Teen Pregnancy Pact

[diethx]

http://news.aol.com/story/_a/teens-pregnancy-pact-shocks-town/20080619211609990001

Teens' Pregnancy Pact Shocks Town
CBS News
Posted: 2008-06-19 21:52:59
Filed Under: Nation News
(June 19) It's news that has people talking in the sleepy fishing village of Gloucester, Massachusetts, reports CBS News correspondent Michelle Miller.

"I think it's awful," one woman says. "They're kids having kids."

Seventeen girls at Gloucester High School not only got pregnant, but according to some, it was no accident.

"Pregnancy was the desired outcome," school superintendent Christopher Farmer says.

"So they did it on purpose?" Miller asks.

"That's what it sounds like, yes," Farmer says.

School officials discovered the pregnancy pact after some girls seemed disappointed that their pregnancy tests from the school nurse came back negative.

"They will have a baby as part of their life to give them status," Farmer says. "motherhood gives them status."

Status in Gloucester is hard to come by. The once thriving fishing community has seen jobs drift overseas. Economic depression has left many teens trying to fill the void.

"It sort of gives you the impression of being an adult, an independent. It may give you an opportunity for unconditional love and attention from the baby and also that you give to the baby," Dr. Elisabeth Guthrie, a pediatric psychiatrist, says.

According to the superintendent, all the girls were 16 or younger. Most of the fathers weren't in high school and at least one of them was a 24-year-old man.

Amanda Ireland, mother of 3-year-old Haley, just graduated from Gloucester High. She says she's tried to warn her peers about the tough road ahead.

"Don't, don't try to get pregnant," she says. "People say, 'I know what it's like because I have siblings.' But you really don't. No one knows until they actually go through it. And it's a lot of work."

School officials have their work cut for them. They are now considering a plan to provide birth control services in the high school next fall.

Their biggest challenge is how to change the mindset in some of the girls who come here.

__________________________________________________ __

http://www.threadbombing.com/data/media/1/picard-facepalm.jpg

[Paradii]

Yeah, when I read this today, all I could think was "Girl's are f'ing retards"

And then I was like "hrmm, there are underage chicks putting out in Massachusetts, and they have no taste in men"

But alas, it would be a 1400 dollar round trip plane ticket. So the girls are safe.






For now.

[Methais]

Yeah, when I read this today, all I could think was "Girl's are f'ing retards"

And then I was like "hrmm, there are underage chicks putting out in Massachusetts, and they have no taste in men"

But alas, it would be a 1400 dollar round trip plane ticket. So the girls are safe.






For now.

This.

[Stanley Burrell]

You know what else is a status symbol?

Gigantic platinum teeth and prison time.

Suits and ties.

10x DB items.

Tight vagina.

...

I woke up 5 minutes ago and this is damn functional for my atypical responses.

[CrystalTears]

It's like watching Suicide Girls.

[Stanley Burrell]

I never saw any stretch marks or permanent bone degeneration due to hormone levels after childbirth on the Suicide Girls. I guess I'm not that freaky.

[CrystalTears]

WTF are you talking about? If you ever saw the movie Suicide Girls, my stating it was in reference to the mentality of doing something [stupid] because the other girls were doing it too.

[Stanley Burrell]

D'oh. Forgive me for not analyzing any movie concept.

http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1307/1002059795_63181d71a7.jpg

Spielberg-esque.

[TheEschaton]

Yeah, this was all over the local news last night. The 24 year old guy? Homeless - the girl just had sex with him to try and get pregnant.

Bitches be nothin' but tricks and hoes.

[Deathravin]

It sounds like it's fucking retarded at first. But I see two possibilities in how they were thinking:

A) They are your typical dumb trailer trash that can't see past 5 minutes from now.
- or -
B) They are your typical dumb trailer trash but with a decent plan. We haven't heard from the girls yet (not sure if we will or not).
BUT if I wanted a kid, AND I wanted to go to college, this isn’t a bad way to do it. You have at least 16 other girls able and willing to watch your kid for you. It’s not like you’re the only one with a kid where none of your friends want to babysit. They are in the same boat. Personally, I’d pool the money and rent out like 6 apartments or a couple houses right next door to eachother and near the school.
Then you could organize your classes, your baby time, your working time, your fun time, etc so that all of the kids have babysitters all day without having to worry about parents. When they’re out of school the kids will be 5ish you have a couple more years of babysitting but by the time you’re starting your career they’ll be old enough to go to school.

