies for advice!

So now it turns out that Palin's daughter who is only 17 is....ready?.... five months PREGNANT. Hmmm.... But, it's okay, because she is going to keep the baby, AND she's going to marry the baby's father. And they all lived happily ever after....

My thoughts?

Well, this doesn't really impact the election, per se, because really, it's a personal matter. It happens all the time. Teen girls get pregnant. They decide what they will do. They live with their decisions. That's life.

On the other hand.... is this a good role model for our nation? We already have an epidemic of teen pregnancy among Hollywood stars. Do we need it in politics as well? What kind of message is this sending our young people?

It will be VERY INTERESTING to see how this plays itself out. Stay tuned.

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