Does Bristol Palin Matter?

[last1standing]

This is going to be a contentious question for DU until either Sarah Palin is dropped from the GOP ticket or the election is over. Some are always going to say that the children of politicians are "off the table" and some will dredge for every salacious tidbit they can in the attempt to hurt the other party.

But in this case, Bristol does matter specifically because she is a lesson for all of us, on the left and the right.

Bristol is a 17yo girl who wanted to live like any other young woman who falls in love or lust. She made a decision with her own body to experience sex and that is not a bad thing. Bristol did nothing wrong.

The problem is that it appears Bristol, and her boyfriend, did not use protection to avoid STDs, or in this case, an unwanted pregnancy. This young woman has decided to have the baby, so now there is about to be another teenaged mother in this world because of foolish choices.

And there lies the first lesson. Bristol had choices and made decisions because Democrats and progressives fought hard to ensure that Bristol would have the ability to take control of herself and her body.

But there is a second lesson to be learned her as well, and it is the most important one.

Bristol's parents taught her that sex before marriage is sinful. They taught her that the use of birth control is evil in the eyes of God. They gave Bristol no choices, she was to be abstinent only. She was supposed to suppress her feelings and bottle up her hormones. No exceptions.

Of course Bristol could not stop being a young woman and so she probably took the path of least resistance. She had sex but most likely did not use birth control. This is because republicans and reactionaries like her mother, Sarah Palin, are trying to take back the rights of women to control their own bodies and in the process are giving them false information, and even no information, to keep them from making intelligent decisions.

Because of this, Bristol will lose out on much of her youth as she is forced to marry someone she will most likely grow apart from and come to despise. She will never know what it's like to live on a college campus making new friends. She will never have the chance to grow into her own skin during these formative years.

So I do come down on the side of using Bristol Palin in this election, but let's do so in a way that actually helps.

Let's talk about how Sarah Palin's hateful message of repression hurts young women everywhere because Bristol will be better served and may one day be thankful if she is able to continue to grow in a country that tells her she is a valued, and equal, member of society, not in a country that calls her a whore.