So they’re either flat out retarded girls who can’t see past tomorrow.
Or they’re dumb girls that want kids but want to minimize the hassle of childraising.

[TheEschaton]

Well, from what I understood, they made the pact because they all wanted to raise their kids together.

And then one of them got accidently "shit-the-condom-broke" pregnant, so instead of being responsible and getting an abortion or putting it up for adoption, they all decided to get pregnant.

-TheE-

[Allereli]

More details below, it's even worse than the article above makes it seem

http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1815845,00.html?cnn=yes


Wednesday, Jun. 18, 2008
Pregnancy Boom at Gloucester High
By Kathleen Kingsbury

As summer vacation begins, 17 girls at Gloucester High School are expecting babies — more than four times the number of pregnancies the 1,200-student school had last year. Some adults dismissed the statistic as a blip. Others blamed hit movies like Juno and Knocked Up for glamorizing young unwed mothers. But principal Joseph Sullivan knows at least part of the reason there's been such a spike in teen pregnancies in this Massachusetts fishing town. School officials started looking into the matter as early as October, after an unusual number of girls began filing into the school clinic to find out if they were pregnant. By May, several students had returned multiple times to get pregnancy tests, and on hearing the results, "some girls seemed more upset when they weren't pregnant than when they were," Sullivan says. All it took was a few simple questions before nearly half the expecting students, none older than 16, confessed to making a pact to get pregnant and raise their babies together. Then the story got worse. "We found out one of the fathers is a 24-year-old homeless guy," the principal says, shaking his head.

The question of what to do next has divided this fiercely Catholic enclave. Even with national data showing a 3% rise in teen pregnancies in 2006 — the first increase in 15 years — Gloucester isn't sure it wants to provide easier access to birth control. In any case, many residents worry that the problem goes much deeper. The past decade has been difficult for this mostly white, mostly blue-collar city (pop. 30,000). In Gloucester, perched on scenic Cape Ann, the economy has always depended on a strong fishing industry. But in recent years, such jobs have all but disappeared overseas, and with them much of the community's wherewithal. "Families are broken," says school superintendent Christopher Farmer. "Many of our young people are growing up directionless."

The girls who made the pregnancy pact — some of whom, according to Sullivan, reacted to the news that they were expecting with high fives and plans for baby showers — declined to be interviewed. So did their parents. But Amanda Ireland, who graduated from Gloucester High on June 8, thinks she knows why these girls wanted to get pregnant. Ireland, 18, gave birth her freshman year and says some of her now pregnant schoolmates regularly approached her in the hall, remarking how lucky she was to have a baby. "They're so excited to finally have someone to love them unconditionally," Ireland says. "I try to explain it's hard to feel loved when an infant is screaming to be fed at 3 a.m."

The high school has done perhaps too good a job of embracing young mothers. Sex-ed classes end freshman year at Gloucester, where teen parents are encouraged to take their children to a free on-site day-care center. Strollers mingle seamlessly in school hallways among cheerleaders and junior ROTC. "We're proud to help the mothers stay in school," says Sue Todd, CEO of Pathways for Children, which runs the day-care center.

But by May, after nurse practitioner Kim Daly had administered some 150 pregnancy tests at Gloucester High's student clinic, she and the clinic's medical director, Dr. Brian Orr, a local pediatrician, began to advocate prescribing contraceptives regardless of parental consent, a practice at about 15 public high schools in Massachusetts. Currently Gloucester teens must travel about 20 miles (30 km) to reach the nearest women's health clinic; younger girls have to get a ride or take the train and walk. But the notion of a school handing out birth control pills has met with hostility. Says Mayor Carolyn Kirk: "Dr. Orr and Ms. Daly have no right to decide this for our children." The pair resigned in protest on May 30.

Gloucester's elected school committee plans to vote later this summer on whether to provide contraceptives. But that won't do much to solve the issue of teens wanting to get pregnant. Says rising junior Kacia Lowe, who is a classmate of the pactmakers': "No one's offered them a better option." And better options may be a tall order in a city so uncertain of its future. — With reporting by Kimberley McLeod/New York

[Misun]

Or they’re dumb girls that want kids but want to minimize the hassle of childraising.

This is supposed to minimize the hassle of childraising how? They are teenage girls. Irresponsible ones. Who says they are going to come through for each other? Once they have their babies, it will hit them and they will be so stress and tired from trying to raise their own that they most likely will not want to care for their 'friends' kids.

