The New Unmarried Moms

It's one thing to scare a teen about pregnancy and having a baby so young. Which is why I'm in favor of making kids have those mechanical practice babies in junior high, so they know that it's not all fun and games to have a kid.

Shaming them, especially the girls, is something else. It's not going to do them much good when they're up at 2 a.m. feeding the baby. And we're a little past the point where shunting them off to unwed mother homes in the middle of Podunk is going to teach them a lesson.

 

Education, affordable and easy-to-get birth control and frank discussions with children BEFORE they begin having sex are much more affective weapons. And JFC, if you have a son tell that boy to wrap that thing EVERY SINGLE TIME. Girls do not get themselves pregnant.

 

+1,000

 

At least the ads are honest. As a society, we've shown that we're going to spend as least money as humanly possible to support unwed mothers. Why leave the impression that we think it's hunky-dory?

 

+1,000

 

This issue doesn't have a fucking thing to do with marriage. It's about economic and social stability, things many married couples can't provide, either, especially young married couples without high school degrees.

 

But the gist of the story is that those are the kinds of couples that aren't getting married anymore.

And two incomes are always better than one, and having Dad around is (almost) always better than not. So I think marriage is very much at the heart of the situation.

 

So every dad who isn't married to his child's mother is not providing or around for his child?

 

Not every. But statistically speaking, a far far greater percentage.

The differences in achievement between kids who grow up in two-parent households and those who don't are well-established and not up for debate. And that isn't just a money thing.

 

That's because society has tempered us into thinking the two-parent, one-house, marriage system is correct. Therefore, responsible adults would tend to get married because they've learned that it's the responsible thing.

 

It's society's fault, man!

I have a hard time finding fault with a society that emphasizes having two parents.

 

I would prefer it emphasize financial and social stability. This entire conversation can't be had without discussing the legalization and stigmatization of abortion, though. And I'm not sure I want to go there here.