That’s Right Nate

As regular followers of my blog know, teen issues are very important to me. It isn’t just that I have a daughter who is about to enter her own teenage years, but also because as the owner of my own self-storage business I’m something of a role model for teens. That’s why I’ve made my opinion on sex education very clear. I was in high school in the mid-80s and college in the late 80s. This was a time when girls simply didn’t have sex until marriage. Sure some guys would tell big stories, but I can tell you from personal experience that pretty much my entire high school and college classes were made up of virgins.

Of course nowadays teenagers are lucky and they have abstinence only education to help them make the right choice. During the Bush administration, the amount of money the federal government spent on abstinence only education went from $73,000,000 to $204,000,000 per year despite 17 states opting out of the program. That seems like an awful lot of money to me. I think if you gave me 40 minutes in a room full of high school girls I could have them swear off sex until they’re 30, but I guess in the schools people expect to be overpaid.

The proof that I mentioned in the headline involves the virginity pledge that is the ultimate goal of many abstinence only programs. This is a pledge to remain a virgin until death or marriage. My daughter has taken this pledge whether she realizes it or not. Anyway, she’s pretty overweight at 5’7″ and 125 pounds so I don’t think it’ll be an issue. While a recent study by Harvard researcher Janet Rosenbaum found that students who took the virginity pledge were just as likely to have sex as those who didn’t and far less likely to use protection, the study found that they had 0.1 percent less sexual partners. It is clear that at least as far as monogamy goes, the lessons are getting through. Next, we need to move on and attack that whole having sex thing.

It’s true that at times in my youth I wish that I had grown up in a more sexually liberated time, but the 80s and 90s were a much safer time to grow up and I don’t know that I’d ever trade that for the diseases and risk of pregnancy they have today. It’s definitely enough to make me glad that my daughter isn’t pretty.

T-Shirts like these are available at the Candies' Bristol Palin Abstinence Tour

I am really excited that Bristol Palin is doing an abstinence tour this summer.  I don’t think there is a better way to get the message across to young children that God doesn’t approve of sinful sexual behavior than by holding up her crying baby and proudly proclaiming to the audience that this could happen to you.  Best of all, its sponsored by Candies who you know will do an amazing job since they have experience promoting rock shows like Britney Spears’ current amazing Circus tour.  In fact, Britney and Bristol seem to be the new face of candies.  Together, they give girls the message that not having sex doesn’t mean not having any fun–afterall you can go pretty far without intercourse.

There has been some controversy after Levi Johnston, the father of Bristol’s child, called abstinence unrealistic and implied that the reason that Bristol got pregnant was that they never used birth control.  That’s possible, but that is certainly not the message we need to be teaching to our children today.

I feel relatively sure that my 13 year old daughter Emily will not be sexually active until she’s at least out of college and possibly longer.   I didn’t have to sit down and have a long talk with her or anything.  One day as we were leaving the self-storage facility I turned to her from nowhere and blurted out in my deepest most serious voice, “Emily, all I have to say is good girls don’t and bad girls do”.  She looked at me with a puzzled expression and asked,  “What do you mean?” and I replied “Exactly what I said”.  She nodded and I could tell we had a moment that will stick with her for the rest of her life.  It makes me feel better just to know that we’ve had the talk.

Now some people will tell you that Bristol Palin as an unwed teen mother makes no sense to be preaching practicine abstinence.   Practicing abstinence is something that girls need to do for their teen lives and the more you practice it, the better you get.  I’m sure that Bristol can be exactly the role model that kids need.  In fact, I have been thinking that Emily could do something similar on a local level.   Emily is chubby in fact at 5’7″ and 125 pounds, she’s really kind of a porker.  I have been wondering if we could get a local restaurant like a McDonalds or Subway to get her to go around and teach kids about healthy eating.   Just as Bristol’s child provides a lesson that words alone could not, my daughter’s weight problem could do the same thing.   This is definitely something to look into for summer.  In the meantime, you go Bristol!  You’re sexy enough to make the boys wait.

Liberal media has jumped on the Center for Diseas Control’s report that shows Mississippi has become the number one state in the union for teen pregnancy.  You see, it makes the liberals feel good about themselves to point out that with abstinence only education Missisippi’s teen pregnancy rate is 60 percent higher than the national average.  However instead of looking at the 6.8% of teen girls in Misissippi who were pregnant, why not look at the 93.2% of the state’s teens who weren’t.

The reason that Mississipi has such problems with abstinence only education is pretty obvious–its teacher’s unions.  Lazy teachers who are union protected do a half ass job of teaching abstinence because they know that every teen who gets pregnant is another student who will need teaching.  This is blatant conflict of interest.  If they really want somebody to make a case for abstinence bring religious leaders or even parent volunteers into a classroom.  Boys are hopeless at this age, but we can reach the girls.   I can tell you if you let me talk about sex for half an hour with a room full of high school girls they will choose to remain virgins for a very long time.

As I’ve mentioned before, I didn’t appreciate it at the time, but I was very lucky that I grew up in the 1980s when nobody had premarital sex.  Oh it wasn’t from lack of trying on the guys’ part, but the girls always said no.   I worry about my daughter growing up in this era where morals have gone to pot, but I know that I have instilled good values in her and I know that when she starts dating I will watch her like a hawk.

A lot of people think of the Department of Justice as being a bunch of heavies who arrest people, but they do a lot more.  Specifically, what caught my eye today was two great programs that they have funded that will have a positive impact on young people’s lives.

The first program is the World Golf Foundation’s first tee program. 

“We need something really attractive to engage the gangs and the street kids, golf is the hook,” said J. Robert Flores, the administrator of the Justice Department’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention.

As an avid golfer myself, I love the sport, but nothing irritates me more than paying my $85 greens fee and then getting an incompetent caddy.  This is an excellent chance to train the new generation of caddies to follow in the grand traditions of golf.  What’s more when these inner city gang members see what a fun afternoon at the course $50 can buy, you won’t be seeing drive bys you’ll be seeing drives!

Some people were not real happy with the program which was ranked 47 out of 104 programs getting the funding, but I am told the videotaped presentation from former President Bush was very persuassive–far more so than some of the presentations by higher ranked programs to deal with teen violence and gang prevention.

A Washington based abstinence program called Friends Forever got a 1.1 million dollar grant even though it ranked 53rd out of 104 programs in its category, but again I think Best Friends President Elayne Bennett puts it best, “”We’re really about positive friendships . good, solid friendship is a beautiful thing.” 

From getting kids out on the golf course to getting them out of intercourse, the Department of Justice is on the job.  Hopefully, Bill Bennett will point that out in his next commentary.