I think we all know who is going to end up raising some of these babies. The parents of the girls.

This has to be one of the dumbest things I've heard in a long time.

[TheEschaton]

The high school has done perhaps too good a job of embracing young mothers.

LOL

[Clove]

The girls are just short-sighted and retarded. Not unlike your typical teen, but then this sort of thing hasn't been typical for teens in other states (yet).

I blame Massachussetts' legalized same-sex marriages. Clearly traditional family values are influencing their teenagers. Mark my words, California teen girls will be making the pact next!

Sorry about that, ClydeR hijacked my terminal. It won't happen again.

[Clove]

WTF are you talking about? If you ever saw the movie Suicide Girls, my stating it was in reference to the mentality of doing something [stupid] because the other girls were doing it too.Speaking of movies, this article reminded me more of Idiocracy and unfortunately I'm beginning to believe the movie was more prophetic, than comedic.

[Stanley Burrell]

Speaking of movies, this article reminded me more of Idiocracy and unfortunately I'm beginning to believe the movie was more prophetic, than comedic.

I think you're mistaking prophetic with syndicated-low-budget-HBO film knock-offs of their chronological antecedents.

[Stanley Burrell]

Antecedents is a particularly large word today. Sorry for the extra lumpsums of incoherency you selectively-reading fucksticks.

Still though, I love you.

[iJin]

Blaming Juno, is an lol.


Meh, well thats this generation kids for ya.

[CrystalTears]

Meh, well thats this generation kids for ya.
You're that generation too, ya know. ;)

[Clove]

Blaming Juno, is an lol.


Meh, well thats this generation kids for ya.


You're that generation too, ya know. ;)Yeah but at least she isn't retarded enough to get into a pregnancy pact for attention (um, that we know of).

[Clove]

I think you're mistaking prophetic with syndicated-low-budget-HBO film knock-offs of their chronological antecedents.No. I'm not. When retards get pregnant at 15 for "status," Idiocracy is prophetic.

[Stanley Burrell]

Damn. I guess us colonialists of the future aren't allowed to fuck underage Pocahontas for a symbol status anymore.

And to think I've been growing this pedostache this long.

[iJin]

Uhm. Hell fucking no.


I know how teenagers are now a days. They're all a fucked up bunch. Going around doing drugs, drinking heavily until the point of passing out, and having sex with like the whole area code. Well, atleast thats how it is around my area. That is pretty much why I've been so anti social with people my age. I rather not be apart of any of that, which doesn't interest me.

So I'm good. kthnx.

Edit: Also, putting me in the category of this generation of kids just cause of my age is so incredibly stupid. I mean, how ignorant can you all really be?

[RichardCranium]

Its pronounced y'all.

[Allereli]

Laphrael and I now have a pregnancy pact if anyone wishes to join it

[RichardCranium]

I'll play the part of the homeless guy.

[Stanley Burrell]

I'll play the seasoned photographer who makes R. Kelly documentaries, then. LARP'ing mtmf'ing-w?

[Paradii]

Edit: Also, putting me in the category of this generation of kids just cause of my age is so incredibly stupid. I mean, how ignorant can you all really be?

Are you familiar with what a generation is the context you used it in?

Its the group of people born from time x to time y. And you fall into that period of time. Has nothing to do if you are like them or not.

For example, I am a year shy of being part of the nintendo sub-generation, and yet I love Nintendo. Go figure.

[diethx]

No. I'm not. When retards get pregnant at 15 for "status," Idiocracy is prophetic.

I was actually thinking the same thing when I was reading the article. Scary, heh.


Laphrael and I now have a pregnancy pact if anyone wishes to join it

What time frame are we looking at here? I may be interested!!!!!!!11

[Skeeter]

Uhm. Hell fucking no.


I know how teenagers are now a days. They're all a fucked up bunch. Going around doing drugs, drinking heavily until the point of passing out, and having sex with like the whole area code. Well, atleast thats how it is around my area. That is pretty much why I've been so anti social with people my age. I rather not be apart of any of that, which doesn't interest me.

So I'm good. kthnx.

Edit: Also, putting me in the category of this generation of kids just cause of my age is so incredibly stupid. I mean, how ignorant can you all really be?

Clearly you have no idea what generation means.

[iJin]

No, I do. It's a big club of people born around the same time, I get it. Among other things as well but whatever.

