tough love

@ number 8, Australia, In my opinion, Life, Uncategorized Add comments

May 062011

The Australian Federal Government is about to introduce (in next Tuesday’s budget) plans to compel young (school age) unmarried mums to return to school or enter into training some 6 months after the birth of their child. Or no welfare support.

Is this not shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted?

There needs to be a greater emphasis on Education.

And a re-focus of that Education.

Teaching pregnancy prevention clearly is not working…

abstinence needs to be taught. Even Self-restraint.

The now old-fashioned, but never old value of

CHASTITY

needs to be re-valued UPWARDS. Re Branded.

And if we cannot create a generation with self-control lets then inform them of the

CONSEQUENCES of their choices.

The long. term. consequences.

We also need to remember that where there is a young school-girl mum

there must a school boy. now a dad.

Or not. Maybe they shot through.

I hope the new plan includes following up with these boys/men re their responsibilities: emotional as well as financial. Responsibilities to the child as well as the mother.

But for both the school girls and school boys there needs to be a harsh reality check about just what they face, & how their futures will in fact be. Emotionally. Physically. Financially. etc. and there really are etcs to be thought through.

Not to mention the heritage they are passing to the child…

The remarkable exceptions to this story are now being marched out

to promote the new program.

They are the EXCEPTIONS.

I am for old-fashioned values: boy meets girl. They fall in love. They marry.

THEN they have children.

Let’s make this the last generation of school girl mums we need to send into the work force.

Idealistic? Nothing wrong with idealistic. Aiming for, striving for the ideal.

“It is better to shoot for the stars and miss
than aim at the gutter and hit it.”
- Anonymous

school uniforms & pregnancy don’t mix.

what do you think?

http://twitter.com/MargReads Marg Bates

I both agree and disagree with this post Jane. Yes, there should be more education, more emphasis on stopping teenage pregnancy, more done to give teenage girls a better sense of self worth so that they avoid making the decisions that lead them to teenage pregnancy.

Having said that, this isn’t only a this generation problem, we just treat it very differently now to how it was treated in the past.

As for boy meets girl, falls in love, gets married and then has children – it just doesn’t happen that way for lots of people anymore.
Andie Multiplemama

I could not imagine being pregnant and a teenager. It is hard enough as an adult. Maybe experienced/harried moms should teach sex-ed, and what it really means for the rest of your life!