The thing I don't like is being coupled with the generation. Okay, yes I know I'm a part of it. Do I like it? No, but it is beyond my control.

Oh nevermind you, proving a point here is..pointless.

[TheEschaton]

You have an avatar of someone called "The Birthday Massacre," one of whose members is a male named Rainbow.

If that isn't the definition of your fucking generation, I don't know what is.

[diethx]

You have an avatar of someone called "The Birthday Massacre," one of whose members is a male named Rainbow.

If that isn't the definition of your fucking generation, I don't know what is.

lol, he's got you there Zuie :/

[Latrinsorm]

According to the superintendent, all the girls were 16 or younger. Most of the fathers weren't in high school and at least one of them was a 24-year-old man.You stay classy, Massachusetts!
Personally, I’d pool the moneyDude, what money does a bunch of 16 year old and younger girls have, let alone a bunch of pregnant ones?

[iJin]

If anyone was named Rainbow on a birth certificate then yes I'd be concerned. But seeing as its a band, I'm not.

Lame.

[TheEschaton]

That he CHOSE to take the name Rainbow is even worse. Face it, you are not special and unique, you don't stand out, you listen to an emo band like millions of other dark makeup wearing kids, and you are squarely planted in the middle of your generation.

[iJin]

Hm, if you're trying to point out something that a million jackasses haven't already told me, then you're waisting you're energy.

Hoorah for being a stereotypical judgmental son of a bitch.

[Miss Ismurii]

This is no surprise to me at all. All my friends are pregnant, but me.

[TheEschaton]

Of course, no one could possibly understand you, what was I thinking? I'm so sorry, Zuie. There's no way you're a part of the generation which everyone else your age belongs to, and listening to the bands you listen to is in no way is a similar activity that other youth your age do.

[Nieninque]

This is no surprise to me at all. All my friends are pregnant, but me.

And this is a surprise to many

[Nieninque]

Of course, no one could possibly understand you, what was I thinking? I'm so sorry, Zuie. There's no way you're a part of the generation which everyone else your age belongs to, and listening to the bands you listen to is in no way is a similar activity that other youth your age do.

Give her a fucking break. What did you do that was so much better than she did? She's a kid, doing things kids do. Big fucking deal. So you don't like it, no-one gives a fuck. Get back to reminding us all you are at law school. Fucking idiot.

[Miss Ismurii]

LMAO

[TheEschaton]

awww, poor Nien.. The girl is trying to argue she isn't part of her generation. Normally, you'd be jumping all over the girl, but for some reason you don't like me and have to take the other side. It's kinda sad.

-TheE-

[Nieninque]

awww, poor Nien.. The girl is trying to argue she isn't part of her generation. Normally, you'd be jumping all over the girl, but for some reason you don't like me and have to take the other side. It's kinda sad.

-TheE-

Diddums...Nien dun like you huh? Nien being mean to poor little lawyer boy?

I have no reason to jump all over her. She was called out for misunderstanding what "her generation means" and conceded the point. You continued to insult her because she wears make-up and likes a band which includes someone with a silly name. That's never happened before in the history of the world.

The fact that you dont like what she does, is mostly why she does. get over it/yourself.

[Stanley Burrell]

You have an avatar.

It sort of looks like the Nightmare Before Christmas font. The band's name.

You are, indeed, quite welcome for my stellar contribution.

[Apathy]

http://www.forumspile.com/Thread-I_like_where_this_thread_is_going.jpg

[Bobmuhthol]

Don't be mean to Zuie. :(

[TheEschaton]

Diddums...Nien dun like you huh? Nien being mean to poor little lawyer boy?


I don't care if you're mean to me, in fact, I'm all for it. But you're letting personal feelings cloud the issue that Zuie, is in fact, a member of an emo/scene generation who makes pregnancy pacts cause it's a cool thing to do.

BTW, if we were having a conversation about some social work thing, I would fully expect you to mention your experience in the field, and I believe you have. Or if we were talking about soccer, and I was being a total wanker, or something.

-TheE-

[Stanley Burrell]

I don't care if you're mean to me, in fact, I'm all for it. But you're letting personal feelings cloud the issue that Zuie, is in fact, a member of an emo/scene generation who makes pregnancy pacts cause it's a cool thing to do.

I'm going to hazard a guess and say that no matter how pierced, tatted, or metro'd out Zuie is, that she is not a pregnant beanfucker with a 50's housewife complex. Or a Boston fan.

[Bobmuhthol]

<<Zuie, is in fact, a member of an emo/scene generation who makes pregnancy pacts cause it's a cool thing to do.>>

It's weird that our generation is emo/scene and makes pregnancy pacts, since none of my friends are emo/scene, there no emo/scene students at my college (admittedly there are a few in my high school), and none of my friends are pregnant.

But shit, whatever, my generation is characteristically emo/scene/pregnant.

[Stanley Burrell]

", in fact," is a message board criminal. Man. I should bust that out more often.

[Clove]

I was actually thinking the same thing when I was reading the article. Scary, heh.



What time frame are we looking at here? I may be interested!!!!!!!11
You're gonna need more homeless guys... so I'm tossing in my gametes.

[Clove]

You stay classy, Massachusetts!Now you know why the rest of New England would love to kick Massachusetts "off the Island"

[Bobmuhthol]

Except that Massachusetts is New England.

[Clove]

awww, poor Nien.. The girl is trying to argue she isn't part of her generation. Normally, you'd be jumping all over the girl, but for some reason you don't like me and have to take the other side. It's kinda sad.

-TheE-Zuie knows what generation means and conceded it. What she was trying to say (in my opinion) is while she may be in the generation she's not a part of the retardation (like pregnancy pacts). Yeah she's a kid and she's dressing and doing kid things... but not dumbass things. Give her a break okayy.

[Clove]

Except that Massachusetts is New England.Spoken like a true Masshole.

[RichardCranium]

Zuie knows what generation means and conceded it. What she was trying to say (in my opinion) is while she may be in the generation she's not a part of the retardation (like pregnancy pacts). Yeah she's a kid and she's dressing and doing kid things... but not dumbass things. Give her a break okayy.


tru

[Shari]

This entire thing is disgusting. It shouldn't be up to the school to provide sex education for students. However, its pathetic that some parents can't do a better job of educating (scaring the high holy bejesus out of) their children on sex and the repercussions of having it.

That, and I don't understand the draw to BE a parent at a young age. I don't think teens are aware of the fact that your entire life is over, and nothing matters but that baby.

All that being said, which station is it? I think NBC is premering a show next Wednesday called Baby Borrowers which gives teen couples a chance to "raise" someone elses' young kids for a certain amount of time. The preview looks hysterical because you see these teens crying..."I can't handle this, I want to go home!"

[Latrinsorm]

I've had a guy from Maine tell me that Connecticut isn't really part of New England, in response to which I of course informed him that he was from Canada and his opinion was wholly irrelevant.

I'm all for kicking Boston out, but it seems WeMa probably has some redeeming values (you can drive through it quickly, at least).

[iJin]

I'm going to hazard a guess and say that no matter how pierced, tatted, or metro'd out Zuie is, that she is not a pregnant beanfucker with a 50's housewife complex. Or a Boston fan.

This made me snort my dp all over my laptop.


You guys honestly think I'm like some walking freak of nature or something. Yes Clove, that was what I was getting at that. What angers me is that even though other kids mine and Bob's age are doing completely whacked out things, doesn't mean we are. Yes we're a part of that gap, but doesn't mean we're stupid just cause.

Oh wells.

[diethx]

But you're letting personal feelings cloud the issue that Zuie, is in fact, a member of an emo/scene generation who makes pregnancy pacts cause it's a cool thing to do.

It's pretty retarded to say that pregnancy pacts is something her generation does, when we've heard about ONE instance of 17 girls. Out of how many millions? It's not a widespread thing in her generation (unlike emo, unfortunately), just a bunch of stupid tits with shit for brains who decided they wanted to ruin their lives.


You're gonna need more homeless guys... so I'm tossing in my gametes.

Two down. PARTY TIME YO!!!!111 AHahahahahahahahahahaha!!!

[Sean]

Zuie knows what generation means and conceded it. What she was trying to say (in my opinion) is while she may be in the generation she's not a part of the retardation (like pregnancy pacts). Yeah she's a kid and she's dressing and doing kid things... but not dumbass things. Give her a break okayy.

It is kinda funny that you reference Miss Ismurii here while defending Zuie for being the same.

[diethx]

No one's defending anyone for being emo, just saying she isn't like the dumb fucks who made a pregnancy pact. Emo is stupid as shit though, that's a fact.

Although, Zuie doesn't really seem emo to me even if she likes an emo band. She's more goth or freakish imho.

[Sean]

No one's defending anyone for being emo, just saying she isn't like the dumb fucks who made a pregnancy pact. Emo is stupid as shit though, that's a fact.

Although, Zuie doesn't really seem emo to me even if she likes an emo band. She's more goth or freakish imho.

He defending 19 year olds for acting and dressing like 19 year old kids... which is okay for Zuie but not Miss Ismurii apparently. They're both attention whores who have less conventional fashion senses and fit in with their niche crowds. But he'll pile on MI (see:Ron Paul thread) when she tries to explain herself but make excuses for Zuie (see:above) when someone (TheE) goes over the top.

But I will say Clove is pretty articulate and has pretty stable library internet for someone playing the role of the homeless guy in this tell pregnancy gang bang!

[iJin]

He defending 19 year olds for acting and dressing like 19 year old kids... which is okay for Zuie but not Miss Ismurii apparently. They're both attention whores who have less conventional fashion senses and fit in with their niche crowds. But he'll pile on MI (see:Ron Paul thread) when she tries to explain herself but make excuses for Zuie (see:above) when someone (TheE) goes over the top.

But I will say Clove is pretty articulate and has pretty stable library internet for someone playing the role of the homeless guy in this tell pregnancy gang bang!

Coming from someone who knows shit about me.

You can keep on talking about me like you know me though. Please, be my guest.

[TheEschaton]

SHIT, ZUIE IS UNIQUE. HOW DARE WE?

[diethx]

She's just as unique as the rest of us. So STFU about it already and go write a paper or read a goddamn book or something, shit.

[TheEschaton]

DIE, THX.

[Fallen]

She is smart enough atleast to not state what she "is", and what she "isn't", and what she does/does not stand for so it cannot be held against her later. Blanket denials of blanket statements make sense, I suppose.

[diethx]

DIE, THX.

OMG U R SO UNIQUE TOTALLY 1ST 1 2 DO THAT EVAR!!!!!

Stop being retarded, seriously :)

[TheEschaton]

Listen, it's 3 in the morning and my boy Mike had a birthdfay tonight. It's well within myu rights to be retarded right now.

[iJin]

Birthdays are not an excuse for retarded spelling.

[diethx]

No, but drinking all night pretty much is. :D

[iJin]

Well, I suppose you're right!


Unless you're drinking something completely shitty.

[Nieninque]

I don't care if you're mean to me, in fact, I'm all for it. But you're letting personal feelings cloud the issue that Zuie, is in fact, a member of an emo/scene generation who makes pregnancy pacts cause it's a cool thing to do.

The fact that she is around the same age as some other people who do something stupid doesnt mean that she needs to share responsibility for that...unless you are taking responsibility for all the stupid things that people your age have done and will do? Let's face it, your generation will have Zuie's beat for stupidity through experience.


BTW, if we were having a conversation about some social work thing, I would fully expect you to mention your experience in the field, and I believe you have. Or if we were talking about soccer, and I was being a total wanker, or something.

-TheE-

You havent done it for a while, to be honest, but there was a period where in completely off the wall threads you would drop in the fact that you were a law student and then go off on some tangential discussion about the fineries of some obscure law.
You are able to have the discussion about law without pointing out the fact that you are a law student, yet for some time, it appeared to be physically impossible for you. It was mildly amusing, albeit retarded.

As for me letting my personal feelings about you/Zuie cloud the issue...that would be an impossibility as you are both just names on the internet to me and I have no personal feelings about either of you. Sorry to dash your hopes.

[Paradii]

She's just as unique as the rest of us. So STFU about it already and go write a paper or read a goddamn book or something, shit.

just so ya know, I am unique. So ya'll can suck 'em.

[Nieninque]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQqq3e03EBQ

[ElanthianSiren]

http://www.threadbombing.com/data/media/1/picard-facepalm.jpg

One of my best friends' sisters got pregnant her senior year, decided to keep the baby(extreme catholics), waddled up for her diploma etc. Her parents raised the kid most of the time, she never went to college, the guy ditched her, and she liked to party (like lots of late teens/early 20s do). Kid was a bit of a nightmare in early school (biting, hitting, kicking etc).

I know that's pretty standard, but I'm just throwing in that the pact is pretty retarded. Like somebody else pointed out, we all know who'll be rearing the kids when the "friends" disappear.

Unrelated tangent: Zuie is unique and special. Individuals aren't defined by their generation but by themselves IMO. I don't quite understand the sudden attack on the idea that there's nobody on the earth quite alike. It makes life interesting, at least.

[Latrinsorm]

The fact that she is around the same age as some other people who do something stupid doesnt mean that she needs to share responsibility for thatNobody said she did.

[Clove]

It is kinda funny that you reference Miss Ismurii here while defending Zuie for being the same.It's Miss I's behavior that put her on everyones radar and got her all the emo cracks, Sean- and you know it. If Zuie started acting more like Miss I, she'd start getting more shit for teh piercings and hair and makeup etc.

[Nieninque]

Nobody said she did.

They did imply she did.

[Latrinsorm]

An inference on your part is not evidence of an implication on theirs. This debacle started when Zuie spoke as if she was not part of a generation, which several people took issue with on the basis of a more standard definition of "people born around the same time", a number of people going out of their way to point out that they did not consider her in the same behavioral group as the progenitors of this thread. (I would also point out that these remarks were tame even by RL conversational standards, let alone PC standards.) Things snowballed from there, sure, but nobody made anything close to a condemnation of the sort you describe.

[Stanley Burrell]

I think the real problem is that if these women have abortions, they can't be saved during the time of the Rapture.

Or, to be fair to you other walks of life, Alhazred the half-crazed Lovecraftian Arab and/or Yog-Sothoth/Cthulhu.

And to be honest, if I see one more thread concerning pregnancy and religion, I am going to urinate liberally all up on the forsythias your mom planted on the side of the house.

[Methais]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LQqq3e03EBQ

Best movie ever.

[Methais]

Except that Massachusetts is New England.


Spoken like a true Masshole.

Bob's right though. Other than having an almost non-existant population of AFRICAN AMERICANS, what have the other states of New England accomplished?

And before I forget, anyone around the Worcester area needs to head over to West Boylston and eat at Bob's Hot Dogs on the Wachusett Resevoir over by the Old Stone Church. You're only cheating yourself if you don't. Those hot dogs will even change a vegetarian's mind.


This entire thing is disgusting. It shouldn't be up to the school to provide sex education for students. However, its pathetic that some parents can't do a better job of educating (scaring the high holy bejesus out of) their children on sex and the repercussions of having it.

That, and I don't understand the draw to BE a parent at a young age. I don't think teens are aware of the fact that your entire life is over, and nothing matters but that baby.

All that being said, which station is it? I think NBC is premering a show next Wednesday called Baby Borrowers which gives teen couples a chance to "raise" someone elses' young kids for a certain amount of time. The preview looks hysterical because you see these teens crying..."I can't handle this, I want to go home!"

Less words. More boobs. Plz.

[Nieninque]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/jun/27/usa



'Pact, what pact?' ask teenage mothers as the world's media come to town

Girls deny mass plan to bear children after 18 pregnancies in one school




Brianne Mackey remembers vividly her reaction to discovering she was pregnant. She hurled the testing kit into the bin and burst into tears. "I was scared, nervous. I had a million crazy thoughts rushing through my head. I had no idea what I was going to do."

Brianne is one of 18 teenage girls in Gloucester who have brought the focus of the world's media on to this small Massachusetts fishing town. They all come from the same local high school, were all aged 16 or less when they became pregnant, and according to the headteacher about half of them had entered into a pact to bear children and then bring them up together.

The news of a pact broke last Thursday and flew instantly around the world. TV trucks descended on the town hall. News outlets as far away as Australia made inquiries. But for Brianne, the only question was "Pact, what pact?"

The first time she heard of its existence was on television. Three other pregnant girls in her class had also never heard of it. Brianne herself had become pregnant when the contraception she was using failed. "I found out I was pregnant and dealt with it on my own. It was a mistake. I didn't plan to get pregnant or anything like that."

Her baby Karlee was born, weighing 3.6kg (7lb 15oz), on June 7.

With every day that passes the events in Gloucester appear stranger and more confused. The headteacher who used the fateful P word, Joseph Sullivan, has disappeared from public sight. According to the town's mayor, Carolyn Kirk, his memory is now "fuzzy" and he can't remember who told him about the pact.

Anger is running high in the town about all the undesired attention. "We're not all pregnant you know?" one woman snapped. Another said: "People look at me strangely as I push my buggy down the road. And I'm married!"

Pact, or no pact, a powerful question remains. How could it be that Brianne and 17 other girls in her year could fall pregnant - a massive spike on normal years when just three or four teen pregnancies are recorded at Gloucester high school? As the local paper, the Gloucester Daily Times, has been reporting since March with several reliable sources, some of the girls appeared actively to be trying for babies, throwing high fives when the test results were positive and looking glum when they came back negative.

Headline news

"We have got to get beyond the 'pact' headline and look to why a lot of these kids think that having babies is something to be happy about," the paper's editor, Ray Lamont, said.

Karlee's father, Michael Mitchell, 17, thinks he knows why the spike happened. "They were horny, it was a cold winter. It's boring around this town. Nothing to do."

When asked what someone like him did to pass the time, he replied: "Nothing good."

Michael's grandmother Claudette knows a lot about having kids as a teenager. She was 19 when she had her first child, and her daughter Donna was 16 when she had hers. When they learnt that Donna's son Michael was to become a dad, then also aged 16, Claudette said to Donna: "You can't preach!"

Claudette thinks Michael will be a responsible father. "He better be, or I'll kick his butt."

Experts in teenage sexual behaviour see the events in Gloucester, and the massive reaction to the alleged pact, as manifestation of adult fears of adolescent sexuality. "As adults we don't get to decide when kids become sexually active, nor when they get to be parents, and that's enormously frightening for us," said Patricia Quinn of the Massachusetts Alliance on Teen Pregnancy.

According to Quinn, the Bush administration's policy of funding abstinence-only programmes hasn't helped. The state has refused federal funding, preferring not to take the strings that come attached, but that has left school districts starved of funds for sex education. There is now only one sex education coordinator covering 360 districts.

On top of that came the decision from Gloucester's local health authorities not to allow a clinic inside the school to hand out contraception without parental consent - a move that the clinic's doctor proposed earlier this year as the numbers of pregnancies began to rise to alarming numbers.

Officials appeared to be anxious about prompting a backlash in this predominantly Roman Catholic town, with its long Sicilian and Portuguese traditions, including a five-day festival this week for St Peter, the patron saint of fishing.

Quinn said teenagers needed three essential tools to cope with adolescence. The first two - information about sex and access to contraceptives - are both lacking in Gloucester. The third, is also dwindling - a sense of opportunity for themselves in the future.

Employment opportunities in Gloucester's fishing industry have fallen in recent years due to federal restrictions designed to help depleted fish stocks recover and rising oil prices: the number of fishing boats in use has fallen from the hundreds to just 75.

It is not just the decline of the industry that has brought misery to Gloucester. It was here in 1991 that the Andrea Gail went down in a massive tempest, taking its crew of six fishermen with it. The disaster was captured in the book and then film the Perfect Storm.

Inside the Crow's Nest, the bar where the men of the Andrea Gail used to drink, there is plenty of talk about fishing woes, and now about the new crisis of teen pregnancy. "It's a shame. This town used to be known for its fighting fishermen, now it's becoming the teen [pregnancy] capital of the world," said Tommy, whose picture standing next to George Clooney hangs on the wall. "It's very, very sad. The babies - what kind of life are they going to have?"

As for baby Karlee, her father Michael is working a few hours a week as a lobsterman. He was given a Mustang car by his parents when he graduated from Gloucester high school this year, but he has already crashed it and has been summonsed for speeding. What are his longer-term ambitions? "Throwing a party," he said.

Brianne plans to train as a nursing assistant and work part-time. She is determined to finish school, undeterred by the statistic that only four in 10 teenage mothers manage to do so.

Claudette, now a great-grandmother at 59, has seen it all before. "It ruins their lives really. But what can you do? You make a mistake. It happens, it happens."
Teen issues

&#183; Almost two out of three Americans are no longer virgins by the time they leave high school.

&#183; Birthrates for 15- to 19-year-olds in America steadily declined from 1991 to 2006 which saw a 3% rise. It is too early to say whether this is a blip or a trend towards rising teenage pregnancies.

&#183; Massachusetts has the second lowest teenage pregnancy rate in the US, at 21 births per 1,000 girls and avoided the spike in 2006 seen in many states. But this statistic belies the fact that in poorer parts of Massachusetts, particularly economically deprived manufacturing areas, teenage pregnancies are much more common.

&#183; In Holyoke, a struggling town in the west of the state, almost one in 10 teenagers aged 15 to 19 give birth.

&#183; In 2001 a budget of $25m ring-fenced for health education in the state - much of it going towards school sex education - was scrapped.